April 2014

Steinway Training DayHurstwood PianosTony Card

David Widdicombe, Steinway Technical Services Manager (left) and SteinwayTechnician Matt Wilson at the The PTA/Steinway Training Day in March.The day was attended by over 30 PTA Members, Students and Associates.

Read all about it inside.

April 2014 3

The next deadline for PTA News isFriday 23rd May 2014.

PTA News is the Newsletter for the PianoforteTuners’ Association. All views expressed are those ofthe contributors and do not necessarily reflect theviews of the PTA or the editorial team.

Please address letters intended for publication to‘The Editor’, preferably sent via email, computer diskor typed. If by email or disc please send photos

separately to the text. Items can only be returned ifaccompanied by an SAE. Please obtain the necessarypermission before submitting copyrighted items.

PTA News98 Bramshot AvenueCharltonLONDONSE7 7JNptanews@pianotuner.org.uk

For your advertising in PTA News, at very reasonable rates, please contact:Tania Staite, Flat 8, Deepdene, 15 Streatham Common Northside, London, SW16 3HQ.

Copy may then be emailed to the Editor at:ptanews@pianotuner.org.uk

Editorial — 4President Writes — 5Membership News — 6Tony Card — 8Tuning Pianos in Storage — 10Students’ Pages — 12PTA/Steinway Training Day — 14Dealers in the Spotlight — 17Clive Benson — 21Electronic Tuning Devices — 22Council Report — 24Letters — 25PTA Diary/Photo Finish — 27

Training at Steinway Hall, Page 14

4

So to my last PTA News asEditor!

The PTA News is vital to ourAssociation. Not everybody has theinternet and I often don’t even open linksto digital magazines I have subscribed to.The PTA News drops through your letterbox, hopefully at sometime you open theenvelope and at least will browse througha few pages. Anyway, not everyone usesthe internet do they?

If you do use the Internet and are aglutton for punishment, all 30 issues inmy 5 years as Editor are now available toview on the Members section of the PTAWebsite. Hopefully some of the issuesbefore this will also go up there in time.I especially encourage Students to have alook through the past issues because thisarchive could be a useful resource.

In this issue is a report on anotherhighly successful PTA Training Day, thistime at Steinway’s in London (page 14).Don’t forget to make a note of the nextTraining Days, provisionally in Surrey inOctober, and Scotland in November.

Thanks to Richard Dain of HurstwoodFarm Piano Studios for an excellent

‘Dealers in the Spotlight’ (page 17). It’sgood to know there are still innovators inour trade, trying out new ideas.

Also in this issue Steve Droy respondsto Nigel Donovan’s article on ETD’s(page 22) and Gavin Crooks writes aboutan extraordinary day’s tuning (page 10).

Thanks also for a full and lively letterspage.

In fact, while I’m handing out thethank you’s and before I sign off, it wouldbe wrong not to mention those who havehelped me so much by sending in regulararticles.

Les Sherlock was the superb Editorbefore me and helped me enormously as Itook over.

Clive Benson hasnever failed to respond to a plea for acouple of pages, sometimes with only aday or two of notice. Hillary Martin andKevin Brice helped me fill editions in myfirst couple of years when I was stillfinding my way and was grasping forgood articles and stories. Paul Fox hasprovided many a quiz and pianolistreview and our good friend from HongKong, Eri Onami, has kept us entertainedwith those regular sweet photos of thedogs and cats she meets on her round,next to their pianos!

Geoff Carverhill helped me to get theStudents’ Pages up and running with hisregular updates from Newark and JohnThompson has written great tool reviews.

Anyone who has ever supported mewith an article, letter, photo or kind word -thank you. You have helped me persevere.

Here’s a little secret; my spelling andgrammar is not as good as this littlemagazine may suggest. It is Bill Kreis, or

‘Eagle Eye’ as I call him, who has proofread every issue except my first and hasmade it look a far more professionalpublication than it would do otherwise.Thank you so much Bill.

I am so pleased that Anne Burton istaking over as Editor but she will reallyneed your help. Please support Anne bycontinuing to send all your articles andletters and ensure that the PTA Newskeeps going for as long as the PTA exists.

I’ve enjoyed putting PTA Newstogether and hope you have enjoyedreading it.

HappyTuning.....

Editorial Matthew Gough

April 2014 5

The President WritesBrian FrostWith attention

now turning tothe PTA Convention in Bolton, it’sthat time of year when we ask PTAMembers if they would considerstanding for Council.

Being a Council Member involvesattending 5 meetings a year in London forwhich travel expenses are reclaimable.The meetings are a relaxed and informalaffair, but we do get a lot of work done!If you would like to find out more aboutwhat is involved then please feel free tocontact Matthew Gough or myself. Wehave had great difficulty filling Councilpositions of late, but it would be lovely ifwe didn’t have to ‘twist arms’ at theConvention to fill vacant spaces. We allhave busy lives and most of us run ourown business but please do considerstanding for Council this year – if you doI am sure you will enjoy the experienceand colleagueship it offers.

I look forward to meeting those of youwho will be attending the Convention in

May. In addition to theConvention doremember to look out forthe programme of PTATraining days. The one in March atSteinway Hall was attended by 32 peopleand judging by comments on the plist wasa huge success.

Sadly this will be the last issue of PTANews under the editorship of MatthewGough. Matthew has been editor since2009 and has done an amazing job. Hehas introduced quite a few new featuresand I am sure I am not alone in eagerlyawaiting the latest issue to drop throughmy letter box. Fortunately Anne Burtonhas agreed to become editor and I wouldlike to wish her all the best as she takeson this new role.

Finally a big thank you to all of thosewho contribute to PTA News and makingit such an interesting read. I always takea few spare copies with me when I attendEuropiano meetings – they disappear veryquickly.

