Piano technology program at Florida State University

Piano technology program keys up - News

Randy Rush in Guatemala

Randy Rush of the Seattle chapter is in Guatemala brushing up on his Spanish. He is keeping a blog which you can see here:

http://travelswithrandy-elafinador.blogspot.com/

Budget for 2009

Click here to see the budget for next year.

Looking for a Mason & Hamlin with an Ampico player...

PianoDisc needs to find a Mason & Hamlin with an Ampico player in good condition to put in a very upscale Museum. Does anyone know where we might find one to trade or barter? Please Contact: Tom Lagomarsino at toml@pianodisc.com or Jerry Reiersen at jerryr@pianodisc.com .

Looking for Wessell, Nickel & Gross action

PianoDisc is interested in obtaining an upright piano that has a Wessell, Nickel, & Gross action with lost motion compensation. If anyone knows of one that may be available, please contact:

Jerry Reiersen

(916) 567-9999 ext. 2720

Master and Commander of the piano

If you have read any of the Patrick O'Brian nautical novels, or seen the movie Master and Commander, you know that Jack Aubrey is a musician as well as a sea captain. Here are a couple of excerpts:

‘You have not changed much since the old Reso, Aubrey,’ said Yorke at last. ‘I hope you still play your fiddle?’
‘Yes, I do,’ said Jack, wiping his eyes. ‘All in one basket, ha, ha, ha! Lord, I must remember to tell Sophie that, when I write. Yes, I do: and I see you have risen to a pianoforte. How do you keep it in tune?’
‘I don’t,’ said Yorke. ‘I have a key, and I make my attempts; but it is a sad jingling little box, after all. How wish I could press [conscript] a piano-tuner...’
—The Fortune of War

‘I have just been picking out this piece, ma’m,’ said Stephen. ‘But the piano is sadly out of tune.’
‘I think not, sir,’ said Mrs Williams. ‘It was the most expensive instrument to be had — a Clementi. I remember its coming by the waggon as though it were yesterday.’
‘Pianos do go out of tune, Mama,’ murmured Sophia.
‘Not Clementi’s pianos, my dear,’ said Mrs Williams with a smile. ‘They are the most expensive in London...’
— Post Captain

Test your pitch!

The site tonometric.com has tests for your sense of pitch, rhythm, and melody. While you're testing yourself, you are also contributing to neuroscience research.

Just another piano butcher

Cunningham Piano Company Resumes Making Pianos

MyFox Philadelphia | Company Aims To Bring Piano Manufacturing Back To Town

Antonio in the Bee

Folks feel pinch--and pinch pennies

Here's how some cope as high costs hit home

Sacramento piano tuner Antonio Bombal spends about two hours on the road each day, and he says his gas costs have nearly doubled. He's cutting corners where he can, including giving up the monthly classical music concerts he loves, but he's considering raising his prices. Lezlie Sterling / lsterling@sacbee.com

Click on photo to enlarge

Skyrocketing gas prices have collided with layoffs, foreclosures and food costs to change the way we live in everyday ways. Meet seven people from the Sacramento region who explore how they are coping in small ways, from choosing omelettes over steak to postponing surgery and taking an extra job.

THE PIANO TUNER Antonio Bombal, 75, Sacramento

Tuning pianos has never been about getting rich for Antonio Bombal. What drives him is the passion for calibrating a sophisticated machine that emits the most beautiful sounds.

Filling the gas tank of his 2003 Volkswagen Eurovan laden with tools, which recently cost less than $45 twice a week, now sets him back more than $80, so Bombal may have to charge more for a tuning.

"Now I make about $2,800 a month to sometimes $3,200 a month," he said as he estimated his gas costs. "A $335 difference is a big proportion; it's a big difference to the total income."

Bombal spends about two hours on the road a day and usually tunes two pianos. He is trying to adjust where he can – he eats more omelettes than meat or fish, and he no longer attends the monthly classical concerts that he loves. Although he has medical insurance, he is putting off a surgery so he can save for lost income during the three-week recuperation.

