The recent thread about a customer's request for a Sheldon Smith replacement resulted in some argey-bargey about arrogance, perhaps necessary but not really to the point. I'd like to contribute a different perspective. The customer was obviously highly loyal and deeply appreciative of Sheldon's gifts, and as apparently no other reader knew Sheldon, I want to speak about him. I was his apprentice in 1971-72. At that time he had a shop in Pacific Palisades, where he rebuilt mostly Steinways for Sherman Clay, and he was a very active member of the PTG. He insisted that I join the Guild and coached me through passing the Craftsman exam. Sheldon loved his work, loved it so much that he would come into the shop between 5 and 6 am, work on his rebuilding (usually 3 or 4 grands in process at any given time), then go out at about 9 and tune 6 pianos a day, then return to the shop and do some more rebuilding work! And he told me "I love this so much that I would pay people to let me tune their pianos." Sheldon taught me, first, that there is no conflict between speed and accuracy. I had come to him from another shop (Tip-Top Piano Shop, Valencia Street, San Francisco, Dana Huff prop.) where I had initially learned to tune and fix old uprights. I worked very hard and diligently to set each string right - worked for hours on a single piano. Sheldon showed me that this was a waste of time and counter-productive because once I moved to a diferent section and tuned it, the changed pressure on the bridge would put my first section out of tune again. So he taught me to tune the entire piano very rapidly, then go back when all the tension was approximately where it ought to be and get it "right" the second time through. Then he taught me "estimate high and then do the best work you can - forget about the time you spend." He contrasted this with the people who laboriously estimated the price and then worried about every minute spent on the job. He said that the worry brought the quality down. Even if you had to pull out an entire stringing and re-do it, for example, do it with no qualms - there's nothing wrong with losing money on a single job, because you will always do the best possible job and the rest of the jobs (and your reputation) will make up for it. In six months or so, Sheldon taught me restringing, hammer replacement, voicing, complete action work, soundboard repair and refinishing, damper adjustment. He was patient, articulate, passionate, and maintained the highest standards. In subsequent years I know that he moved to Berkeley or Oakland, build a larger shop, designed and built his own grand piano from scratch, sponsored concerts in his shop. He was always cheerful, highly intelligent, and a great pleasure to work for, and I am grateful to life for having put me in his path. I left the piano tuning field in 1981 and lost touch with him. In recent months I have decided to re-join the trade - I will be retiring from corporate consulting and moving to Orcas Island in the San Juans (north of Seattle) and I plan to be the island piano tuner in my dotage. About a month ago I called Sheldon after so many years, to touch base, ask him about tools and business, and renew our deep friendship. I spoke with his wife, who told me that he had just passed away. I felt it as a great loss, and I have not seen him for over 25 years. So it was with some joy that I read the message from one of his customers. I am sure that there are many exceptional piano technicians in the Bay area. But I know that no one will be able to replace Sheldon Smith in the hearts of those who knew him. || ||| || ||| || ||| || ||| || ||| || ||| || ||| || ||| J A S O N K A N T E R P I A N O T U N I N G 425 562 4129 * fax 425 562 4132 * jkanter@rollingball.com *
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