Spare Me From "Perfect Pitch"!

[David Ilvedson, RPT]

Pat,

If on the rare moment this happens I usually ask the PP person to tell me
when it is in tune to their ears.  I then adjust the pitch with the octave
above or whatever they want as a reference.  They soon hear the problem.
Don't forget to explain they have great pitch memory but it ain't perfect...

David I.

-----Original Message-----
From: Patrick C. Poulson <ppoulson@jps.net>
To: piano tech <pianotech@ptg.org>
Date: Friday, December 08, 2000 1:41 PM
Subject: Spare Me From "Perfect Pitch"!


> I went back to check out a Wurlitzer spinet at a  school that I tuned
>yesterday, the one that the music teacher said had gone totally flat in the
>bottom octave.  Nothing wrong. In fact, a few of the notes had gone a
little
>sharp!  The teacher played a few notes and said " Can't your hear that
these
>bottom notes are a 1/2 step flat?" Well, actually they sounded fine to me,
>but I got my Accutuner out and doublechecked them.  They were right where
>they needed to be.  The music teacher claims to have perfect pitch.  I have
>had experience with some people with "perfect pitch", and it seems that
>sometimes their ear focuses on a harmonic that is out of tune with the rest
>of the harmonics from a string, and there's nothing I can do to change
short
>of replacing the piano.  The music teacher was busy rehearsing her choir by
>the time I finished, so I called in the prinicipal who is also a piano
>player, fortunately, and explained the situation .  She seemed to
understand
>, and actually apologized for the music teacher's attitude and abruptness,
>saying that the teacher is under a lot of pressure to get her Christmas
>program together and also has been sick.  I was just glad that there was
>nothing structurally wrong with the piano, or that somehow my ears had gone
>totally off - admittedly, the cold I'm getting over has clogged my
Eustacian
>tubes up a bit, but I don't think my hearing has been affected.
>    Anybody else had a similiar experience? Thanks, Patrick Poulson, RPT
>