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My teacher's wunderkind also bought a Sauter!

Teacher's (aka Imam's) Wunderkind?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WseWhfqwqGI

Are the piano techs here in Singapore PTG certified?

Then, wouldn't it be even risker to buy 2nd hand pianos reconditioned by the 2nd hand shop dealers? Is like, how you know what piano tech is good, and which is just bluffing their way through? Given that none are PTG certified?

Piano techs here in Singapore are NOT PTG certified. To my knowledge, there is no self-regulating body for piano techs in S'pore.

Well, you will never "know" (depending upon your epistemology) which piano tech is good. The best we can get is word-of-mouth-cum-hearsay-cum-anecdotal evidence - whatever that means.

I warned you didn't I. But nooooo you just HAD to buy a Steinway. :P

There's nothing stopping a local tech from flying to the U.S. and taking the PTG exam. An interesting question to ask would be how many local techs can pass the PTG exam without a significant amount of additional instruction. I reckon the number would be pretty small, probably approaching zero.

Yah, yah, you did... but you know, lah, most people bu4 ting1 lao3 ren2 yen2 (not that you are lao3 ), so can only learn through the hard way. But after the service about a month ago by the German concert tech, wah... so happy now. Hope the concert tech lives a long life!

*major roll eyes* Not many people can afford to do what you do, and then continue to pay to bring him back 2 - 3 times each year. Most of us who buy $300 plates of chicken rice have no $ left for anything else. I went into debt to fund mine!

Actually, hor, the tech charged way less than I thought... I had my old Schimmel regulated by Yamaha once and it was around the same price! But what you say is true, much better the $300 chicken rice should come with soy sauce without needing to pay for the sauce! Which reminds me how shocked I was to have to pay for ketchup at McDonalds in Europe on my first trip 21 years ago...

Roxane,

For one who owns handbags which cost more than a Steinway :P

*Major major eyes roll plus jaws drop*

BTW, who is this German concert tech who might live longer than your Steinway - provided you would sponsor his yearly health checks and the occasional angioplasty? Is he a "Steinway-only" tech?

This sounds very much like the TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) in Singapore before there are regulations in place to make them "certified"...actually is a potential business lor...where every technician needs to be registered under the Singapore Piano Technician Body (SPTB) to be able to practice as a piano technician and that they need renew their licence once every maybe 5 years.

Chihuahua, none of my handbags cost more than a Steinway, lah (although last year the shop offered to sell me a fugly one that cost more than a D )! Now, my handbag collection...

Unfortunately, the German concert tech is indeed Steinway only. Actually, if I hadn't known of him, I wouldn't have bought a Steinway for precisely the reasons brought up in this thread: non-existent support from local dealer. Before that, I was considering a Grotrian (love my teacher's), Sauter (what is good enough for wunderkind is good enough for me!), IBach (love my friend's) or Steingraeber.

Btw, I found this Piano Tuning class from the web...conducted by Leonard from Asia Piano. He is Japanese certified technician woh. So, Japan also has some regulatory body?

Anyway, anyone interested? I am quite keen. Maybe we can go together. But wanted to hear your comments as well?

http://www.streetdirectory.com/clas...can_now_learn_how_to_tune_your_own_piano

TCM deals with people's lives, so there is more of an impetus to regulate the practitoners. Unless piano techs here evolve to that professional level, I don't see that happening. It all comes back to the question of demand for that level of service – most people just see piano techs as mere tuners. Some people even question the need to tuning more than once a year, and they haggle over an increase of $5 in turning charges (true story). People queue for hours and pay a lot of money to consult sinsehs, but you don't see that happening with most piano techs.

wah, I like yr chicken rice theory..

double strike = press 1 time sound 2 times??

Bihua, I heard fr Jason that the shipment just arrived today (tue) and he's sending my piano to me on fri morning. He said he'll personally tune and inspect on the 1st time of delivery. I'm concern if it's enough time for him to do the prep job (though I don't know much abt prepping). Is yours ok after he tuned on the 1st day? Or does he need to come many times b4 the piano is in 'stable' condition?

How much time did he spend on the 1st day?

Thanks..

Well Roxane, it's not just confined to pianos. Singaporeans appear to tolerate shoddy service for a wide array of products, including food, luxury retailers, etc etc.

Actually even the recent condo launches (where people pay a high psf for a small absolute cost) is symptomatic of this, though this is a slight stretching of the logic.

Nikkie, it usually takes more than one tuning for a piano to stabilise (it's quite far from where it's born after all). But on the first day, check that there's nothing wrong with it, that the keys are level, etc etc.

i'm ptg cert, PotongPasir-ToaPayoh-Geylang ok ... don't prey prey...

Rox - Didn't know that the German tech is a racist ... er ... brand-ist.

Nikkie - Prep is much more than tuning. It also involves regulation (which is usually at least half a day's work)) and perhaps even voicing if you are a particular ... And the new piano will be out of tune in a few days/weeks, so you would need re-tuning constantly, at least in the first year ...

fj_s - got any good condo launch? Gau siow lai eh? (introduce eh)?

Haha there are no good condo launches nowadays. ($1,150 for 99LH in AMK? My goodness!)

Perhaps we should wait for the bumper crop of newly-weds to subside first (record marriages for the last 3 years coupled with few property transactions do make for a wave) if you're buying to live (but if buying to speculate it's a different story entirely).

Nikkie - Pianos go out of tune quite quickly in the first year until the piano acclimatises, so don't worry too much about that. But do make sure the action is well regulated, keys are level, strings are clean (both top and bottom), soundboard in good shape, no double-striking, and that you are able to hit the key softly and still produce a tone.

Hi Nikkie,

Yes, double strike means press 1 time, the note is sounded twice. It will happen when you press the key softly. Might not happen when you press the sustain pedal (the rightest one).

Jason spent about 2 hours at my place to tune the piano and entertain some of my requests, but nothing near prep the piano. The piano was first delivered to my place, and Jason only comes over after about an hour later.

So, make use of that one hour, test all the pedals to see if it works the way it should. Is it too hard / soft. Can ask Jason to adjust one. Try all the keys. Press hard, press soft. Are they all even, any weird sound or friction. See if the keys are level. Open the top, look at the hammers, are they new? That means, no dents at the hammers, coz yours should be new from the box one. Check the dampers, all aligned correctly?

Note down in a piece of paper of all the things you want him to adjust or fix. He might not entertain all, and might just tell you is like that one, but at least you tried.

For any other things, which he can't fix and you can't live with it, then got to find another tech liow lor.

Then see how eem cheem you are, can see whether the piano cabinet got scratches, where dirty? And so on.

He will not come many times to tune the piano one to make it "stable". So, cannot expect too much ($3 chicken rice). But if it really bothers you, can ask him to come. But I think you will likely need to pay.

Wow, deliver on Friday? You take leave ah? Mine was Sat/Sun leh.