Hi John, First let me reply to your closing paragraph, I personally am not against ETDs I view them in the same light as I view a paps wedge, muting strip, and rubber wedge. Different tools same job. I prefer a paps wedge but I have used the other two tools, with equal results. >I hope that gives you some other ideas about how to handle this so-called >"war". An ETD is just a very expensive tool that sits there blinking until >the skilled hands, ears and eyes of the technician make proper use of it. I was painting a picture of the overal view of the attituthe of the U.K. piano trade towards ETDs in general. You have had in your continent forty years or more use of ETDs over here in the U.K. we have only had them since the 70's and the early types demonstrated at the Colleges did not go down well with the institutions. Lately through the efforts of Ralph Long, the ETDs mainly SAT has been brought to the forefront with the U.K. piano trade. As I explained bdfore the problem with the U.K. piano trade and its attitude towards ETDs lays with its taining schedule. There is one College that I am aware of who has introduced ETDs as part of its syllabus. However, speaking to the seenior lecturer the other Evening who is a close friend of mine, he has a sceptical view on ETDs and was complaining that it takes students as much as three hours to do a fine with an ETD. This is the problem we face in the U.K. if we cannot even get our lecturers to accept ETDs as just another tool what hope have we of education the general public. >Besides... if a person is happy with that level of service I don't >particularly want them as a customer. There are others out there who are >serious about their instruments and make better clients than the >once-every-20-year types who hire the $15 tuner. I agree however, your customer base is split in to three groups institutions, semi professional-professional, and parents who want their children to learn. The first two are always going to seek out a competent tuner who provides a cgood service on the other hand the thrid section of the client base which in most cases is the largest is also the one which will turn over on a five year average the reason for this is the parents buy the piano for the children either the children give up, go away to college, or get married. If they get married you may keep them as a customer. But whatever happens you will loose customers to susstain your level of income, you need to replace these customers. These customers generally want to maintain their piano and will stick to a rigid tuning schedule in most cases. However, these are the ill informed part of your customer base, they open the yellow pages or look in the local press and seek out a piano tuner these people don't even understand what concert pitch is. These are the people I was refering to who are more likely to be visited by the cowboy with the cheap ETD and they will be no wiser on the quality of service until the children say, the piano doesn't sound like the music teachers. If you are lucky eventually they will twig and change tuners and you come in. Of course, all your client base may be in the first two categories and therefore the cowboy would have no efect on you. Lucky for me I am not efected very much by the loocal cowboys just the odd local indian who should no better. The above is probably most piano tuners client base especially here in the U.K. the biggest moan I pick up at branch meetings throughout the U.K. is the local cowboy with or without ETD I too soon will be joining the ranks of the ETDs however, it won't be the full blown job I am going for an electronic tuning fork. but come the revolution in doing so I could be the first in front of the firing squad. :-) Take care, Barrie. In article <1.5.4.32.19970118015848.006987fc@mail.cadvision.com>, John Musselwhite <musselj@cadvision.com> writes >At 07:42 PM 1/17/97 +0000, Barrie Heaton wrote: > >>You will never win the battle convincing aural tuners that visual tuners >>are better or even equal. This is due to forte per cent are ill informed >>and sixty per cent have a justified worry. > >I disagree, as a previous message of mine mentioned. The "battle" is over >and everybody won. > >>It is the Johnny come lately chappy, who buys a cheap ETD and sets >>himself up as a part time de-tuner at weekends. Tuning pianos for >>fifteen dollars, this is the tuner who worries most aural tuners. This > >They shouldn't be particularly worried about them if we have done our job >properly. You shouldn't trust your valued instrument to someone who has no >credentials just as you wouldn't give your pocket watch to someone whose >only tool is a hammer. > >Besides... if a person is happy with that level of service I don't >particularly want them as a customer. There are others out there who are >serious about their instruments and make better clients than the >once-every-20-year types who hire the $15 tuner. > >>is the tuner with a ETD that is viewed by most of the tuners in the U.K. > >That's a public relations matter, as we shall see... > >>who wishes to make a bit of money on the side. If the media latches on >>to the tune off's and there is nothing to fill the end of their news >>cause no politicians have been caught with their Secretaries lately. >>You can imagine the head lines. great Tune off in States