"It is hard," he said. "It has been hard and it looks like it's going to get worse."

– Gina Kim

We need a Vice President

Hi Sacramento PTG Members,

We still do not have a Vice President for next year. Gene has done an excellent job and he deserves a break. Vice President is one of the most important position along with the President to keep the Chapter going. Dan Dannefelser would consider the position if our Chapter meets every other month instead of every month to allow him more time to plan for quality technicals. I personally think that this is a good idea.

(A) I would like to find out if anyone in the Chapter has any objections for us to meet every other month and (B) if anybody else is interested to be our Vice President. We need your input. Please feel free to email back to me and I will forward your comments to the Chapter Officers for further discussions.

Thank You

Mabel Chan

Needs work

An old friend of the chapter sent in this great picture. If you like this sort of thing, check out the WARPS (World Association for Ruined Piano Studies) website.

Storing up for the winter

This piano had mice living in it and one of them brought a pistachio inside.

Tuning for car repair

Hi Ted -
I need help finding a piano technician in the Sacramento area who might be willing to exchange skill for skill.

Here is the situation -
Good friends of mine, Johnny and Chelsea Burke, have a piano that desperately needs tuning - from what I understand it is not even playable. Chelsea's health over the past couple of years has been deteriorating and she has recently been diagnosed with fibromyalgia along with another serious condition that keeps her in too much pain to leave the house for any length of time. As a friend I asked if their was anything I could do and the only thing Johnny could think of, knowing I was a music major, was if I knew any piano tuners who might be willing to trade skill for skill. He thinks his wife would enjoy playing the piano if it was in tune (imagine that) and this would give her another option for activity while she is unable to leave the house. Johnny is an excellent mechanic and would be willing to trade work on a vehicle for work on their piano. They live in Rancho Cordova.

If there is anyone who would be interested please contact me at (916) 768-4044 or call Johnny directly at 916 631 7703, or email him at jandcburke@aol.com.

Thank you,
Amy Russell

Ulrich Sauter on soundboard design

On April 26, Ulrich Sauter will give a 1-1/2 to 2 hour lecture titled "Soundboard Design 2". The lecture will be followed by lunch or brunch and entertainment.

The pianists will be Robin Southerland from the San Francisco Symphony and Jazz artist Delbert Bump.

The location is R.Kassman Piano Store at 843 Gilman St Suite B in Berkley 94710. The lecture begins at 10 am.

You must RSVP especially to reserve your food.

The fee is $10; pay at the door or send a check payable to "Sacramento Valley PTG" to:



Gene Nelson

5585 Dragon Springs Road

Placerville Ca 95667

For further information, call Gene at

(530) 677-3366 or (530) 306-2942 (cell)

Or call the store at (510) 558-0765

Searching for a lost Chickering

Here are the details:

• Chickering Grand 1921 (may be dated 1922)
• Serial # 134326
• Case Lot# 258 8545
• Style: G135
• Brown Mahogany, Dull finish
• It originally had a small brass plaque above the keys, noting that it had been awarded to my grandmother Josephine Williams, but the plaque has probably been removed
• Lost approx 20 years ago from a storage facility in the Bay Area (Berkeley/Oakland/Albany/Emeryville area).

If you find the piano, please contact:

pam.kahl@verbal800.com
Home phone: 503.282.0402
Office phone: 503.284.1534
Mobile: 502.706.0259

Ted Kidwell bushes keys the Spurlock way

Kidwell on key bushings

Click on the image to see all the pictures.

Tuner map

Terry Miller made this great map showing where all the PTG members are in Sacramento.

View Larger Map

Poor man's square

This is a very odd piano... downward striking hammers and strings that go horizontally under the keys. No manufacturer's name anywhere I could see.

Yamaha to Buy Boesendorfer: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance

VIENNA, Austria (AP) -- Yamaha will become the new owner of famed piano maker Boesendorfer, an Austrian bank said Thursday.

In a statement, BAWAG P.S.K. bank said it had reached an agreement with Yamaha over the sale of 100 percent of Boesendorfer shares. No price was specified.

read full article...

