| When I decided
to become a piano tuner, I contacted the technician
who had been servicing our family piano for many
years. To test my inspiration, the technician
advised me to read two technical piano books first
to see if I really wanted to study the profession.
The first book is called "Piano Tuning and
Allied Arts" (http://www.amazon.com/Piano-Tuning-Allied-William-Braid/dp/9996267636)
by William Braid White. The second book is "Piano
Servicing Tuning and Rebuilding" (http://www.amazon.com/Piano-Servicing-Tuning-Rebuilding-Second/dp/1879511029/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_bl)
by Arthur A. Reblitz.
After reading these books,
I found that my interest in piano technology only
increased. I was then advised to take a correspondence
piano technology course. The course I chose was
the Niles Bryant correspondence course in Sacramento
California and to my knowledge is no longer available.
For those who are interested in pursuing a similar
correspondence course, the best one that I know
of is offered by Randy
Potter.
Upon completing the correspondence
course, I trained with several technicians in one
location for a few years. The training was very
intense and I had to work for 5 - 7 days a week.
The training included tuning, regulating, repairs
and complete rebuilding.
One day, while out in the field,
my trainer told me that I was going to do the
tuning for this job, completely by ear. When I
was finished, he checked my work and told me that
in his opinion I was ready to take the Piano Technicians
Guild tuning exam.
I signed up for the tuning exam
and passed it in Tacoma Washington on my first try
(minimum of 80% to pass in 8 sections). Deciding
that was not good enough, I took the exam an additional
4 times to see how good I could get. After all in
this field, being just good is not good enough.
My customers expect the best job possible at all
times.
After passing the tuning exam,
I took the Piano Technicians Guild technical exam
in Vancouver. I also passed this exam on my first
try and soon afterward I received confirmation
from the PTG Home Office that I had been reclassified
to Registered Piano Technician status.
I have continued to upgrade my
skills by attending numerous Regional Conferences
and PTG Conventions.
For those of you who are interested
in the Piano Technicians Guild examination process,
go to: http://www.ptg.org/becomingATech-whatIsRPT.php
http://www.paulbrown.org |
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