Piano Technicians Guild
SCRC Regional Conference
October 7-9, 2010
Hillcountry, TX
Instructors
The SCRC team has rounded up some of the best instructors in the U.S. Click the links on the left to see bios, which are below.
Paul Adams, RPT - Guaranteed In Tune - Southeastern Pennsylvania, Northeast Regional Vice President
Mr. Adams has over 40 years experience in piano technology. With a B. A. in Music from Rutgers University and a minor in Education & Psychology, he has taught on a Local, Regional, and National level. He has served as President of the Southeastern PA Chapter as well as the Pennsylvania State Conference President and has been a key member of the MARC Board for the past ten years. Paul is the current Northeast Regional Vice-President of PTG. He is a pianist/music arranger/band leader/singer and has performed all over the East Coast and on numerous recordings. His hobbies include sailing, billiards, archery and listening to good music, with an emphasis on jazz. Teaching is his favorite way to put something back into the "PTG Cup" that has provided him with so much over the years.
Charles Ball, RPT - University of Texas - Austin, TX
Charles Ball, RPT, has been a member of the PTG since 1973, and has held various offices and taught at national seminars. With forty-four years experience, Charles has a variety of experience as a self-employed field technician, and as a university technician.
For thirty years Charles has been the head technician at the School of Music of the University of Texas at Austin. In that capacity, he supervises three other technicians, teaches piano technology appreciation classes, and maintains the School's concert instruments and piano faculty studio instruments. In addition, Charles cares for the School's fortepiano and five harpsichords, and has experience with setting historical temperaments.
Charles performs dealer preparation work for the local Steinway dealer and is their Steinway C & A technician, having taken extensive training at the Steinway factory. For the past twenty- nine years Charles has been the technician for the Austin Symphony Orchestra. Currently he is serving as concert technician for the Van Cliburn Foundation in Fort Worth, Texas, and maintains and prepares their instruments for their regular concert series.
His specialization is in the maintenance of performance instruments, with special experience with Steinway pianos, and in concert preparation and support. Therefore, he is particularly experienced with grand action reconditioning, rebuilding, regulation, voicing, etc. Charles has extensive experience in solving voicing and touch weight problems. He also is experienced with Steinway grand damper action rebuilding and problem solving.
Ron Bergeron, Associate - Austin, TX
Ron Bergeron is the owner and technician at Austin PianoWorks LLC. Ron began his career in piano technology in 2001. He sought out Jim Coleman, Sr., in Tempe, Arizona for private lessons and studied under him while working at various Phoenix-area piano stores and served as lead technician for the Peoria Unified School District and began building his business immediately. Ron was able to quit his full time job two years after he picked up his first tuning hammer.
In July 2006 Ron brought his family to Austin. Again Ron was able to build a thriving, full-time piano service business in a totally new environment with minimal start-up costs. If you are thinking about starting a new piano business or just want to improve your business practices in these perilous economic times, come join Ron, Joe Dunn, and Doug Knabe in our Business Forum discussion and see what you can learn!
Keith Bowman, RPT - Hailun Pianos
Keith has a broad background in woodworking, spanning nearly three decades, where he has specialized in wood carving, cabinet making, and furniture restoration. His interest in piano technology began in 1979 with an apprenticeship in piano restoration, player piano rebuilding, harpsichord and other early instrument restoration, leading to the management of a full service piano restoration & sales facility. In 1984, he started his own business which now services a diverse tuning clientele and includes piano remanufacturing, harpsichord and American reed organ restoration. Keith is responsible for the development of the Renner USA Custom Tuning Lever program, and personally hand crafts each of the Artist Series custom tuning and voicing tools.
In 1992, he Co-developed PTG's first marketing class with RPT Member, Fred Fornwalt and subsequently taught several business classes and workshops. He has written many articles for the Piano Technicians Journal, and currently teaches a variety of technical classes dealing with tuning, tool use, and shop procedure topics. He is active in the music industry and in 1993 received a citation from the National Coalition for Music Education, and has received several PTG awards including the Member of Note.
Melanie Brooks - Brooks, Ltd. - Connecticut
Melanie is a third generation PTG member. After obtaining a BA degree in Economics and Business and working in the corporate world for 8 years, she returned to Brooks, Ltd. a family owned parts business where she has focused on marketing and technical services since 1995.