Daily Herald - Music failed to soothe beast

It is a chilling question that we have all asked ourselves: What would we do if, God forbid, we had to get a squirrel out of a piano? This very question confronted an animal-control officer in Fairfax County, Va., recently, according to a news report from the Washington Post sent in by roughly two million alert readers. According to this report, the officer was responding to a report of "a squirrel running inside a residence." When the officer arrived, the squirrel "jumped into an open baby grand piano." Fortunately, the officer had the training, the courage, and -- above all -- the musical talent to deal with the situation.
read full article...

NPR Music: The Bowed Piano: Fishing for a New Sound

Morning Edition, February 5, 2008 - What happens when you take a perfectly good invention — one that's been around for several hundred years — and completely rethink it? That's what an enterprising musician and composer named Stephen Scott has done with the grand piano.

read full article...

Piano Trebuchet at Burning Man

Thanks to Ron Berry for posting this on the PTG Blog.

A Midlife Obsession with the Piano

MEMOIR

Keys to Happiness ... Ode to Joy

An amateur musician tries to recover the sound of her beloved piano.

SLIDESHOW

Previous Next

Reviewed by Eugenia Zukerman

Sunday, January 20, 2008; Page BW04

GRAND OBSESSION

A Piano Odyssey

By Perri Knize

Scribner. 371 pp. $27.50

"A soul seems to reside in the belly of this piano, and it reaches out to touch mine, igniting a spark of desire within me that quickly catches fire," writes amateur pianist Perri Knize in Grand Obsession.


read full article

Missing Kimball

I got a call from Jim Geiger, a technician in Kentucky. He told me about a woman named Jean Peterson who moved from Sacramento to Oregon. Somehow a Kimball vertical got left behind and no one knows where it is.
It has a cherry finish and is serial number 11309.
If you find this piano please contact Jim Geiger at 606-683-3059.

Kirsi Lassi explains how to tune a birdcage

I met Ms. Lassi on Facebook. She is not just a tuner in Finland — she is president of the Pianotechnician's Association. She mentioned that she sees a lot of birdcage pianos and I asked her to explain how she mutes them during tuning.

Oh yes... the "birdcage" pianos are a bit challenging :) Some of them are just old and not so good, but I've noticed that Julius Bluthner over-damper pianos are actually very good quality. They seem to have made them still, when others had already started the normal action style. I have a few of them at my regular customers, and they are really quite nice to tune. Of course the dampers don't work as well as in normal action, but the sound and quality are pretty nice. I usually put the felt strip between the strings above the damper system, as far as it goes - maybe just one and a half octaves in the middle (and the whole bass part, too). After that I use the long nylon wedge I use for the treble in normal uprights, sticking it in between the damper wires and hammer shanks. It is a bit slow, but doable. After doing it for a while, you sort of get the hang of it, and can move the wedge to the next one just listening to the noise it makes when you scrape it against the strings, knowing where you are with it :) But, usually it takes a bit bending down and trying to see where the strings are, and with the felt strip, looking from the top to see which strings the hammer is hitting, so it's a bit tiring for the back. You should try it one day, especially if you meet a good quality "birdcage" piano. The customer would be so happy to finally get it in tune :) And especially if you happen to see a Bluthner over-damper piano - those are really very nice to work with, compared to all other "birdcage" pianos I've ever met.

New use for a pegboard

A piece of pegboard (with a couple of pieces of wood glued underneath to raise it off the tabletop) is a great way to store screws when you're taking apart an action.

Technology Review: Gibson's Self-Tuning Guitar

It's every guitar player's nightmare: you step onstage, strike your rock-god pose, triumphantly strum the first chord of a song--and discover that your guitar is out of tune.

A new line of instruments from Gibson Guitar now promises to banish this scenario to the dark ages with high-tech self-tuning technology built into the company's flagship electric-guitar models.

read the full article

From Craigslist: left-handed piano

best of craigslist > minneapolis > RARE Left-hand strung piano Originally Posted: Mon, 3 Sep 19:53 CDT

RARE Left-hand strung piano

---

Date: 2007-09-03, 7:53PM CDT


This piano is one of only a handful (probably the left hand full) that were built with the high notes "al sinistra" (on the left end) and low notes "al rechta" (on right). These pianos were originally built to be sold in southern hemisphere countries where, because of the perceived "backward" spin of the earth, audio vibrations travel in a counter-clockwise direction.

