[CAUT] Dickran Atamian

[Susan Kline]

At 10:34 PM 4/7/2005 -0400, Jim Ellis wrote:
>Rachmaninoff gave the final concert of his life in Knoxville TN in 1943.
>According to the late Harold Clark, who tuned the piano, Rachmaninoff
>chewed him out because he did NOT clean the keys.

Thanks for telling us this. When it's someone like Rachmaninoff,
I find every bit of information fascinating.

I clean only the VISIBLE dirt off the keys, with the very minimum
of moisture. Usually this only involves a handful of keys. Does
anyone else, for such a small task, sometimes use a dab of spit,
"the universal solvent"? <blush> Sometimes I take the time to walk
to a sink or drinking fountain, but not every time.

I have a beeswax candle, in case someone thinks the keys are
too slick, but I believe I've only had to use it once, rubbing
it in well. I did have someone complain about the plastic keys
on our Baldwin SD-10 once --- which has a complete and unchipped
set of original ivory.

Susan Kline