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QUESTION: I played at a local nursing home last night and they had a beautiful
steinway grand, about a six footer. I played a quick C cord and it sounded
OK. So I didn't get the electric piano out of the car and proceded to set
up the PA system and mikes for me and my partner (a tenor sax player). Then
we actually started to play after the first few notes I wish I had brought
in the electric piano. How could a nursing home hire performers to come in
to play, and not spend part of there budget to get there beautiful piano
(that was given to them by the family of a modearately well to do patient,
who liked to play) tuned a couple times a year. What a dissapointment, to
sit down to play a wonderful grand piano and find it in such poor tune.
ANSWER: Your experience may have been disappointing to you as a trained musician
with a good ear, but be assured that the residents of the nursing home are
delighted to hear a good musician on any instrument. My wife works at a
nursing home (having a civil war upright that hasn't been tuned since the
same war) and she says that the majority of musicians are not very good but
the residents still appreciate the "music". She also notices that it seems
that the less skill a musician has, the louder they play or sing.
The majority of nursing homes are for-profit agencies with many demands on
their budget. Unless the owner or chief administrator is musically
inclined, tuning of pianos is likely to be a low priority. But nursing
homes always welcome volunteers of all kinds. I think it would be great if
a local tuner would volunteer his/her services, even if only once a year.
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