The reversed placement of the treble and bass keys allows pianists from these southern nations to play northern European piano literature without having to relearn the notes. It does require that the score be transfered to onion skin vellum, laid in reverse on a copy machine and photocopied in reverse so that the music flows from right to left on the page. Several collections of reverse-hand piano literature might be found on yAbe (the southern hemisphere internet auction site, based in Australia.)

This instrument is one of the rare ones located in the U.S. It would fit well in a left-handed house, where right-hand pianos tend to stick out into traffic flow and look out windows with not necessarily the best views. You will need to reverse the hinges on the front door of houses in order for the left-handed piano to fit through the opening and fit around the corner to the parlor. Instructions for this re-hinging process can be found at owa_tajur_kayam.org.

• Location: (Somewhere out there)
• it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

PostingID: 413152288

Casio keyboard is 2007's top-selling toy

Brisbane, Dec 24 : The hottest selling toy this Christmas is the humble toy piano keyboard, according to Australian retailer Big W.

The Discount department store chain Big W said that classic toys and 'brands of years gone by' are the top buys for children this Christmas.

read more...

Sir Anthony Hopkins to go on piano tour

Tuesday, December 4 2007, 12:20 GMT

By Kimberley Dadds

Rex Features

Sir Anthony Hopkins has decided to take a break from his acting career and go on a world tour playing his piano.

The Silence of the Lambs actor will carry out a lifelong dream by playing his piano with a full orchestra and telling stories over the music.

His passion for music came to light when he met Malcolm Luker, who scored the soundtrack for his latest movie Slipstream, and the pair started planning the tour. It will commence either next year or in 2009.

Luker revealed they are still in the early stages of planning, saying: "I think people will be surprised by (Anthony's) talents. He's a great pianist and an incredibly pleasant and softly spoken man.

"It's going to happen either next year or early 2009 but at the moment we're doing the preliminaries of checking timing, availability and venues."

The Oscar-winner hopes to kick off the tour in Melbourne, Australia.

Piano on the highway

JOSHUA TREE — The Public Piano Peace Tour has kicked off, or more accurately rolled off, in the Morongo Basin. read more....

Bad trip piano... You can have one too!

... Just call Baldwin...

Piano tuner wins privacy case

Billings Gazette Wed, 26 Sep 2007 1:59 AM PDT
KALISPELL - A man who tuned a hotel's piano as a contractor and cited privacy in refusing to provide his Social Security number does not have to release it and must be paid, a judge has ruled.
read full article...

Online piano appraisal form

A technician in the LA area who identifies himself only as Leo has an online appraisal form that's worth looking at.

This piano store in West Covina is at the end of an off-ramp from the San Bernadino (10) freeway. In the past ten years, seven cars have crashed into the store coming off the freeway — twice in the past year alone. Read news article....
And here's a post from 2005 on the same subject.

Sacramento Bee portrait of Antonio Bombal

The house smells of parchment, of lotion, of culture, of memories, of loneliness, of disappointment. Listen. There is the barely perceptible cry of a dying chord, so sweetly plaintive, so exquisitely formed. Antonio Bombal, who walks with a stoop, goes into his spacious library. The walls are lined with books. Bombal speaks five languages, reads Latin and Greek. read full article

On the back of this card:

The Busiest People you know — Presidents, Industrial Leaders, Scientists, Doctors, Have Wide Interests, share many hobbies. And the One that is Cherished Most of All is Playing the Piano.

And Good News! You're never too old to learn. Thanks to Modern Teaching Methods. Drop in and let us show you... Soon.

John Legget's piano moving demo

Answering machine weirdness

This message was on my answering machine today..