PTA Sales Encouragement SchemeWe are pleased to announce that commission has been paid to a PTA tuner under

the PTA Sales encouragement scheme by the following piano dealer:

JOSEF’S PIANOS 5 Bridge Street, Rothwell, Kettering, Northants NN14 6EW

Tel: 01536 710529

****PTA CONVENTION 2014****Last Chance for Bookings!

Bolton 14th - 17th May. See page 18

6

Membership NewsAnnette Summers

A warm welcome to new PTA Patron: David Widdicombe, Technical Services Manager,

Steinway and Sons Ltd, London

and also to a new PTA Associate:A98 Mr Robert A Webb

48 Grosvenor Terrace, Camberwell, LONDON SE5 0NPTel: 020 7708 3222 Mobile: 07791 793176Email: rwebbmusic@hotmail.co.uk

and two new PTA Students:S358 Giada Paoli 301 Castle Boulevard, NOTTINGHAM NG7 1HP

Tel: 07933 903360 Email: giada.paoli@gmail.com

S360 Mr M Hackworthy 55 Milner, NEWARK ON TRENT, Notts NG24 4AA

Please note the following changes:1098 John Paul Williams has a new address:

September Cottage 9 Alameda Road Ampthill BEDFORD MK45 2LJ

1000 Ken Forrest has moved to: 4 Lea Terrace Moortown LEEDS LS17 5BB Tel: 0113 318 6940

807 Mr A Leatherbarrow is now at: 2 Hobart Road NEW MILTON Hampshire BH25 6EG

1201 Mr Joseph Taylor has a new phone number: 01993 358040 His email is: info@taylorpianos.co.uk His web address is: www.taylorpianos.co.uk

April 2014 7

Mick DanbyWe were very sad to here that Mick Danby, from Chester Le

Street has died. Mick became a PTA Member only a couple ofyears ago and we pass our condolences to his Family and friends.

Tony CardTony died at the beginning of March. He had a huge influence

on the PTA and was at various times our Auditor, Secretary,Newsletter Editor and Chairman!

Our thoughts and prayers go out to his Family. A tributefollows on the next page.

8

Tony Cardby Les SherlockI was sorry to hear at the beginning of March

that Tony Card had passed away.He was very helpful to me when I was researching for the PTA History book and

went to see him for information about the Association during the period he wasactively involved. His piano life went back a long way, starting in the piano industryin 1951.

In a letter he wrote to me after my book was finished, he told me he was going todocument his “fifty odd years in the industry” (his words) from all his working diariesthat he still had. I do not know if he managed to do this, but I’m sure it would makeinteresting reading.

He held significant positions in both Broadwood’s and Kemble’s before he wentto live in China in the early 1990’s, where he had a significant impact on pianomanufacturing there. When I went to see him he showed me the awards and citationshe had been given from China in acknowledgement of what he had done. He marriedagain while over there, and returned to England early in the 2000’s, bringing his wifeand son back with him to live in Milton Keynes.

His impact on the PTA was significant, becoming a Member in 1964. He joinedthe Council in 1966, and was Auditor 1966-67; Secretary 1967-73; Newsletter Editor1971-75; and Chairman 1973-76. He did much to revive the flagging PTA that wasstill struggling after its lowest point during the Second World War. While a number ofpeople had major contributions to the development of the Association, in thecomparatively short nine years he was actively involved there are few, if any, who didmore in the post-war period. I covered much of this in my book, which most peoplewill have, so I won’t say any more here. I would prefer to conclude with Tony’s ownwords, which give some details I did not include. In a letter he wrote to me, telling methat Kemble’s were about to close down, he said the following (and I am aware hissometimes outspoken views were not universally accepted, but in fairness to him Ithink I should include the extract exactly as he wrote it):

“Bob Kemble and Denny Jacobs invited me to join them just before they were dueto move to their new factory in Milton Keynes. I spent a short time working with themat the old Victorian factory in Stoke Newington, North London. Bob would approachme every year at Frankfurt saying, “You don’t want to work for that antiquated oldfirm (Broadwood’s): come over to us,” year in and year out. I had left Broadwood’sonce in the 60’s to join Jacques Samuel, the Bechstein people, only over the nexteighteen months to be constantly bombarded with requests to return as Broadwood’swere going to upgrade and modernise. I did and soon regretted it. So the Kemble offerwith new factory and a sound future with promotion on the cards, I accepted. Thetwelve years with the Kemble company were exceedingly rewarding. Within the firstyear I was made Technical Director. The move to the new factory took place in 1969.

“I had been responsible for reviving the Pianoforte Tuners’ Association as GeneralSecretary and then Chairman but found in the early seventies my workload too muchto continue the PTA work. This was not before setting up the Newsletter and invitingEuropiano, Piano Technicians Guild and the Blind Piano Tuners Association to join

April 2014 9

forces and promote the skills and craftsmanship of those solo individuals called PianoTuners. Kemble and Co were able to assist with handing over their factory for PTAexams and International Tuning Competitions. I well remember those tuners fromEurope being a little disappointed when the UK tuners swept the board and won all thetop prizes. The independent examiners were unaware of who tuned what, as I had keptall apart and given numbers to tuning boxes where the pianos were. At the end of theday the judges compared notes and the numbers were put forward. However, this wasjust a small way in which Kemble helped the PTA. I also arranged for the Europianopeople to pay Kemble and Co a visit. This was to last several days and unfortunatelyEd Sasso, the then Chairman, was taken ill here and hospitalised. My dear old friendKlaus Fenner stayed in my home throughout the visit I recall.

“Kemble and Co were a wonderful company to work for, as the two ManagingDirectors both worked their socks off travelling the world bringing in the business.They would persuade small companies after WWII in Europe not to start up again “aswe at Kemble will make for you.” We shipped pianos all over the globe to this end.Kemble and Co had an order book two years in advance throughout the seventies. Theassociation with Yamaha organs began in the sixties and elevated to introducing thepianos here in the early seventies. This was part of my brief and I was to spend quitesome time in Hamamatsu after that. Kemble were assembling 5,000 pianos per year.Yamaha were manufacturing two hundred and thirty thousand per year. I could see thewriting on the wall even in those days. One had to be BIG to survive.

“I am sad for the Kemble demise as I have so many fond memories of them. Butsadly I have seen this happen to all our piano makers through my many years in theindustry. I am sure Yamaha will continue to offer the Kemble range eventually, fromtheir factory in China.  I wish them well.  Yamaha employed me as Concert PianoConsultant when I returned to Broadwoods as MD, for many years.”

My condolences to Tony’s wife and family.

Tony Card when Les interviewedhim in 2005

Tony Card’s wife has said she would like tosell the piano he bought a few years ago. Shedoes not know how to go about this, so is thereanyone in the Milton Keynes area who would beprepared to go to see it and advise her? Shedescribed it as follows:

“The Baby Grand Piano’s name is WYMANwith Pianoforce Player. We had it since 2008.Tony looked after it so well. It's saddens me wehave to sell it.”

If so, perhaps you could get in touch with me,Les Sherlock (01202 623275; other details inYear Book) and I will let you have the contactdetails. Perhaps Members might  think of this asa small way we could repay Tony for thecontribution he made to the PTA when he wasactive, those years ago.