Christopher Brown, RPT - Boston, MA
In 1973, Christopher Brown, RPT graduated from Williams College as a music major. His traditional five year piano technology apprenticeship included courses and employment at Berklee College of Music and the two year program at North Bennet Street School. For 23 years, Chris then worked out of a shop he built onto his home in Concord MA. Restrictions of time and space nudged him toward specializing in action work and, in 2005, he set up a new shop specifically for the restoration and fitting of actions. Out of this move came the first iteration of The Piano Rebuilders, a consortium of independent businesses that he founded with fellow member Mike Morvan of Blackstone Valley Piano. The other members are Jude Reveley of Absolute Piano Restorations (as bellyman), Rob Bushell of Bushell Piano Movers, and Kevin Desano of Maggio Custom Refinishing. This team seeks to provide highest quality piano rebuilding services by combining the resources of five specialized shop facilities. A line of Chris’s piano shop jigs and fixtures are available to the trade through The Piano Rebuilders, along with key-related offerings by Mike and belly-related products by Jude. Chris is a Registered Piano Technician in the Boston Chapter of the Piano Technicians Guild and edits their monthly newsletter, News & Notes. His company, Concord Piano LLC also provides piano services locally to the Boston Metro West area.
Mark Burgett - Wessell, Nickel & Gross- Sacramento Valley, CA
Mark has been a piano technician since 1981. He currently teaches PianoDisc systems installations as well as field technical support. Mark is instrumental in new product development and testing for both PianoDisc and Mason & Hamlin.
Norman Cantrell, RPT - Oklahoma, South Central PTG RVP
Norman Cantrell began his career in musical instrument repair by working as an apprentice for B. L. McCrary Pipe Organ Service in Oklahoma City in the fall of 1978. After two and a half years with Mr. McCrary he left OKC and enrolled in Grayson County College in Dennison, TX to study piano tuning and repair. Upon completion of his studies at Grayson he returned to Oklahoma City and opened his own piano service business. Over the years he has specialized in the restoration of player pianos. He has been a member of the Piano Technicians Guild for several years and is currently a Registered Piano Technician and a Certified Tuning Examiner. He has been an instructor at regional and national PTG seminars. Norman is currently the Regional Vice President for the PTG South Central Region.
Walt Connell, RPT - Dallas, TX
Walt has taught at local and national conventions, has been a Certified Tuning Examiner (CTE), and currently heads Encore Pianos service department at Willow Bend in Plano.
Dave Conte, RPT - Fort Worth, TX
Graduated with Honors from The University of North Texas College of Music Piano Technology Program. Instructed tuning and technical classes at Regional and Annual PTG Institutes and regularly participate in administering RPT tuning exams. Certified Concert & Artist Technician providing service to many well known performing and recording artists, including Bruce Hornsby, Vladimir Viardo, Neil Diamond and the late Dan Fogleberg and to numerous recording studios and performance venues such as Morton H. Myerson Symphony center, The Dallas Opera and Billy Bob's Texas. Business encompasses comprehensive piano service including tuning, complete rebuilding, acoustic redesign, action geometry analysis and modification, action restoration, custom voicing and performance regulation, as well as PianoDisc Installation and Service and Yamaha Disklavier Service Certifications.
Bill Cory, RPT - Austin TX
Cory Piano Service is a piano tuning and repair service specializing in Steinway and other quality pianos. It has been serving the Austin area (including Round Rock and San Marcos) for over 30 years.
William (Bill) Cory received his Doctorate of Musical Arts degree in Piano Performance from The University of Texas at Austin and has also attained the distinction of registered piano technician from the Piano Technicians Guild. His proficiency at the keyboard, coupled with years of technical service make him uniquely qualified in the areas of tuning, voicing, regulation, and action rebuilding of fine instruments.
Among his accomplishments is the construction of several reproductions of early keyboard instruments including a harpsichord, clavichord, and fortepiano. Dr. Cory can be heard in concert as a regular guest artist with the baroque group La Follia.
Gerald Cousins, RPT - Southeastern Pennsylvania
Gerald (Gerry) Cousins RPT Gerry began his musical instrument repair career in 1978. His education background is in piano technology, engineering and business management. He founded and ran numerous business ventures based in the NY metropolitan area including, Best Piano Services, Best Products International and N.Y. Instrument Company. He has developed several chemical specialty formulations for instrument maintenance, and created the first polycarbonate professional level trumpet mouthpiece. In 2005 he relocated to the Baltimore/ Washington DC area where he served as Shop operations manager under Bill McCormick of Jordan Kitts Music. He is currently Lead Technician and Curator of Musical Instrument technical services for West Chester University of PA. Gerry enjoys consulting, inventing, developing innovative ways of making the business of repairing musical instruments easier and more efficient. He has served and instructed for the PTG on a local, regional and national levels.
Joseph Dunn, Associate - Austin, TX
Joseph Dunn has over 20 years’ experience servicing pianos and is a Associate member of the Austin Chapter of the Piano Technicians Guild. He tunes every make and model of piano. He also moves, reconditions and restores pianos in South Travis County.