Business card inside piano

Just in case the owner moves back... to Iran

Many of us depended on Western Piano for last-minute piano parts, and lamented its passing six years ago. But did you know that it lives on as River City Piano Company at the space above? It's at 1609 Dreher Street Unit B. Call them at 916-444-7090 or 916-837-3630(cell).

ugly pianos for sale on ebay

"Five incredibly vile pianos worth $1.2m"
Read article

Pianoteq – True piano modelling

A company called Pianoteq has made a breakthrough in digital pianos — true piano modeling. This piano does not rely on samples; instead, it is a computer simulation of a piano. This has two advantages. First, it demands much less computer power than a large sample set. More intriguingly, it allows the full range of piano effects that samples cannot, including: open strings vibrating sympathetically, "catching" chords with a late pedal, "ghost" notes with sostenuto, half-pedaling, detuning of unisons, changing hammer hardness, changing inharmonicity, and so on. To find out more, click below.
Click here to look at site

Piano falls in Battery Street Tunnel

Traffic through Seattle's Battery Street Tunnel was briefly blocked Wednesday afternoon by a piano...
Read full article...

Twilight Zone piano story

Thanks to San French, here is a link to a Twilight Zone episode about a strange player piano.
The link is
http://tv-links.co.uk/link.do/1/106/269/3669/6243
For some reason, it only works if you paste it in your browser window. I haven't been able to make it work as a regular link.

How to Never Lose a Thing Again

This is one of the oldest organizing truisms around, but it is probably the most important of all: a place for everything, and everything in its place.Why is it so popular? Because it works. Read below to find out how to form this habit and never lose a thing again...
For full article, click here.

An Extreme Humidity Control Problem

Since we all drive....

Remove Car Dent With Airduster - More bloopers are a click away
Thanks to Terry Miller for this video!

Mr D found my tuning antics worthy of recording

As I was tuning, I felt I was being watched... I looked to my left and saw my customer stealthily videotaping me... so I took his picture :)

From the police novel "The Choirboys"

"The tired eyed woman had called them to report that her teenage daughter had threatened to run off with a forty-nine year old piano tuner who lived next door." —p. 180

Checking the tuning

Moments like this keep me tuning pianos after three decades!

Piano Dropper part deux

Here is a picture of the incident.

Preview of May Technical

Don't shoot me, I'm only the piano dropper

Read article here.

The technician before me attacked the problem of a cracked bass bridge by putting blocks of wood on top of the bridge and underneath the strings. That couldn't have been easy to do.

Piano tuning on the Amazing Race

On a recent episode of The Amazing Race, four pairs of contestants had to tune a string on a piano. (One of them broke it!) Click here to read more.

Tom & Jerry cartoon - "Piano Tooners"

Piano Tooners (1932)
Thanks to San French for telling me about this cartoon

Playing Piano with Balls

Good comedy and amazing juggling skills.

Frank French on Historical Temperaments

Click here to read the outline of Frank French's April technical.

The Coupled Motion of Piano Strings

A fascinating lecture on piano acoustics by G. Weinrich.

the piano

Lovely wordless animation combining music and the memories of a life.

(Most of the piano-related videos on YouTube seem to be virtuosic solo performances of music from video games!)

Adopt-a-Piano

I just heard about this site for finding or advertising a free piano: http://www.pianoadoption.com
I would still use the Free section of craigslist first.

Pacific Northwest Conference

Have you registered yet for the Pacific Northwest Conference (PNWC)?

Here are some things you might not have considered, but should.

There is a free shuttle from the airport to the hotel.

You get free continental breakfasts and free goodies during the breaks.

Activities include:

…a special JAZZ night opportunity to hear the amazing Ron Carter Trio on Tuesday night if you want to come in early (tickets are only $26.50), contact Vince Mrykalo at 801-375-1987.

…a conference opening reception sponsored by Renner on Wednesday night held at Rick Baldassin’s new piano store

…the Mormon Tabernacle Choir rehearsal, with us as their special guests, on Thursday night

…a performance of the world traveled American Piano Quartet at our banquet on Friday night

…an organ recital and tour of the world famous Mormon Tabernacle Organ on Saturday at noon

...activities planned for your spouse. Call Roberta Kopp 801-235-8077 for details and to make arrangements.