10

I oftenhave rathersurreal experiences whilst out onthe road tuning, but this one hasmade a few people smile already,so I decided I had to write it downand share it with everyone.Hopefully others will find itinteresting too…

I was out of my own locality on atuning round a few weeks ago, where Ihad been asked to tune 12 pianos over thecourse of 2 days, all in one place. It wasfor a pair of entrepreneurs, who wereplanning on opening a shop sellingimported second hand pianos from Japan.Unfortunately, due to unforeseencircumstances, the shop wasn’t ready andall 12 pianos were currently in a storageunit. Not the most ideal place for pianosto be kept, and I advised the customersthat the instruments were likely to losetheir tuning again once moved to theirshop, but nevertheless they insisted on thepianos being tuned as soon as possible.

I was greeted by the partners when Iarrived and parked my car. Although veryfriendly, it soon became apparent thatthey knew absolutely nothing aboutpianos, or any musical instrument for thatmatter. Even stranger, they were bothvirtually deaf! Kudos to the pair of themfor setting up a business for the buyingand selling of pianos, although given theircircumstances and lack of knowledge Icould not help wondering what hadprovoked this choice for a career pathway.

Communicating with them was not ashard as I thought it might be at first, as itseemed the younger of the pair of themwas quite advanced as a lip reader. Now,being from the northerly borders ofNottinghamshire, I do have a bit of atwang to my speech, and whenever I am

down South I tend to do thebest I can to mellow out myaccent, knowing full well Ican’t eradicate it completely. Howeverwhen my lip-reading customer asked mewhat part of the North I was from, I mustsay I was pretty thrown!  Is it possible topick up on a person's accent just bywatching the movement of their lips?  Ialmost felt the urge to answer with a morebroad response; “By ‘eck, I am fromt’ North an’ all! How d’ya figure that unarrt?” But I decided a simple "Yes,Nottingham! How could you tell?" woulddo.

As I was shown to what waseffectively an indoor shipping container, Itried my best to disguise my apprehensionat the sight in front of me. The pianoswere packed in so tightly that there washardly any room to manoeuvre betweenthem, and it was definitely impossible toget a good tuning position. The only wayto do it was to tune one with a space nextto it, then shunt it round into the spaceand squeeze myself past into the newspace created to do the next. It was like agiant, piano version of a sliding-tilepuzzle!

Tuning Pianos in StorageGavin Crooks

April 2014 11

I didn’t have long to get them doneeither. A dozen pianos, and only so manyhours per day I was allowed to work inthe unit… I did the math, and taking outtime to shuffle round, take the panellingand celeste rails off and set up for tuning,I only had 55 minutes per piano toactually get them tuned. I needed to goflat out! Plus, having freshly arrived fromJapan, I had the added pleasure ofunwrapping them from their protectivecardboard and clingfilm packaging. Itwas like Christmas at a lottery-winningpianist’s house. On the twelfth day ofChristmas, my true love gave to meeee…

Thankfully, I didn’t have to do themall by ear. Being fairly reasonableinstruments, they all registered a nicesteady inharmonicity curve on Tunelab,and as 7 of them were identical YamahaU3’s, I could use the same tuning file foreach of these. Ordinarily I would havecreated a separate file for each, as younever know if the varying history of theinstruments will cause different partials tobe more dominant in certain areas, buttime was of the essence and I knew theircurves would be very close to, if notexactly, identical.

I set at it, and battled through thetunings, maintaining the highest standardI felt I could achieve in my allotted 55minutes. It started well – all the pianoswere at least in very good condition, andnone older than the 1970s. To mysurprise, they were all quite close to pitchtoo. I rattled on quite happily for a goodwhile. By the time I got to my sixthpiano on the second day, I was flaggingbadly. Going at a breakneck speed forthat length of time is not nice. My tuninghand was numb, my back was aching andmy ears seemed to be singing every toneabove middle C simultaneously. A lot ofmy common sense was screaming at me

to give up. Tell the customers I neededan extra day. It was the sensible thing todo. Another part of me contemplatedhow much easier I could make life if Ijust “cowboyed” the tunings. Mycustomers wouldn’t be able to hear it if itwasn’t right anyway (!), and the pianoswould only go out of tune once they werein a proper heated environment. But myprofessionalism and my pride wouldn’tlet me. I wouldn’t be beaten – I wasgoing to see this to the end no matterwhat!

It was about this time that the guywho ran a business in the glorifiedshipping container next to me poked hishead around the corner and asked mewhen I was going to stop making his earsbleed. As ever, I politely answered that Iwould soon be done, and then I would beout of his hair. Poor guy, and I realisedfor the first time that there were severalpeople in the storage building that hadbeen in all day, as I had been. With nosound protection between units, I musthave been driving everyone completelypotty! Oh dear!  Head down, and tryingto pretend I wasn't making such a racket, Iploughed on, completing my 12 pianoswith a few minutes to spare.

I am sure there is some kind of moralto be learned from this strange experience.Whatever that moral is, I will leave to thereaders to decide, but I am glad I pressedon and completed the challenge. At theend of the second day, having done alltwelve (4 on the first day and 8 on thesecond), I couldn’t help but feel a senseof achievement.

Now I only had that 3 hour drivebackhome….

Well, that’s called going beyond thecall of duty!

Please do send in ‘your’ tuningstories to PTA News.

12

STUDENTS’ PAGESIf you’re a student, graduate, or are just starting out, then

this section is for you

STEINWAY DAYIt was brilliant to see so many PTA Students at the PTA Training Day at

Steinways in March! A special word to those who had travelled from Newark.Hoping you found the event worthwhile and please do let the PTA know ofyour thoughts or suggestions for future training days. We can’t run coursesto make you into piano tuners and technicians but we can help supplementyour training with valuable extra knowledge.

Those PTA Students who attended were:Miss A. Maimaridou

Mr I. FostonMiss A PaoliGavin CrooksMiss C. Byrne

Mr B. Elsey andMr M. Hackworthy

A fine turnout and I’m sure you will find that attending these events canonly give you a head start once you qualify and start your career in thepiano trade.

More Events To Note!● PTA Convention in Bolton from 14th to 17th May

Lots of classes and events. Attend all or some of it. The deadline forbookings has passed but contact The PTA Secretary to ask if there

might be a last minute space

● PTA Yamaha Training Day - Reigate in KentA Saturday in October

This is still to be confirmed

● PTA Kawai Training Day in Stirling, Scotland on 9th NovemberThis will be a technical class with top Kawai technician

Manabu Arimori

April 2014 13

● PTA Yamaha Training Day - Reigate in Kent

Tuning The CustomerIt’s an old cliché but it’s true. You can be the best piano tuner and technician the

world has ever seen but if your customers don’t like you, you won’t get any work.Since this is my last issue as Editor of the Students’ Pages I thought I would share

what I consider to be some of the most important aspects in the running my ownbusiness. They are gleaned from my own mistakes. Please do share your own ideas.● Charging Not so much your fee as your quote. Make sure the customer knows

how much they are paying before you start. Examine the piano and pitch beforethe customer disappears to do the weeding. If something horrible happens like abreaking string, go back outside to the weeds and explain the situation includingthe cost of putting it right (to the customer, not the weeds).

