World Piano competition

[Shawn Brock]

Oh Bruce, Guess we just have to hang in with them.  I think a lot of technicians are correct when they tell us to "just say no"!  Guess I'm to young and stupid for that!  I love concert work to.  That don't help, and with concert work a person is a glutton for punishment.  Any how, thanks for being in the club with me!

Shawn Brock, RPT
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: bppiano at aol.com 
  To: pianotech at ptg.org 
  Sent: Wednesday, July 09, 2008 9:22 PM
  Subject: Re: World Piano competition 


  Boy, do I hear you.  I've tuned for the recently established Amatuer Pianist International here in Colorado Springs for 5 years now.  We have a nice Hamburg Steinway D for the stage.  However, the practice rooms
  are not scheduled for any attention this summer.  I get about an hour prior to the first event, and 15 minutes for lunch and other breaks to touch up the piano.  Usually, a russian pianist comes in for the final masterclass and recital.  Usually, a few requests for regulation adjustments.  Of course, everything must come within their budgetary limits.  I guess misery loves company.  Nice to know I'm not the only one doing this dance. 


  Bruce Pennington


  -----Original Message-----
  From: Shawn Brock <shawnbrock at fuse.net>
  To: Pianotech List <pianotech at ptg.org>
  Sent: Wed, 9 Jul 2008 6:04 pm
  Subject: World Piano competition 


  Yes, I said the World Piano Competition.  So for anyone who might have been the technician at this event in years past, you can laugh at me this year!  I'm the sucker, OOPS, I mean technician for this years competition.  I can't say that no one warned me about how it has played out in years past.  This year is much the same, except I got paid for my first week of work.  That's a step in the direction of improvement I would say.  For those who are lucky enough to have never come across this event I will give you a short run down of what its like.  Its a 2 week affair with the first week being devoted to juniors under the age of 16.  They are all vary good and are thrilling to listen to.  The next week is the more competitive portion of this event, with everyone battling it out on 1 S&S d.  Man can they pound the hell out of a piano!  I have been lucky enough to come in each morning and find the piano in decent shape as far as the tuning goes.  My time allotment is getting shorter how ever.  When we started I could be in the hall at 7a.m, and they wanted me off the stage by 830.  Keep in mind that was for 2 pianos which were in use for up to 10 hours.  This week I only have 1 piano to worry about.  So with less worries they decided to cut my time back.  I was informed that I shouldn't inter the hall and start before 9a.m.  "Oh, and could you be off the stage by 930?"  What the hell are these people thinking?  Don't get me wrong, often I can clean up/tune a piano in 30 or 40 minutes.  I would not want said piano used for a performance though.  If a piano is on pitch, I like to have about 1 hour or 75 minutes to do what I need to do, and that is not for a 10 hour concert where the performers are possibly some of the best new talent on the planet.  So...  Guess I'l l just go and do what I can do.  If the piano maintains its stability as it has I should not have a problem.  Guess I'm just complaining on principle here...  Not to mention the fact that they cheated me out of a tuning...  They don't want any of the practice room pianos tuned.  Man, these things are so badly out I don't see how anyone could stand to play them.  I had to fix a sticking key for one of the players, did that one for free as well.  Well, he needed the note!  It should be against the law for someone to bring these people in and charge them all this money to inter a contest where everything is so messed up!  I hate the lack of accommodations for the contestants.  That bothers me more than anything.  Once I told someone that the reason I chose to pick up the guitar as a kid was because every piano I was around was out of tune and was unplayable.  Oh, well, what do ya do?

  Shawn Brock, RPT

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