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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
Conducted and Edited by Wm. B. White.
"Just how Mr. Newton gets his impression that
My friend, J. C. Miller, of Lincoln, Neb., has
not been content to remain idle and silent under I "scorn such trivial matters as tests of thirds
the criticisms that have been leveled at his tun- and sixths,' I do not understand. It was my pur-
ing methods by Mr. Newton, of Kansas. He re- pose to be rather explicit on what thirds and
turns to the charge in the following interesting sixths were to be doing as the work progressed,
rejoinder, which is committed herewith to the and I must leave that decision to other readers
attention of all readers who have followed the of the department. Taken to task as to whether
I ever 'tried the experiment of laying the tem-
controversy thus far:
perament with one wire only of each note and
"Editor Technical Department.
"Dear Sir:—Mr. George N. Newton makes out then beginning and laying it again with another,'
a case against me. First by misquoting me, and etc., I confess I have never done exactly that.
then by assumptions of his own, he sets in judg- Unless a group of wires contains one that beats
ment and convicts me of going around tuning upon itself, it usually'serves my purpose when I
pianos at the rate of one in fifty minutes! Now have brought its members to practical unison.
any one who reads the article from which Mr. As to Mr. Newton's plan of 'trying the tempera-
Newton draws his conclusions, will find a state- ment by chords after he is through,' I have only
ment to the effect that about ten minutes is a to say that when I am 'through' I am through.
fair estimate of the time I usually consume in —J. C. Miller."
laying a temperament. Added to this was the
I would like to call attention here to one par-
statement that it takes no more time than the
tuning of an octave of octaves. It appears from ticular thought expressed in the above letter.
my own estimate that I should consume about When Mr. Miller speaks of a "small personal
seventy-five minutes to finish the work at this error" he introduces us to a most interesting
rate of speed, which may be considered diligent. question in psychology. Every man's nervous
"This presumes reasonably favorable condi- system reacts from received impressions in defi-
tions and does not provide time for much regu- nitely individual manner. One man shows signs
lating or adjusting, but since we are on this of receptivity much more quickly than another.
subject of rapidity, it may be said that under the The very exact tests that have been made in
conditions of a good pin block and smooth tract- anthropometrical laboratories have shown, quite
able upper bridge bearings, a skilful man may indubitably, with remarkable dissimilarity the
do the work in 'fifty minutes,' a more skilful one nervous systems of different individuals respond
in forty minutes and a still more skilful one in to the sensations impressed upon them through
thirty or even less, to meet an emergency. This the medium of the senses. A man whose "nerve
is probably approaching the limit and might reaction time" is below normal is therefore in a
justly be termed 'strenuous work.' The man fortunate position, and this advantage is doubled
who achieves it must have a level head, an un- when his nerve susceptibility is not only rapid,
flinching muscular and nervous equipoise, a defi- but accurate. Every piano tuner who has taken
nite knowledge, a quick perception, a small per- the trouble to analyze his sensations is aware
sonal error and a determined purpose. Besides that his "reaction time" and the accuracy of his
this combination of qualifications he must know received impressions continually vary. Now it
is quite within the bounds of practicability for
how to tune a piano.
any of us to increase the value of all factors con-
tained in our "personal equation." Due atten-
tion to health, cultivation of mental calmness
and deliberation, healthy thoughts, all these as-
sist wonderfully in building up the reserve of
nervous energy and consequently in decreasing
the "personal error" arising from sub-normal
nervous susceptibility.
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15
ried at that time, and some weeks did not aver-
age more than eight or nine dollars; but that
paid my expenses, and I stuck at it, and in three
years was making more than the stores paid. In
1884 I married, and having saved a few hundred
bought my house where I live, giving a mortgage
for part of the price. It took me several years
to pay off the mortgage and keep my family; but
I liked the tuning business and stuck at it, and
now have a good private trade. I never had a
desire to be very rich, for what is the use of a
man trying to pile up a lot of money for some
one to spend when he is gone? Now I have a
son big enough to help in business with me, and
have the orders for him to do. But I heartily in-
dorse your statement that a tuner cannot earn
over forty dollars a week, that is, if he is honest
and charges prevailing prices. And you know,
that $40 a week is very little toward amassing
a big fortune. I can recall boys of my same
age who were clerks in piano stores, and some of
them started piano factories, and are now much
richer than I am, but after all I do not think they
are any happier, and are no more Independent.
The good independent tuner can make more
money than the journeyman, yet still when the
piano tuning schools and correspondence schools
advertise that a tuner can make twenty dollars
a day they simply lie, unless a tuner is a whole-
sale fraud.
Some time I would like to write you about tun-
ers who steal their orders from their employers.
It seems to me that method of starting is a con-
temptible one, as the independent tuner should
make it a manly point to stand on his own
foundation.
It is with especial pleasure that I print the
following letter. Note that it comes from the
Far West of Canada, from the new Province of
Alberta, where the wonderful "winter red" wheat
comes from. This is evidence, is it not, of the
far-reaching influence of this department:
Editor Technical Department:
Dear Sir—It is with a keen sense of gratitude
that I am writing to you to thank you for your
helpful and interesting articles in The Review.
It is the very first part of the paper I rush for on
its arrival, and its value to me is inestimable. It
has occurred to me that you could give me your
kindly assistance in a small matter. I have had
trouble in securing good American organ reeds
since I have been up West. While in the old
country I got my reeds from Sawyer, of Leeds,
but he got them from the United States. Could
you—knowing as you do the market so well—ad-
An old and valued Philadelphia correspondent, vise me of a firm or two where really good reeds
whose communications have frequently graced are procurable? If so I should be doubly grate-
Yours faithfully,
these columns, writes me the following in ref- ful.
erence to my recent disquisition on the earnings
C. SPENCER.
of tuners. Contrary to his usual custom, my
Edmonton, Canada.
correspondent asks me this time to omit his
name, as he fears that he may be thought "ego-
I am very glad to be able to inform Mr.
tistical." His statements are particularly inter- Spencer, whom I welcome into the ranks of my
esting, since they throw light on the manner of
building up a good practice and achieving an
honorable career.
Editor of Technical Department:
In regard to Mr. Whittemore's request for-
metal flanges, enclosed you will find one as
sample. You can get these flanges from Tuners'
& Dealers' Supply Co., Milwaukee, Wis. I think
both you and Mr. Whittemore will find them a
great convenience, as we always carry some in
our kit. This is the Billings brass flange.
Now, if I am not intruding too much on your
valuable space, permit me to say that I am glad
that you discussed the independent tuners' earn-
ings so intelligently in to-day's Review. As every
tuner should understand at the outset, if he
wishes to grow very rich, he can never attain
this by tuning pianos, even though he is success-
ful in getting a good private trade. That is, if
he is strictly honest and fair to his customers.
Permit me to give you a bit of my own expe-
rience: Away back in the year 1875 I begun to
think, "What is the use of my working for a
music store for twelve or fifteen dollars a week
when I can get my own trade?" Accordingly, in
1878, I went out to West Philadelphia and stuck
Executive Office and Show Rooms
SUITE 730, REPUBLIC BUILDING, State and Adanu Sta,
out my shingle as piano tuner. I was noj^mar-
Factory: HOLLAND, MICH.
HIGH GRADE PIANOS