● Front of House Ever been to a shop or restaurant and been immediately put off bythe first person you see at the counter? I bet you never went there again? Beprofessional, polite and friendly. Smile – please, please smile! It makes everyonehappier including you and more importantly it makes people want to see you again.

Have a little chat – you don’t have to relate your life story (though they may well tell you their own!) Share a cuppa and a biscuit – it’s a perk of the job!● Problems The customer is always right! Well actually, no they’re not but

remember who is paying who. If someone rings to say that their old clapped outoverdamper now has a slight echo on note C64, which was fine before you came,avoid saying ‘it’s a clapped out old overdamper that sounded like the worst pubpiano before I tuned it for the first time in 12 years!’ Instead say ‘I’m sorry to hearthat, I’ll pop round and sort that out for you’. Just pop in when your passing. If ittakes you 5 minutes don’t charge. Make sure to read the superb piece aboutoverdampers by Les Sherlock which you’ll find on the Members Area of the PTAWebsite first. Chill out when customers annoy you or are out when you call! Givethem a second chance – we all deserve one, and who knows where that contactmay lead in the future? A new piano maybe? Half a dozen recommendations?Who knows?

● Book them in Again Don’t leave before offering to make another date or askingwhether they would like you to make contact in 6 or 12 months time.

● Stick with the PTA Seems obvious but many don’t and that’s a BIG mistake.Maybe it’s because they keep putting off taking the PTA Test and drift away,maybe it’s because they make the false economy of saving the Associatesubscription if they don’t take the Test. Whatever it is they are isolatingthemselves. In 1 year you can pick up so much knowledge from PTA News, PTATraining Days, the PTA Convention and the PTA Pianolist that the Subscriptioncan suddenly seem ridiculously cheap! Help is always at hand with the PTA.

● Don’t Give Up There are times you will want to swap to a 9–5 office job but stickwith it. If you have decided to run your own business rather than work for a shopor a workshop then it will take time to build up your round – probably many years.Try contacting music shops, schools and piano and music teachers, advertise invillage mag’s. Diversify – maybe with a little buying and selling, but making sureyour reputation for good quality is safeguarded. Maybe start renting 1 or 2 (you’llneed a licence from the FCA for this). Take heart, it can be a superb occupation.For me the people I meet are the best part and the job has given me confidence as aperson. Good luck and I wish you all the very best in your chosen career!

MG

14

PTA/STEINWAY TRAINING DAYMatthew Gough This was the

third of the new‘PTA Training Days’ and proved tobe just as successful as theprevious two, with 32 Members,non-Members, Associates andStudents coming along. It wasespecially good to see a goodcontingent from the course atNewark taking part.

Steinway Hall is situated inMarylebone Lane, off Oxford Street in thecentre of London. On arrival we werewarmly greeted by staff and had time tovisit the showroom to try out the beautiessuch as the Model D concert grand beforegreeting other delegates with a coffee andbiscuit in hand!

After an introduction by PTAPresident Brian Frost, David Widdicombe,Steinway UK’s Technical ServicesManager welcomed us and introduced usto Matt Wilson a Steinway technicianwho would take us through the day.

Immediately we all received a veryuseful handout of notes which gave tipson everyday problems like ‘bobbling’hammers and squeaky pedals as well as alist with factory specifications on theSteinway, Boston and Essex pianos; veryuseful information indeed.

The first part of the morning was spentwith Matt talking about regulation. Ofparticular interest to me was just howminute differences in the depth of touchcan effect the touch in various ways. He

showed us many useful tools and gauges,some of which we could make ourselves.

Matt then used action models tohighlight specific problems all of us willencounter at some time or another.

Some customers are known tocomplain aboutany noise in anactionwhatsoever andit was veryinteresting tohear how wecan reduceeveryconceivablesound.

There were tips on how tocompress and trim split wedgedamper felts, which develop

‘ears’ in time which can have abad effect on damping.

Damper springs onuprights can make a creakingnoise and

this can be tackledwith that magicalteflon powder.

Pedal squeakswere tackled. Wouldyou have worked outthat the lacquer on thepedal rods of brandnew pianos sometimescreate a squeak as theypass through the rodbushing holes? Maybeyou would figure itout in the end but it’s useful to get a headstart!

Much useful information was impartedwith relation to Steinways but the greatthing was that much of it would relate to

Brian Frost (left), David Widdicombe (centre) and Matt Wilson

Burnishing Tool for theDamper Socket Rail

April 2014 15

any piano and Matt was very happy totake lots of questions from us relating toour own issues or problems with specificpianos they were working on. Sometimeswe would highlight a problem and hewould create it on his action model toshow us the cause and how to deal with it.

The morning session seemed to fly byand all too soon it was time for lunch andanother biscuit or two!

The afternoon session was spent in theAladdin's Cave of the Steinway Workshop.What a fine array of tools, machines andall sorts of pianos in various stages ofundress!

In a superb session, Matt wentthrough pre toning procedure. This is theinitial preliminary toning process youhave to carry out on a new untoned set ofhammers. We all gathered around thepiano as he stabbed each hammer between10 and 30 times in specific positions,depending on the region. The ‘before’ and

‘after’ sound was a transformation and amore rounded and pleasant tone wasevident. Bear in mind that this is theprocess before a light reshaping and finetoning is carried out.

Matt also showed us how we can bringa hammer back to life by needling it invarious places rather than just ‘doping’ itup, since adding a liquid solution to

harden a hammer head is something thatis very difficult to reverse. It really was a fascinating session andwe learned some surprising and eyeopening toning methods which will be ofgreat value to us all I’m sure.

Next, we were shown how to try toalleviate noise emanating from a roughcapo bar by using a thin bushing clothplaced between the strings near theagraffe and we talked generally about thecapo bar and problems that can arise.

All too soon time had run out on usand we thanked David and Matt with aresounding round of applause for afabulous day. There really were tips and

In certain situations, needling straight downthe nose of a hammer can be a useful

technique if care and caution is used

Continued Overleaf

Centring Jacks in the gate

16

tricks that you would not have picked upanywhere but on a day like this.