…one day class taught by Renner

…a full day hands-on Mastering the Fundamentals

…PTG tuning and technical exams

…classes taught by truly world class instructors. Several classes are being offered for the first time. You must visit www.pnwcptg.com to see who will be there.

…and for fun and money, we will have a Tools for Sell or Exchange table. Bring your extra tools along and trade or sell them. You might find something you can’t live without to buy. There will be no charge to participate.

Do you realize you only have until March 20^th to register to avoid late registration fees?

Online registration at the above mentioned website or contact:

Skip Livingston at 801-756-9400 or skipl@afcity.net

See you in Salt Lake City,

Keith Kopp, RPT

Student needs help

Mark,
One of my recent tuning jobs was on a baby grand that will need new felts in
the dampers. I would like to watch one of the RPTs do that so I can be properly
ready for the job. Could you put a note out to the members for them to call me
if they can show me that work? I will not be able to go to the meeting tomorrow
night.
530-822-0134

Thank you very much for your help.

Don Pitter

A laser pointer is great for showing your customer something inside their piano. This is a combination pointer/LED flashlight/pen I got at Walgreen's (where I get everything).
A laser point is also the best cat toy.

Tips and tricks for your cell phone

Click here for full article. Thanks to Roxanne Miller.

CSUS Technician position open

CSUS is listing the piano technician job again. To see the whole ad, click here.

Cool web gadget

Find any chord or scale!

Piano playing cat

Space-age player piano

This is an early bit of consumer gadgetry from the sixties. It's a player piano — but the controls are electric and mounted to the left of the keyboard. Atomic!

If you want an 1856 Steinway square grand, call John Cendana at 916-689-5456. Motivated seller!

Bill Shull on early Steinways

Bill Shull at Music Exchange

Brian Bode and family

Brian Bode family photos

Some of us remember Brian Bode from the late 80s. He was studying under Brad Larson. Now he lives and works on pianos in Michigan with his wife and four kids.

Dave passed too!

Congratulations to Dave Reitz, who passed the tuning test yesterday.

Congratulations! Two pass the tuning test

Congradulations to Mabel Chan and John Scrofani for passing the PTG Tuning Exam.
Two more of Peter Clark's students. Many thanks to Peter Clark as well.

National convention

Dear PTG Colleagues,

You will soon be receiving a brochure full of information about the

upcoming 50th Annual PTG Convention and Technical Institute and the

special events planned to celebrate the great accomplishments of our

organization and our industry.

We are thrilled to be part of this 50th Anniversary celebration and sincerely hope

that you plan to join us June 20 24, 2007 in Kansas City.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Catch a sneak peek at the 2007 PTG Convention & Technical Institute by visiting

the convention website at www.ptg.org/conv/2007. The Institute searchable

database includes a full listing of classes, instructors, days and times.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It will be hard to choose between the tremendous educational opportunities

available to all of you. You especially will not want to miss the premier of the

Manufacturers Showcase and Panel Discussion.

Continuous displays of pianos - Pianos built from 1957 to 2007 were chosen

to represent the most unusual and greatest pianos of the last 50 years.

Mini-concerts - 10-15 minutes long and scheduled during class breaks from

Wednesday through Saturday afternoon.

Panel discussion - Led by experts representing a variety of manufacturers and

featuring an interactive discussion of innovations in piano technology of the

past 50 years.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There are 24 NEW classes, the return of last year's popular skills stations, a new set

of the multi-session (and even multi-day) classes, fast and to-the-point Mini-Tech classes,

and more of what you need for your continued professional development. Many of the

most fascinating offerings have limited enrollment, so register early!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLUS, a free Golden Hammer Banquet ticket comes with every paid convention

registration! >From the Tuesday night spectacular opening to the array of free

concerts with nationally known artists to the special historical touches, this is

an event that will never come again.

Start planning now and when your brochure arrives, be one of the first to

join us. Save money by registering before May 15. See you in KC!

