Langridge family member turns out to be musical: film at 11
Niamh has started piano lessons at school! And she seems to be able to do it!
This is remarkable. I have the musical ability of a rubber hammer, and Sam is (if this were possible) even worse than me. My parents are utterly unmusical. Sam’s parents are. (Sam’s brother was in a metal band, but (a) he was a drummer, which requires no real musical ability and (b) they were a metal band, which doesn’t require musical ability either.)
Now I need to get the piano tuned, since it’s supposed to sound like a mellifluous and beautiful instrument and it actually sounds like someone’s dropped a load of cymbals when you play it. Niamh is having to practice only on the bottom couple of octaves, which seem to be less out of tune than the rest. Anyone got any good recommendations for piano tuners in the Midlands who won’t charge me a fortune? Bonus points if they fulfil the cliche by being blind.
I think a certain Mr O’Bacon might disagree with musical ability not being required to play in a metal band…. :-)
Why do you have a piano then, if no one plays it? It’s kind of a bit big to keep lying around, surely?
36 minutes later
David: he can disagree all he likes, but in his heart of hearts he knows it to be true. Yes indeed. Yes.
On the “why have a piano” front, you’re welcome to make that argument to my darling wife, but I didn’t have a lot of success when *I* made it so I don’t see why you’d do better…
47 minutes later
give a try to http://www.yelp.com/
I’m sure there are other similar services too
117 minutes later
ZsP: I can choose someone random out of the phone book pretty easily; what I was looking for was a personal recommendation so I can know that the recommended person is competent :)
2 hours later
A friend of mine has a grand piano in his terraced house (definitely a bit big for such a property) and, yes, he uses (or has used) a blind piano tuner! I’ve emailed him to ask for the chap’s contact details, and will pass them along by email; he’s based in Leicester, so may well be able to travel over to you.
5 hours later
You could always buy a $15 digital tuner and tune it yourself. This won’t get perfect results as tuning turns out to be a complex series of compromises - actually tuning each string to its appropriate note doesn’t sound as good - but for the purposes of making the piano endurable for student practicing, this is feasible. I tuned my wife’s piano - the strings are very old and so I tuned a quarter of a step flat so as not to tune any strings up signifigantly. You wouldn’t want a concert on it, but it works to practice on and doesn’t offend my ear so much. My only other experience is tuning guitars…
6 hours later
Oi, Langridge, you watch the drummer jokes, right? :P
7 hours later
metapundit: you missed the rubber hammer comment, clearly :)
Gary: ahahaha. Ahaha. It’s just banging on things with a stick, you know it is :)
22 hours later
Well… yeah. But don’t forget the kicking things too. :)
23 hours later