David had very kindly organised ameal for us all, so after another play of thepianos in the showroom we all headedover to the local hostelry where David hadbooked the upper floor for us all – withdrinks from the bar included as well as themeal no less!

We were able to chat and talk pianossome more for a couple of hours or sobefore we all headed home full of the joysof our profession.

I must say I was surprised andimpressed by the openness andfriendliness at Steinways. All questionswere answered and there were no ‘no go’areas. Students were able to photographand video parts of the proceedings andthere was no ‘stuffiness’ at all.

Thank you so much to Steinways,especially David and Matt for theirgenerosity as well as for giving us all asuperb day. There is already talk ofanother Steinway Day with a differentslant soon. Don’t miss it!

Steinway Day Continued

****PTA CONVENTION 2014****Last Chance for The Last Drop!

Wednesday 14th May – Saturday 17th May 2014

Mercure Last Drop Village Hotel, Bolton● Learn new skills with a choice of classes and hands-on workshops● Pick and choose which days and classes to attend● Check out new tools and equipment from our suppliers in the

Exhibition area● Enjoy the annual PTA lunch and AGM

Phone 0845 6026796 urgentlyto enquire

April 2014 17

Dealers in the SpotlightHurstwood Farm Pianos

Compiled by Matthew Gough

Name of dealership:  Hurstwood Farm Piano StudiosLocation of Dealership: Borough Green near SevenoaksContact Details: Richard Dain www.hurstwoodfarmpianos.co.ukE mail: info@hurstwoodfarmpianos.co.ukTelephone: 01732 885050

1. How did you get into the Piano Trade and how long has your shop ordealership been established?

For my schooldays at Tonbridge School, I was privileged to be taught piano by ainspired Director of Music who regarded that part of a boy’s education was to showhim the merits of a range of superb instruments, Blüthner, Bechstein, Steinway andBösendorfer all being available to us.  In the absence of tuners and technicians, hepersonally lovingly maintained these pianos  having acquired them on loan inexchange for free storage, from local country houses requisitioned by the army.   Therich and varied sound quality of Bösendorfer soon became my favourite. Aged 17, Ivowed I would one day own one.  It took 40 years to achieve this, but in early 1991 Itook delivery of my very own Bösendorfer Imperial.  It utterly changed my musicallife and I set out to learn again everything I had ever played. In those days Imperialswere very few in the UK and a number of professional  artists visited to experience itand some to record on it.  Andras Schiff was one of these and he agreed to play arecital using a farm bulding as the concert hall.  Some 60 other prominent artistsfollowed including Radu Lupu, Demidenko Alexeev, Frankl. Hammerlin, Hough.  Formy concert hall I wanted to offer these artists a choice of make of piano and acquiredanother Imperial SE as house piano and a Steinway D (The famous 575 used for manyinternational recordings). The performer voting was about 50/50 when we asked howwell they thought they had played on each make.

2. Tell us a bit more about your shop and staffBösendorfer saw an opportunity and asked to stand a few new pianos at the back of

the hall. I thus became a Bösendorfer dealer.  Sales proliferated. Over a period Igraduated to becoming the main distributor for Bösendorfer in the UK,  andsubsequently their  largest dealer world wide.

3. What range of pianos do you sell and why have you chosen that range?I am only interested in selling ultimate quality instruments and was approached

both by Stuart of Australia and Steingraeber of Bayreuth.  Stuart pianos are, and thenwere, the finest instruments ever made by the industry but priced so highly it proveddifficult to pursue. Never the less we sold three and still offer them to those who wantto pay to have the world’s best.   Steingraeber is one of the few and perhaps the onlyremaining 100 percent craftsman-built pianos with perfection of presentation,

Richard Dain explainsthe principles and historybehind Kent’s renownedpiano showroom

18

performance  and finish unequalled elsewhere in the industry. Our cooperation hasbeen mutually very successful and together we have enjoyed a growing market for adecade or more.  Over time,  in close cooperation with Steingraeber, we have sought totake piano manufacture a step forward by introducing a new form of high acousticefficiency bridge agraffe that enhances the sustain  and power of notes.  We havedesigned and introduced ultra thin carbon fibre piano soundboards that are climateresistant and almost indestructible. They have a  slightly different sound – a littlecrisper- but almost no one  realises these pianos do not have a wood board unless told.With voicing any difference is easily masked.

In the past year we have designed and produced a prototype piano made wholly ofcarbon fibre and built into all our own Phoenix pianos a new extra sensitive and lowfriction feltless action by WNG that is so resistant to humidity that it can be immersedin water (except the hammer heads) and even after 12 hours soaking will operateperfectly.  Its carbon fibreshanks are so stiff that theartist/ instrumentinterface  is notcompromised by theflexure of wooden shankswhich cause the infamous

“volume ceiling” onconventional pianoswhen more forcefulplaying causes lessvolume by displacementof the strike point as theshank bends.  WithSteingraeber’s help, whosupply the acoustic bodyof our new technologypianos, we now offer all theseadvances in our own build of piano – the Phoenix. Because of our low overheads thisultimate performance piano costs much less than comparable competitor instrumentsof the same size. Top artists are increasingly keen to use them  in performance.  Wealso build this technology into old high quality instruments to enhance theirperformance.  These are the cheapest way for anyone to get a superb instrument at avery modest price.

4. Do you pay commission under the PTA Sales Encouragement Scheme andhave you any suggestions as to how tuners can encourage new or second hand pianosales?

We deplore any hidden commission paid to a third party that is not disclosed to thepurchaser in the form of a commission for advice.  We do offer commissions if thetuner/ technician is willing to inform the purchaser that he is being paid for his advice,but not otherwise.  In our opinion hidden commissions have degraded  the image of an

A carbon fibre piano being restrung

April 2014 19

Dealers in the Spotlight Continuedotherwise cultured industry and opened the door to distasteful  commercial influenceand bribes now abounding in the supply of pianos to institutions.

5. How is business? Have you noticed the recession? If so, have you made anychanges to combat it?

Until mid 2013 we hardly noticed the recession because our clientele were from abranch of society with funds to absorb the shock.  Recently, business has been morefocused on rebuilt older pianos and cheap Chinese imports.  We now no longer offerthe latter because of the risk to our reputation.

We have modified our website to enhance attraction of potential buyers.

6. What are your views on the Electric V’s Acoustic piano debate and how doyou defend real pianos when posed that question by clients?

Electric pianos are different instruments with a different application. Interpretedclassical music cannot be played with satisfaction either for the artist or for thelistener  on an electric piano even of the most advanced type. For practice in a housewhere neighbours may suffer irritation, an electric piano is a good solution and it is farbetter than grandma’s old upright with some notes that stick, for a child learner.

