[pianotech] Pitch raise criteria

[Rob McCall]

Paul,

Thanks for your reply.  I was able to communicate the need for the  
pitch raise to them very effectively in this case.  I used a line I  
learned at Grand Rapids.  I told them that the piano had been  
"resting" for the last 7 years and it's going to take a couple of  
times through to get it up to a "working" state. Since they are within  
a mile of my home, I was able to talk them into letting me do the  
pitch raise Tuesday, let it sit for a couple of days and went back on  
Friday and tuned it more precisely.  (Being relatively new, my tunings  
take a bit longer than all you pros!)

When I went back, the top 2-3 octaves were within about 5 cents, the  
tenor was off about 12 cents, and the bass was down about 15. It came  
up very nicely on Friday.

Furthermore, I was able to set up two more appointments this year.   
One in mid-September (45 days)  and another one in early December (90  
days later). I told them by then they should be able to have it tuned  
twice a year (July and December) and it should stay fairly stable.   
They told me they were more than agreeable to do that, now that  
they've heard the difference!

Rob

On Aug 01, 2009, at 16:46 , PAULREVENKOJONES at aol.com wrote:

> Rob:
>
> My only question is the use of the phrase "fine tune" after such a  
> relatively large change in pitch. I also do pitch raising,  
> separately charged, with an immediately following tuning to  
> stabilize the piano as much as possible, but I don't characterize it  
> as "fine". Actually, I characterize it as "adequate", given the  
> circumstances, and urge my clients to have me back sooner (within 3  
> months generally) for another tuning. I tell them that the piano is  
> going to be relatively more unstable between the work I just did for  
> them and the next tuning than it will be between the next tuning and  
> all subsequent tunings because of the new stresses put on the piano  
> with such a raise in pitch.
>
> Generally, I feel that I can make a serious argument for pitch work  
> which is a separate charge when the piano is in the range of 8-10  
> cents flat/sharp or more. On most home pianos even at 8 cents or so  
> flat/sharp, I will float the pitch around A440 if the piano is one  
> that I see only twice a year (or sometimes less). I present the  
> pitch work as an extra charge in all cases where there are greater  
> deviations. It requires a bit of serious communication with the  
> client to help them understand the simple physical (physics) reasons  
> for the seemingly redundant procedure. Most of them get it. Some  
> don't. The latter find other tuners.
>
> Paul

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