Is the Piano Tuners Guild the be-all, end-all?

I wish to challenge the belief that many of us have about the PTG.
The Piano Technicians Guild has the purpose of improving piano
technicians quality of work.  Many folks think that to get the best
work, just find a member of the Guild and your problems are all solved.

This could not be farther from the truth.  I got my start in Dallas.
I found that I filled a niche.  I kept re-doing the work of members of
the PTG and I finally advertised that I was not a member of the Guild
and that got me lots more business.  The Guild had a reputation that
their work was downright bad.

I lived in Columbus, Ohio, where I found the Guild to be on track for
its prime directive.  I found a thriving group that actually met to
hold classes to get everyone up to speed on all portions of piano
technical work.

I am now in St. Louis and I am once again not a member of the Guild.
I can tell you, though, that I have had several members of the Guild
do work for my business and I have found them to be such that I got
to redo or correct their work.  They charged me top dollar, however.

I have had several members who cannot do or do not wish to do the kind
of work we do.  Those members send their customers to me.  I was also
told that the local Guild once removed a Guild president because of the
numerous complaints that he was screwing his customers with haphazard
and incompetent work.  Good for them!

The Guild members whose work is exceptionally good, I do not hear
about, since I never see their work.  The less experienced, and
indeed, the downright incompetent members, however, I get to see lots
of their work.

I learned what I do from several people who were members and some
who were not members of the Guild.  I learned my tuning and grand
regulation from Danny Boone, who wrote the ultimate book on grand
regulation and voicing.  Decades later, I went to one of his PTG
convention regulation classes and he was teaching the same things
he taught me, with little improvement.  He was a Guild judge for the
testing they do.

I consider myself as competent as any PTG member and way more competent
than some of them.  I have no desire to join the group, however --
I am way too busy doing the work.  I stay behind schedule.  I am not
a Guild member and see no reason to be such unless someone can tell
me a good reason to change my mind.

My point is, do not blindly hire a piano tech simply because he/she has
a PTG on their card.  Also do not rule out a tech because he/she does
not have a PTG on their card.  Investigate the work of any tech you
ever use.

D.L. Bullock    St. Louis
www.thepianoworld.com

 [   "The mission of the Piano Technicians Guild is to promote the
 [ highest possible standards of piano service by providing members
 [ with opportunities for professional development, by recognizing
 [ technical competence through examinations and by advancing the
 [ interests of its members."  (http://www.ptg.org/mission.htm)
 [
 [   "The PTG has two major functions: to provide education for
 [ professional piano technicians and to operate an examinations
 [ program to qualify technicians as Registered Piano Technicians
 [ (RPT)."  (http://www.ptg.org/)
 [
 [ -- Robbie