We do offer advanced technology reproducing pianos for recording and teachingpurposes, but not digital electric instruments.  When pressed for a recommendation onelectric pianos we mostly suggest Roland is the best option.

7. Tell us about your own piano in your own home, whether you play it and whatyou play.

Although now 86 years old I play regularly, and even gave a short recital recently.In my own home I have a Bösendorfer Imperial and alongside it a Steingraeber-Phoenix. I mostly play on the Steingraeber Phoenix.

8. If you could have any piano made in the world what would it be?I am in the enviable position of being able to make this choice.  I have chosen

Steingraeber Phoenix.  A second option would be Australian Stuart because I loveanything of such superb artistry and craftsmanship.

9. Which is the worst piano you’ve ever come across and why?The comprehensive and indisputable  reply is any mass produced pianos from the

Far East.  Many are barely musical instruments and they degrade classical music.

10. How do you see the piano industry moving forward in the next decade orso?

I expect to see adoption widely of  precision thickness  ( 1 to 1.5mm)  multi layerand  multi directional strand carbon fibre sound boards with a wood veneer UV lightscreen on the upper side.  These will replace conventional wooden boards becausethey do not crack with adverse climate nor does the crown collapse progressively over5 to 20 years of life  as does a wooden board under the continuous string down bearing

17

load. We and Steingraeber already offer these boards as an option on both new andrenovated pianos.

We already offer stainless steel  or stainless copper wound bass strings.  Thesehave  clearer sound and do not tarnish or degrade so rapidly with time.  They havelower specific gravity and need special scaling.  Using stainless steel to replace upperregister carbon steel strings is a worthy objective, but unfortunately  no whollysatisfactory material to replace carbon steel piano wire is yet available.  To developsuch string material would not be a great challenge to a professional metallurgist, butthe commercial return is not apparently attractive enough to initiate this. There isprobably no commercially available stainless material ideal for all aspects of theapplication.

We feel certain that the low friction climate resistance and high sensitivity ofcarbon fibre/composite feltless actions such as those made by WNG will take anincreasing percentage of the market. The only thing stopping their adoption  now isconservatism of piano designers in the big companies who seem scared to make atechnical judgement and find it easier to hold forth about largely imagineddisadvantages .  These actions have teething troubles, such as noise, that are yet to becompletely solved, but I see a way through this based on simple engineering practice.We manage to overcome it on the pianos where we fit these actions.

We already have built  a high performance piano made almost entirely of carbonfibre.  One objective for this is to make an instrument light enough for a soloist to takehis own piano to recital without heavy cost.  The first build weighs about one third asmuch as a comparable traditional build piano of the same size..... and yes, it doessound like a piano.

Steingraeber Pianos in the Showroom at Hurstwood Farm Piano Studios

Thank you to Richard Dain of Hurstwood Farm Piano Studios.To take part in ‘Dealers in the Spotlight contact The Editor using

the details on Page 3.

April 2014 21Continued overleaf

A Sense Of DirectionClive BensonObviously I had

looked up the roadon the map and seen that it wason the left off Delavale Road.

On the phone the man had said hethought the bus sometimes turned round'at the end' but when I got on, the driversaid they weren't able to do that this week,and that instead he would drop me at theOld Police Station. As I didn't actuallyknow where the Old Police Station was,when the bus turned right onto GreetRoad I assumed it was in order to comeround in a circle, but at the first stop thedriver sat looking at me in his mirror, andI feared the worst. I then had to walkback to the village of course, where,instead of going right, I decided to takethe bus driver's advice and carry straighton, taking the turning after the library.

Here I asked directions again, but theroad began to go up an incline, as the mancovered in soot had said it would. It wascurious how I still expected Bassett Closeto be on the left, even though I was nowapproaching from the opposite direction.When I saw it on the right I thought tomyself,

'Just as well I didn't follow the map.'The man wasn't there. It was a young

girl with her grandmother watching horseracing on television. I assumed theywould stop when I started work on thepiano but in fact they didn't. I didn't askthem to stop because it seemed so unusualfor a girl and her grandmother to have aninterest in horse racing. The piano hadn'tbeen done for years and there was onesticking note. At first I put the action onthe floor. Then, to make it easier formyself, I carried it over to the diningroom table. A lace tablecloth. I gave theoffending jack a prolonged jiggle. Whenthe Gold Cup started the excitement levelrose a little, but it was hard to imagine

they had bet money on it.Above the piano was a framedcertificate, Grade 8 Jazz Saxophone, andthis made sense because there was asaxophone in the corner. She wasobviously a talented girl. The winningjockey kept saying 'I can't believe it!' Atsome point the man came in and so mustonly have been in another room in thehouse. I had my back to him and for somereason was fearful that he would start aconversation with me. I pictured him asthin and strict, but in fact, when I had putthe piano back together and turned round,I was surprised to see that he had a genialface.

I charged quite a lot, partly as a kindof punishment for them having left it solong, but also as a deterrent, even thoughit was just as likely to have the oppositeeffect and to make them wait another tenyears, in which case I had to get as muchout of them as possible while I had thechance. There were a lot of pianos in thisarea and the majority were in a sorry state,but how long would the work continue if Ionly ever tuned them once?

The man said the pathway led throughto the road and here I turned left,unaccountably now imagining it wasDelavale Road because that would makeBassett Close a turning off it on the right,when it can surely only have been a roadrunning parallel. I had always pridedmyself on my sense of direction, andalways would, but all the same somethingdidn't feel quite right, and so after about ahundred yards I thought it best to call outto the woman on the other side of the road,who told me the village was in the otherdirection. This didn't make sense at all,but of course she had to be right. I ended

up walking all the way through the villageto the War Memorial, where I knew forcertain the bus would stop. There I satdown on a bench to wait and watched the

cars coming back from the races, and feltquite happy.

22

Clive Benson Continued

Books by Clive BensonClive has told me he would like to take a rest from writing for PTA

News for the time being. Thank you so much Clive for your stories.If you like Clive’s articles as much as I do why not buy one of his

books, or both if you like!His new book is called ‘The Invention Of Pianos’ and is a memoir.

It is free but Clive has kindly asked for a donation to the PTA GeneralFund instead. Thanks Clive!

His first book ‘The Relevance of Sofas’ is also available. Althoughthe subject of this book isn’t a laughing matter, being about hisexperience of going through cancer, I thoroughly enjoyed it, the stylebeing unmistakably Clive!