of what ever, > ><sigh> With a picture of two naked women at a piano holding a SAT and a >tuning fork on Page 3. > >>whatever, and in England now prove conclusively that ETDs are far >>superior than the human ear. Some bright spark then starts advertising >>in your National press earn extra money at weekends by my kit learn to >>tune pianos in a weekend only two hundred dollars. > >Not likely in my opinion, although something like that is possible. I would >suggest that rather than attempting to fight new technology those on the >other side of the pond should begin a quiet education campaign that eases >public opinion into the idea that ETDs are merely tools and ANY service on a >complex and expensive instrument like a piano should be done by someone who >understands how those tools are used, whether they use them personally or not. > >>Who will suffer the most? the visual tuner, or the aural tuner. It > >There really is no difference. On the whole, visual tuners are aural tuners >as well and the ETD becomes just another tool at our disposal.. > >>will be the public. However, the aural tuner will suffer, but the > >No tuner needs to "suffer". All we need is better PR. > >>visual tuner will suffer more, as they will have educated there >>client's in to the beauties of ETDs. So when the advertisements appear > >Just as snake-oil salesmen used to do. The public needs to be educated that >there is a big difference between a guitar tuner and a SAT or CyberTuner. > >>in your local press have your piano tuned by ETD scientifically proven >>in field tests at PTG Conventions to be far superior than aural tuning. > >On our continent a PTG member explicitly can NOT advertise as such and in >fact, truth in advertising laws would be in effect because the ETD doesn't >tune the piano, the tuner does. What the field tests have NON scientifically >shown is that it's a tool like any other, not some panacea. > >>And you won't be able to stop them because the law under advertising has >>not been broken. As far as the general public is concerned the little >>cheap guitar tuner is just the same as the mighty SAT until the tuner >>has gone. Then look at the damage done to ETD reputation. >> >>What a black and sad picture. > >Then before it happens get on with the PR. Make sure everyone knows that >guitar tuners are for guitars whereas ETDs designed for the piano are >scientific instruments - tools for the technician just as heart monitors and >X-Ray machines are tools for the medical practitioner. > >> Like our colleagues in Sweeden we have a very rigid college based >>training schedule, totally dedicated to aural tuning. In the U.S. you >>seem to be geared up more for distant learning. Which lends itself very >>nicely to the use of ETDs. > >This continent is also geared up toward science and the latest and greatest >scientific devices. However, the most sophisticated scientific machinery is >just a pile of useless junk in the wrong hands. > >>The picture may change here in the U.K. as the colleges are finding it >>increasingly difficult to obtain funding for students on piano tuning >>courses. Possibly we will go down the same road as you with more >>distant learning programmes to fill the need for tuners. I hope that >>day will never come, however, if that day does come ETDs will play a >>bigger role in the tuning of pianos in the U.K. > >They will eventually come to play a bigger role anyway, so why not start >now? When asked about them at any time, emphasize that they are merely tools >and there is a big difference between a high-quality scientific instrument >and a cheap tuner. The worst thing you could do is to dismiss them >out-of-hand or emphasize their supposed faults because some day it will >catch up to you and everyone will indeed lose. > >Also, rather than emphasize mere "tuning", make sure customers and potential >customers understand the value of "service" and the experience it requires >to perform it. Piano service is so complex and requires such a variety of >talents that the weekend "gunslingers" are soon weeded out anyway. > >But the largest benefit with an ETD such as the SAT is not a better tuning >but often a more efficient one. The combination of aural and visual tuning >is far less tiring than one or the other, meaning you can do more tunings in >often difficult situations without burning out. It may often help save a few >minutes on the tuning, which can be spent doing minor adjustments without >interrupting your schedule. > >Tool-handling skills and proper training are becoming more important every >day and with that come credentials. These days when crime and con-men seem >to be common, the public should be made aware that they are at risk from >many sources if they let someone in their home who doesn't have the proper >credentials. > >I hope that gives you some other ideas about how to handle this so-called >"war". An ETD is just a very expensive tool that sits there blinking until >the skilled hands, ears and eyes of the technician make proper use of it. > > >John Musselwhite, RPT >Calgary, Alberta Canada >musselj@cadvision.com > > > -- Barrie Heaton | Be Environmentally Friendly URL: http://www.airtime.co.uk/forte/piano.htm | To Your Neighbour The UK PIano Page | pgp key on request | HAVE YOUR PIANO TUNED
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