The Institute Team

Malinda Powell, Institute Director

Melanie Brooks, Assistant Director

Ward Guthrie, Assistant Director

Jeff Hickey, Assistant Director

--

They're here!

The long wait is over — Young Chang replacement action brackets are back.

Last California State Convention Update

This will be our final email regarding the California State PTG Conference, February 8th - 11th, 2007

at the San Francisco Airport Marriott. The Conference Web Site is: www.santaclaraptg.org We hope you will be able to attend. This will be another great CA Conference!

 

The Exhibit Hall will feature all tool vendors from A - Z (which includes B,F,F,J,J,P,S,S,T,R,R,R,V ), almost every piano manufacturer, and the usual number of interesting additional trade related vendors. The Institute Class List is extensive with 3.5 days of classes and over 40 Instructors. For a complete list of everything visit: www.santaclaraptg.org (the specific class schedule is now posted)

 

While we are past the Marriott Hotel group rate cutoff, you could call the Marriott local phone number

1-650-692-9100 between 9:00am and 5:00pm and see what they can do for you. Or, check the Marriot online reservations at: http://marriott.com/property/propertypage/SFOBG 

 

We have arranged overflow hotel booking for Wednesday through Saturday at the Clarion Hotel, 1/4 mile from the Marriot, at the same $96.00 Group rate until Jan 30 (Regular rate: about $110.00). Parking is $5.00 per day, and they have complimentary wireless for your laptop in the lobby. Clarion at: 650-777-7771, 9:00am-5:pm PST, Group Code PTG.

 

Most other questions may be answered on the web site and committee contact information is also available there.

 

We hope to see you in February!

 

Regards,

The CA State Conference PTG and Santa Clara Valley Chapter Conference Team

Elton John's birdcage

Used from 1969 to 1972, Elton John and Bernie Taupin used this instrument to co-write the music that made them famous. Read more....

February technical

Early Steinway Grand Research Project Update

The February meeting will be held 7:30 pm on Tuesday the 13th at Music Exchange, 2245 Arden Way, Sacramento, CA

The technical will feature Bill Shull who will present his "Early Steinway Grand Research Project Update". This will be a supplement to the all-day class given back in 2005.

Preview of February technical

Hi, Gene,

how about an "Early Steinway Grand Research Project Update" of my all-day
class I gave back in 2005?

I'll have a handout on the three early Steinway families, and we'll talk
about the 1857 8' Steinway we documented in October in New Hampshire, and the
6'8" Monitors I've documented since the Sacramento class of a year and a half
ago. We'll cover approaches to use when encountering older instruments.
We'll look at important undiscovered early Steinways to be on the lookout for:
_http://www.shullpiano.com/html/undiscovered_early_steinway_gr.html_
(http://www.shullpiano.com/html/undiscovered_early_steinway_gr.html)

And I might have a story for you all about the discovery of one of the
long-lost 1869 Monitor prototypes - the amazing "Iron Grand." I may have found
one, as the result of contacts made at NAMM this weekend!

I'll have an 1860s Steinway grand on hand.

Bill

iPiano

Is a referral fee a bribe?

I've often pondered whether it is ethical to accept (or give) a payment in return for a referral. (I never do.) Here's a podcast on the subject from a professional ethicist. (It's the second item, so be patient.)

Anyone do organ key repairs?

More on Young Chang action brackets

I called Young Chang today(866-798-6979: same as before). They have the action brackets on backorder and are taking the names of everyone who needs them. And they are still willing to pay for the parts and labor on the repair!

Update on the State Convention

The Santa Clara Valley Chapter proudly presents The California State PTG Conference, February 8th - 11th, 2007

at the San Francisco Airport Marriott. The Conference Web Site is: www.santaclaraptg.org We hope you will be able to attend. This will be another great CA Conference!