Both books are available from Clive by writing to him at:6 Winstonian Road, Cheltenham, Gloucester GL52 2JE or email him at: crfbenson@yahoo.co.uk

Electronic Tuning DevicesSteve Droy

I have been using Tunelab forabout a year now.

This was my first foray into the worldof ETD’s. I am tuning in Mumbai whichhas ridiculously high levels of humidityin the monsoon season and pretty variablelevels all year round. A lot of customershave windows or French doors open mostof the time, to get a cooling throughbreeze, so the majority of the pianos areoffered little protection from the outsideenvironment. Consequently most of thepianos are very out of tune and it is

almost unheard of for any of the previoustuning to be preserved. The same piano isoften over and under pitch at variouspoints on the bridge. 30 centdiscrepancies are about average. I hadstarted trying to tune these pianos as Iwould have done in the UK, by ear andusing the rough one third of thediscrepancy over-pull rule. The resultswere worse than I had hoped and myshoulder was getting very tired. We sell BSteiner pianos made by Samick and theseinstruments have very tight tuning pins,

Following on from the article by Nigel Donovan inthe last issue (February 2014), Steve Droy adds hisown thoughts.

April 2014 23

which often creak and stick. It illustratesthat soundboard and bridge movement hasmore of a part to play than slipping pins,in making the piano go out of tune.

I decided to try an ETD because theyhave the over-pull setting and I have tosay it has been a Godsend. The tunelab isvery good at doing this kind of thing. Itreads each note and comes up with anover or under pull calculation as required.If the piano has notes which are both overand under pitch this is a life saver. Afterthe first pass the piano is very nearly intune. A second pass by ear or withTunelab, without the over-pull is usuallyenough to ensure a good result.

I also teach piano tuning here and Idecided to introduce Tunelab in to thetuition programme. The previous studenttuners had only used Korg tuners as anelectronic tuning fork, but doneeverything else by ear. This is how I wastaught at Newark and of course asrecommended by the PTA. The studentstook about 2 years before some of themcould attempt something equating to thePTA tuning test. They needed a longertime, usually over 3 hours and to a lessexacting standard, but even so not a badeffort.

Last year for the first time I introducedthe Tunelab software after about 9 months.The results have been excellent. I havediscovered that if the student has areasonable technique for setting the pinand can tune a fairly tidy unison, that theycan use the Tunelab to produce anacceptable tuning. I am expecting most ofthe students to be able to carry out anETD aided tuning, in about 2 hours after12 months training.

I also got them to use Tunelab to trainthemselves, by doing an exercise whichrequires them to tune a bit by ear, checkagainst the Tunelab, make anyadjustments and then move on and tune afew more notes by ear and so on. This hasalso produced good results, with studentsable to hone their aural skills at the sametime as getting used to tuning with theETD. I also discovered that if the softwareis used right from the word go, onindividuals with no aural skills and unableto set a pin, the situation was actuallymade worse and they found it even moreconfusing. I guess its one more thing tothink about. The timing of theintroduction of the software is crucial andhas to be tailored to each individual.When they can already roughly tune apiano by ear, the judicious use of thesoftware is highly beneficial. There seemsto be little one can do to increase thespeed of the students tuning other thangiving them more hours in the saddle.Even the best of them are pretty slow, thismay be an Indian thing, but I suspectnothing can replace, simply doing a lot oftuning.

In conclusion I think that ETDs can bean excellent tool in both the classroomand the workshop, if used appropriately.In the hands of someone with good skillsalready they are a really useful day to dayaid, especially where pitch adjustment isrequired. I would not now consider doingpitch adjustment in any other way andbecause of the high numbers of very outof tune pianos I have to deal with, theover-pull tuning followed by a 10 or 15minute check has become my standarddefault tuning procedure on a day to daybasis.

Thank you to our PTA Correspondent in India - Steve Droy!So what are your own experiences with Electronic Tuning Devices? Do tell us by

using the details on page 3.

24

The meeting of the ExecutiveCouncil was held on 29th March atMorleys, Lewisham.

Present were Brian Frost (President),Matthew Gough (Vice President),Andrew Jamieson (Treasurer), AnnetteSummers (Secretary), Anne Burton,Roberta Caradine, John Lambert, NigelPolmear and Tania Staite.

Apologies were received from PaulFox and Lewis Flisher.

The PTA Training Day at SteinwayHall was a great success with nothing butpositive feedback. 32 attended with 25staying for the meal afterwards, verykindly sponsored by Steinways.

Another Training Day is beingarranged for the Autumn, hopefully withYamaha in Reigate and there will beanother in Scotland with Kawai inNovember to coincide with the AutumnDinner. Next March will see a trainingDay hosted at The Guildhall School ofMusic in London with Malcolm McKeand.

A copy of the PTA Public and ProductLiability Insurance policy is to be put onthe PTA Website.

The new PTA Website is being writtenand we hope to have something to showdelegates at the Convention in May,arrangements for which are going well,with many of the classes now full. The2015 Convention will be at Hereford butthere have been problems finding asuitable Hotel for 2016. We need a goodlayout for exhibition Space and Classes.Any suggestions for venues welcome.

We have a new Patron, Associate and2 Students, 2 PTA Tests are pending.

The Treasurer’s report was presented.Because of last years one-off costs withregard to our Centenary Year theAccounts show a loss and with costs forour new website, Database and new styleYear Book, it is possible the same willoccur next year also. However, theTreasurer is confident that our financesare in good shape and that once thesenecessary one-off costs are over with wewill be breaking even or back in profit.

Subscriptions were discussed andfigures agreed to put forward to the AGM.The increase put forward this year will bemore for those who pay late.

Anne Burton will be taking over asEditor of PTA News for the next issue.The last 30 issues are now on the Website.

The PTA advertising budget wasagreed at £3500 for this year.

The date for the Europiano Congressin Moscow has been changed to 9th to14th September.

Brian and Matthew only intend tostand for one more Year on Council.There was a discussion on the importanceof trying to encourage new faces onto thePTA Council. Without Council Membersthe running of our Association can’tcontinue.

The date of the next meeting is onSaturday 17th May at Mercure Last DropVillage Hotel, Bolton.

A full copy of the minutes is availablefrom the PTA Secretary but it may needto be edited for reasons of legality andconfidentiality.

PTA Council MeetingSummary by Matthew Gough

Please consider standing for the PTA Executive Council this Year.Commitments: Wanting to help,

5 Saturday meetings in London and 1 short meeting at the Convention, Voluntarily taking on a task or two if possible, to help share the load.