Mike Ello, RPT - Houston, TX
Mike Ello was introduced as a young boy to the piano service profession in the mid 1960’s through his late father’s player piano rebuilding and refinishing shop in downtown Lubbock, Texas. Mike has been actively servicing pianos since 1981. He was a member of the Dallas PTG for seven years and is currently serving as vice president of the Houston Chapter. He is a certified tuning examiner and also has a B.S. in Computer Engineering Technology from the Univ. of Houston. Mike’s business is in Richmond, TX, and is known in the Houston vicinity for superior skill in polyester and lacquer touch up. You can visit his musical family website at http://www.ellomusic.com
Ed Foote, RPT - Nashville, TN
Independent technician in Nashville, TN since graduation from the North Bennett Street School in 1976. Technician at the Blair School of Music, Vanderbilt University since 1978. I am a strong advocate of multi-temperament use and soft hammers. Ed has instructed at PTG seminars at all levels.
Allan Gilreath, RPT - Atlanta, GA, President of PTG
Allan's credentials give some idea of the entire company's focus on service to our customers. As a Registered Piano Technician (RPT) member of the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG) he constantly strives to improve and upgrade his skills as a technician in order to better serve you as our client. Participation in continuing education venues such as workshops and seminars as well as research, teaching other technicians and authoring technical articles further those efforts. His Bachelor degree in Music Business from Berry College, many years of work in the piano sales and service industry and vast experience in servicing and restoring pianos places him in a perfect position to focus on the piano player's needs. In addition, Allan now serves as the Service Consultant for Bechstein America, LLC and volunteers his time both in the community as a Cub Scout Leader and as a volunteer for the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG).
Scott Jones, RPT - PitchLock, Inc - Central Pennsylvania
Scott Jones began his career as a piano technician in 1984, after receiving a BM degree in music composition from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. From 1989 to 2001, he was employed by Steinway & Sons, New York, where he held positions as concert technician, technical instructor and product development researcher. From 2001 to present, he developed the PitchLock string coupler and TouchRail systems, both being demonstrated nationwide. Scott has authored 4 U.S. patents. The TouchRail is currently pending patent and trademark approval.
Doug Knabe, Associate - Dallas, TX
Doug has both a Bachelors and a Masters degree in Electrical Engineering from South Dakota State University and an MBA from the University of Texas at Dallas. He has over 35 years experience in the computer and communications industries, and is currently Vice President of Engineering at infiniRel Corporation, a startup company in Frisco, TX. Doug tuned his first piano in 1981. He has been a member of the Dallas PTG Chapter since 2001, and an SCRC officer from 2002 - 2009. He has developed and taught a number of piano related courses at the chapter and regional levels, including “World Wide Web for Piano Technicians”, “Temperamental Temperament”, and “Calibrating Your Tuning Fork or ETD”. He builds and maintains this website.
Bernard Mollberg, Associate - Mollberg Piano Restoration. - Blanco County, TX
Bernard Mollberg began piano work in 1976. Mollberg Piano Restoration http://www.mollbergpiano.com is located on a mesa in rural Blanco County, and specializes in the full restoration of grand pianos. Bernard has been an Associate (non-tuning) member of the Austin, TX Chapter since the mid-‘80’s. He has been fascinated with the problem of how can one learn to produce high quality work, be well paid for one’s efforts, build a specialized business that most folks don’t need, by word of mouth referrals. One of his long term goals is to have an unlisted business telephone number.
Dale Probst, RPT - Oklahoma
Dale Probst has been restoring, repairing, servicing and tuning pianos in the Texoma area for over twenty five years. A musician since the age of eight, Dale played in groups in Austin, Houston, and Wichita Falls, TX. A native of Wichita Falls and graduate of Midwestern State University, he feels fortunate to have a vocation that combines his love of music, woodworking, metalworking, and electronics. He attributes most of his success to his mentor, Jimmy Gold, RPT. He also received training at PTG and MITA seminars, the Baldwin Piano factory and is a graduate of the Yamaha "Little Red Schoolhouse".
Dale's piano service business classes are very popular and have been 'standing room only'. He has served the Piano Technicians Guild at the local, state, regional and national levels, as well as instructing at chapter, state, regional and national seminars. Dale lives in Wichita Falls, TX with his wonderful partner, Elizabeth Ward, RPT.
Dan Reed, RPT - Dallas, TX
Dan Reed is a Registered Piano Technician with the Piano Technicians Guild. Dan is currently the Dallas Chapter president and been the technical chair person. A few years ago, Dan invented the Grand Action Study Model. Dan has over 30 years of experience in piano service and restoration.
- B.S. Music : Major :Composition - University of Texas at Dallas
- Composes piano and choral music
- Sings with his wife, Martha, in the UTD Choral
Tom Seay, RPT - Austin, TX
I am a Registered Piano Technician and a member of the Austin Chapter of the Piano Technicians Guild. I have been tuning and servicing pianos since 1976 and have worked in the Austin area since 1981. I am a former staff piano technician at the School of Music at The University of Texas at Austin, having retired from that position in January of 2007 after 15 years of service. At the School of Music, I was responsible for the tuning, maintenance and rebuilding of approximately 95 grand and vertical pianos, many of them Steinways.
