[pianotech] Fw: NY Times article on pianos

[Euphonious Thumpe]

That last post should not have been sent. (Thank this new ipad that SHOULD have put it in a draft folder, while I I was called away for a few minutes!) 

   Put bluntly: even the best new smaller imported pianos lack a resonant "something"  I find in most 
worn-out, massive old "beaters". Something they will NEVER have, but the "beater" could, and even more so, restored. ("Something" I attribute to the less sound-absorbing, very hard woods in the cases  -and size- mostly.) But it is tough to convince a customer of the value of this, when they are faced with a $10,000 plus bill, and the prospect of owning a nice, new, clean, shiny "piano", for less. (Something we can not afford to altar, even if we choose to live in our shops for the love of pianos' sake!) We can not compete with the government-subsidized "slave labor" camps of our Asian counterparts ( only existing because OUR government's policies allowed them to supplant our manufacturing sector!) so another solution, if there is to be one, must be found.
     I suggest we start "tossing ideas around".
     Here are some from me:
     Establish a massive re-factory, where boxcars full of (non-mousey) old pianos can be assembly-line restored
(with new keysets and actions, and soundboards when needed) so that their inherent worth, both musically and artistically (case-wise) will be obvious when placed alongside the "new stuff" in showrooms. ( My guess, though, if this is done, is that it too will be done in Asia by some entrepreneur shipping containers full of them over there, and then back. Pianos that are dipped by crane into giant vats of solvent to strip them, and then rinsed and rebuilt, etc..)
     Put music education back in schools. (Afforded by spending less on the military, please!  Remember: it is for our MUSIC that we have always been most admired overseas! Even Scott Joplin toured China, and was a "hit"!)
     Promote the joy and worth of making your own music.
     Promote the value of the more traditional music forms, that incorporate melody, harmony, rhythm and dynamics --- and a  nice tone--- for which the piano is most ideally suited.

    The "adopt a piano" site will keep many fine instruments out of dumps. I imagine it will be used far more frequently, now that the NY Times article ran. And I will add that I confess that I've frequently been exasperated by the fact that many small "antiques", "art" and "collectibles" that took FAR less skill and effort to produce (AND just "sit there" and don't DO anything!) fetch VASTLY more than these magnificent beasts of musical potential, built by our dedicated, highly skilled forbears.

     Oh well.......
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