Benefits: Taking the PTA forward, having real input into decisions, involvement. CONTACT THE SECRETARY FOR A NOMINATION FORM

0845 602 8796

April 2014 25

LettersTony CardI was sad to hear the news of Tony

Card’s death.Tony actually interviewed me for my

apprenticeship at Kemble’s in 1969 andoffered me the post.

He also helped me obtain my newemployment with Bill Kreis, which lastedfor 22 years.

Tony was always very helpful to meand if I was out in the vicinity of Wickenwhere he lived I would call in and wasalways made most welcome.

I lost contact with him over the lastfew years but would like to send mycondolences to his family.

Malcolm Hodsdon (0886)

Lovely TuningsAs I ripped the front panel out to break

the seal of the blue satinwood-paintedpiano residing in the foyer of the localShowcase Cinema, pondering whetherevery other bi-chord in the bass (whichwere badly out of tune!) would pull upand stay, I thought of the many andvaried places I have tuned. Whilst most ofus will have tuned in recital rooms,concert halls, theatres and the like, howmany have tuned in the Boys' Toilets of aPrimary School? The neat little KnightPiano, fixed to the floor of a narrow boat?On the back of a trailer, in a farmer'sfield?

I'm sure other members can beat thesewith tales of unusual places for a tuning -how about sharing the more extremeexamples?

Graham Cantrill (981)

A Former LifeThere are several contentious

topics that are best avoided when talking

to customers, namelyreligion politics and sex! Religion indiscussion has largely become a war ofwords. With some people it can be a wayof impressing on others that their way ofthinking is superior. If you are naturallygregarious like me it is probably best notto start a conversation at all. If you wereto dare discuss the word "reincarnation"many would think you were a bit of acrackpot and get you locked up, butstrange things abound on our planet. DrDeepak Chopra, healer and acclaimedauthor said that we will never know justhow mysterious and strange our planet is.

Where on earth is this leading youask? Nowhere particularly exciting. I justrecall a small incident that unfoldedbefore me a few years back. I was askedto tune a piano in a church crypt whichwas annexed to a restaurant. The pianoseemed to be held together by a wholeseries of repairs including string andsellotape, all of which worked brilliantly!Who am I to criticise the actions ofothers? It's just that when you get to tuneold bangers like this you get that kind ofsinking feeling. The fall had a reallyscored and worn surface with a feelalmost like papier mache.

Despite all the previous "repairs" Imanaged to tune it and it soundedreasonably good, given the generalcondition. I started talking to theproprietor next door in therestaurant, who had some kind of Jaguarparked nearby. While discussing thecondition of the piano, he remarked, tomy amusement, that he could see thepetrol gauge of his car  movingdownwards as he drove along the road.

Feeling relieved that I had managed totune this thing, I had to return the key ofthe crypt to the priest in the presbytery.The housekeeper answered the door and

26

I was asked to wait a moment. I sat downand picked up a history of the church andsaw some photos of previous incumbentsaround the mid nineteenth century. To myutter disbelief one of these photos didnot resemble the living proprietor of therestaurant next door - it was him, minusthe jaguar and plus a dog collar.

Most people would say that was just acoincidence, but I don't quite agree. Thereis a reason for everything. In order to tryto understand our reality our brains reduceour interpretation of life to black andwhite. We know deep within that wecannot grasp the enormity of this reality.We have not the capacity to do so. Theeastern traditions maintain that we havemany lifetimes, and  the cynics andatheists don't appear to believe inanything very much. We sometimes askquestions about the unknown but are notprepared to look for answers. I leave youwith that quote from Hamlet: "There aremore things in Heaven and Earth Horatiothan are dreamt of in your philosophy."

Mike Jacobs (1086)

Staying SharpI was tuning in an Arts Centre last

week for a small drama company on tour.When I'd finished, I asked one of the

actors (for a laugh) if she wanted me to'tune the black notes as well'.  She took meseriously and proceeded to ask the pianistthe same question!  I gave him a wink asshe did so, and he said, "No, apart fromthe F#'s, that'll be all-white".  She got thejoke, saying she knew nothing aboutmusic.........

Those of us who tune pianos in schoolsetc often have to 'sign in' to the premises. The form usually asks one to write downwho you are visiting.  Occasionally I'll put

"P.I. Ano".

Oh well, it gives school secretaries alaugh!

Michelle Rudd (1022)

A Tuner For SureSome years ago I was half way

through a tuning when the unmistakablesmell of grilled bacon wafted through thedoor, followed by a cheery smile asking ifI would care for a bacon sandwich withmy tea.

After a millisecond of polite delay Idelivered the correct answer, and sureenough a welcome interlude ofrefreshment and light social intercourseensued.

After making all the right noises ofappreciation, a pause in conversation gavean opportunity for the customer to statequizzically…… “you’re different to othertuners”. I instantly found that anexaggerated chewing motion disguised aninstinctive wincing reaction thatpre-empted delivery of another welltrodden piano tuner joke.

“Really?” I replied, swallowingforcefully.

“Yes” she said, continuing with adead straight face, “Out of all the othertuners that have been here before……you’re the first one that doesn’t smell” !

Geoff Sapsford (1138)

Thank you so much for all your letters,stories and articles over the years.

Please support our new Editor AnneBurton by continuing to send them inusing the details on page 3.

It helps so much to receive them all.

Letters Continued

April 2014 27

Please note these dates:

***PTA Convention 2014***Wednesday 14th to Saturday 17th May

Mercure Last Drop Village Hotel, BoltonPHONE THE PTA SECRETARY NOW TO SEE IF THERE IS A SPACE

PTA TRAINING DAYOctober, Reigate – More info. soon

PTA/KAWAI TRAINING DAY/ SCOTTISH LUNCHSaturday Ist November, Stirling – More info. soon

PTA TRAINING DAY AT THE GUILDHALL SCHOOLOF MUSIC, LONDON - WITH MALCOLM McKEAND

Sunday 15th March 2015 - More info. soonFor enquiries, PTA goods, changes of address or contact details:

Mrs Annette SummersPTA SecretaryPO Box 230HAILSHAMBN27 9EATel: 0845 602 8796E-Mail: secretary@pianotuner.org.uk

DEADLINE FOR ARTICLES: FRIDAY 23rd MayArticles, letters and photos to: ptanews@pianotuner.org.uk or to the address on page 3.Please email photos separately to articles.

PTA DIARY

Photo FinishGary Whiteland sent in this photo

from the front cover of an appeal for St.George’s Church, Bristol.

It’s actually an interesting concept.Supporters can sponsor a piano key(£100), Arpeggio (£400) or an Octave(£800). The piano lid isn’t mentionedbut they certainly need a new one. Formore info visit: stgeorgesbristol.co.uk

Happy Tuning!