I hold both Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music degrees from East Texas State University, now Texas A&M University at Commerce, and was a member of the Music Faculty of Texarkana College in Texarkana, Texas.
I have attended factory seminars sponsored by Steinway and Yamaha, where I received advanced training in piano service. I have also attended numerous state and national seminars and conferences sponsored by the Piano Technicians Guild, Inc.
Since my retirement from The University of Texas at Austin, I am working as a full-time independent piano technician in the Austin area, specializing in the rebuilding and reconditioning of grand piano actions and damper systems, in addition to the tuning and maintenance of all types of pianos.
Christopher Solliday, RPT - PTG Secretary-Treasurer - Lehigh Valley, PA
Chris began the study of piano technology and tuning in 1974 in Philadelphia under the guidance of Merrill Jackson. He completed the Steinway and Yamaha factory training programs and later David Stanwood’s Touch Design course. Chris has run a successful piano service business, C. Solliday Piano Service, in the Lehigh Valley, PA area for over 35 years. His regular clientele includes Keith Jarrett, Fred Hersch, Eugene Albulescu and many other successful professional players. Currently he specializes in grand action renovations and is a licensed Precision TouchDesign Installer. He recently developed the piano service business management software “ExecuKey” with his partner programmer Sean Boyer. Chris is also a Sanderson Accu-Tuner dealer.
An RPT member of the Piano Technicians Guild, Inc. since 1976, Solliday has served as a chapter president for over ten years. He has also served in state offices and been a director of past PA State Conventions. Chris currently serves as an advisor to the MARC Board. For many years he has been a member and served as chairperson of national committees. He recently served as the Northeast Regional Vice President of the PTG for two years and is currently in his second term serving as Secretary/Treasurer. He has been an instructor at all levels of the PTG. Recently he taught at the Nordic Piano Technicians Convention in Ebsjerg, Denmark.
Chris was a piano teacher from 1976 until 1995 (ten years at Lafayette College) and has been a professional pianist since 1965. He served as a church pianist 1982-1992, and with his wife Dona owned and operated a small hotel/jazz club in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania, the “Deer Head Inn,” from 1992 through 2006.
Leon Speir, RPT - Dallas, TX
Leon has been professionally tuning and servicing all types of pianos since High School days in central Oklahoma. Shortly after graduating from high school, he moved to Dallas and has operated a tuning and rebuilding business at the same location since 1965. He has served in various leadership capacities in the Piano Technicians Guild at the national, regional and local levels. Leon is proud of his degrees from SOHK University, and will share his expertise in his Vertical Repairs class. He is looking forward to seeing you all at the Canyon of The Eagles Lodge and Nature Park in the Texas Hill Country!
Michael Tocquigny, RPT - Sanger, TX (Dallas Chapter)
Michael Tocquigny has been a self-employed piano technician since 1977 (about half-time in the Ft. Smith, AR area and half in north Texas) - all this after a one year experience as a public school math teacher. Training began with a course in piano technology at Grayson Co. College, continuing with Yamaha's Little Red School House, Steinway's technical school and, of course, many trips to PTG conventions. In recent years he's been privileged to teach at several national conventions. His work has included contract tunings for schools and colleges, but his preference is for shop work/rebuilding, especially pinblocks and restringing. In his spare time, he enjoys barbershop singing.
Steve Walthall, RPT - Austin, TX
Steve has a bachelor degree in music education from Southern Arkansas University (1981) and is a graduate of Grayson County College in piano technology (1982). He now works half-time as a piano technician for the University of Texas in Austin and has a large private piano service business.
Jack Wyatt, RPT - Dallas, TX
Jack began his career as a full time technician in May of 1946. Working in his brother’s rebuilding shop he was tutored by several expert rebuilders and tuners of this time. This was an opportunity that few technicians ever have and Jack took full advantage of it. He began his own business in 1952 and added a rebuilding shop in 1956. He installs new pin blocks, soundboards, bridges, actions and back actions. He has developed many techniques designed to achieve maximum potential of each piano he services. This includes voicing and using the mechanics of the action to even the volume across the entire keyboard. He has serviced thousands upon thousands of pianos from all over the world. His business was built on the principle of delivering more than his customer expected. Jack teaches piano technology thoughout the country and is recognized as an expert on vintage, antique, and unique pianos. For the past 46 years he has been compiling information for a book on the evolution of pianos that he hopes to complete and publish soon. Jack serves on the PTG Foundation Board and was instrumental in creating the PTGF Piano Museum at the home office in Kansas City.