The Exhibit Hall will feature all tool vendors from A - Z (which includes B,F,F,J,J,P,S,S,T,R,R,R,V ), almost every piano manufacturer, and the usual number of interesting additional trade related vendors. The Institute Class List is extensive with 3 .5 days of classes and over 40 Instructors. For a complete list of everything visit: www.santaclaraptg.org

We would like to remind everyone who is considering attending the conference that: the Airport Marriott Hotel Group Rate is $96.00 plus tax if you make your Hotel Reservation by Jan 18th 2007. We encourage everyone to make hotel reservations early. We may not be able to get this cut-off date extended and the regular rate is $229.00. All Hotel links and information are available at: www.santaclaraptg.org The Marriott room block booking is currently about 92% full but we have also made overfill arrangements at the Clarion Hotel next door (.3 miles) to the Marriott. If the Marriott room blocks are full, and the Marriot will not add more rooms to our room block, you should be able to book rooms at the Clarion.

If anyone is trying to book a Wed and/or Thurs room along with Fri Sat nights, the Marriott Hotel online registration system (and the after hours phone people that use the same system) may state that there are no rooms available. You have to back up and change dates and try again, or tell the phone person to back up and try again. The system (and possibly the phone person) is not smart enough to tell you that Wed is not available but Thurs Fri and Sat are, or that Fri and Sat are. [hard to imagine in this age of internet technology] We have arranged Wed and Thursday overflow booking at the Clarion Hotel (next to the Marriott) at the same group rate for those needing Wed and Thurs rooms if not available at the Marriott. All details and links are available at www.santaclaraptg.org

Most other questions may be answered on the web site and committee contact information is also available there.

We hope to see you in February!

Regards,

The CA State Conference PTG and Santa Clara Valley Chapter Conference Team

Our own Scott Johnson is featured in this week's Sacramento News & Review in connection with Veterans for Peace. Read the whole article here.

I was talking to Dan Dannenfelser about Dampp-Chaser installation and suggested he get a 1/4" nut driver bit. It makes driving those little hex washer screws (that come with the Dampp-Chaser kits) very easy — they are self-tapping in fact. If you try to put them in with a slotted screwdriver you'll drive yourself crazy.
I also use these screws for repairing piano benches when the bottoms have fallen out. These screws are a lot better than nails or staples for reattaching the bench bottom.

Reminder about the California State Convention

The California State Convention is in northern California this year (South San Francisco). Associates especially should avail themselves of the educational opportunities that a nearby convention presents. The room group rate cut off date is January 17 and the early registration deadline is January 23.

The importance of a keyboard cover

A piano that was attacked by a vicious dog.

Young Chang action brackets are back

You can get action brackets from Young Chang again! Call them at 310-637-2000 or 866-798-6979. If that doesn't work, Jim Davis has a few at his Samick warehouse. Call him at 800-592-9393 x110.

This book was written by a piano rebuilder turned massage therapist.

I love a piano

From the second PostSecret book. Postsecret is "extraordinary secrets of ordinary people" — if you don't know the site, click here. It's one of the best and most popular blogs on the Web.

It's a Baby Baby Grand Piano

From the country which became a byword for miniaturisation now comes a very very small piano, but it's still a grand and it still works.

Japanese toymaker Sega has unveiled what it is calling the world smallest fully-functioning grand piano.

Measuring just 25 centimetres in width and 18 centimetres in height, it poses a bit of a technical difficulty to pianists, especially those with larger fingers, as each key is only 4 millimetres wide.

But the piano has a full-range of 88 keys and makers are saying they've hit the high notes with this invention.

The inpiration behind the tiny piano was quite simple.

"Few households in Japan can afford a huge grand piano so we had to cut it down to this size for people who live in a small space," Yoshiyuki Endo, one of the developers of the mini piano said.

While serious musicians might turn up their noses at this undersized creation, which is a six time reduction of the original grand piano, Sega says big isn't always better.

The piano is set to go on sale in Japan on April 1, for some $400, and though it's just a toy, it's seems to be as entertaining and at times challenging as its full size cousin.

Graphite and balsa

This article describes new violins and guitars made from graphite, balsa, and other new materials. The same ideas could apply to piano soundboards. It includes an interactive graphic showing how violins behave and how researchers are analyzing them.