At 01:19 PM 1/11/97 -0500, you wrote: > > In situations where piano care is mis-understood, the best way to >promote proper care is by providing information & educating folks about the >needs of the complex mechanisms wrapped in the wooden-box. People really are >ignorant about the needs of pianos ...until WE let them know what it's all >about! Find out what brands of pianos are distributed around the building(s) >and get the manufacturers suggested yearly tuning schedule & provide the >Music Dep't with that information. Prepare a suggested service schedule for >the instruments with your fees attached. Include a short statement about your >training and experience. Provide a reference or two from any musicians, piano >teachers, dealerships, or persons who might be recognized by the staff. >Provide a business card or two with your 'information-packet'. > > Good-Luck in your quest, sir. > >Sincerely, >Jeffrey T. Hickey, RPT Jeff has given excellent advice here. It took me five years of "educating" a university (via annual reports and proposals and cc-ing them to faculty and administrators) to get a staff position created at a small university (90+ instruments). In my case, it took faculty support (after they had gotten all of their tenure and full-professor status, etc.), and a new dean of faculty. The music department head was the problem. There are a lot approaches that can be used and I'd go into them if I wasn't 9 months pregnant and ready to pop (sitting at the computer has become a challenge!). Briefly, I included an inventory (including the ages of the pianos), proposals for rebuilding, a replacement schedule, a copy of the *Guidelines* published by PTG and a jim-dandy letter of justification that talked about the time needed for adequate service and some analogies to help make the point (Would the university have a fleet a cars with no budget to run or service them?). Victory was mine at last and them my husband accepted a job in Texas and we moved! Ah, life! Good luck! Barbara Richmond, RPT Palestine, Texas
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