Toronto Piano Tuning by Jamie Musselwhite

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History Fredrick William Musselwhite My Grandfather, F.W. Musselwhite, was trained in England as an Organist, and apprenticed as an Organ Builder to Henry Willis in Liverpool. After a brief post as Organist for the Duke and Duchess of Westminster, he came to Canada, settling in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in 1900. Along with teaching music, Fred was the Organist and Choirmaster for Third Avenue Methodist (United) Church. In 1903 he formed the Saskatoon Choral Society, and conducted the very first concert of the Saskatoon Orchestra, with John Jackson as concertmaster, at Cairns' Hall on March 16th in 1905. At the outbreak of World War I, Fred accepted a commission into the Canadian Army and served in France. When the War was over, he returned to Canada and trained with the Martin-Orme Piano Company in Ottawa as a Piano Technician. In 1921, he started work as a full time Piano Technician, working for J.J.H. McLean & Co. ltd. in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He continued to work in this field until his death in the early 1950's. Fred's Calling Card Fred's Calling Card (Flip Side) Caleb Henry Musselwhite My Father, C.H. Musselwhite, left public school at the age of fifteen to work with his father. When he turned twenty one, he bought a used Model "T" Ford, packed up his tools, and went from town to town across the prairies, tuning and repairing Pianos throughout the depression. He would try to arrive in a new town just before supper time. He'd book a hotel room, and walk through the town as darkness fell, looking into the lighted parlor rooms of the houses he passed. He'd make a note which houses had pianos, and then knock on their doors the next morning. His fee of two dollars per service was an expensive luxury for most families during those hard times, but he carried a secret weapon with him: A vacuum cleaner. Most housewives of that time had heard of this "new-fangled contraption" but had never actually seen one. He would offer to clean the inside of the piano for a dime, and many women accepted this offer just to see the device in action. While he was cleaning, he would speak about the many important reasons to keep a piano in tune, and would often walk out with two dollars and ten cents in his pocket.               Too old to enlist when World War II broke out, his services became in great demand as many Piano Technicians left to fight overseas. In 1940 we was hired by Heintzman & Co. to be the head technician for the Calgary Store, and remained in Calgary for the rest of his life becoming the official Piano Tuner for the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, Mount Royal College, the Banff School of Fine Arts (The Banff Centre), and the Calgary Rural School Division (Rockyview).           James Edward Musselwhite I learned my trade from my father, from other piano industry professionals too numerous to mention, and from experience. Over the past quarter of a century I have Rebuilt and Refinished hundreds of Upright and Grand Pianos, and have tuned for the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, Winnipeg Opera, Calgary Philharmonic, Saskatoon Symphony, The National Ballet of Canada, The Canadian Opera Company, Victor Borge, The Pointer Sisters, Manhattan Transfer, Alice Cooper, Anton Querti, Burton Cummings, various musical groups, recording studios, hundreds of teachers, and thousands of individual piano owners. I have worked on pianos professionally from the Arctic Circle, down into the southern States, and even across the Atlantic. My specialty is the tuning, maintenance, and restoration of pianos, a few of them the same pianos my father and grandfather have worked on when they were new. However, my number one job has been, and probably will always be, informing people about pianos. I am constantly asked questions such as: 'How do I choose a new Piano?'  'How often should they be tuned?'  'Can a cracked soundboard be fixed?'  This website is my attempt to answer these and other questions as clearly, and definitively as possible. As I was growing up, my parents owned what was then one of the largest music stores in Canada. Rideau Music had, during the 1970's, not only the largest stock of sheet music in the country, but also Pianos, Organs, and every type of small musical instrument, from orchestral to folk instruments. It was my job every Sunday from the time I was eleven or so, to tune every tuneable thing in the store: Ukuleles, Banjos, Autoharps, Guitars, Violins. If it could be tuned, I tuned it. When I was fourteen I started to teach myself how to play the piano (That's a whole other story!) but, like the proverbial shoemakers wife who went unshod, our piano was always out-of-tune. Whenever I would ask my dad to tune it, he would say: "Do it yourself!" (After all, he had been tuning all day). Finally, out of desperation, I borrowed his tools, and gave it a try. I was fairly familiar with the process already have been working on pianos for many years in my Dad's shop, but I soon found that I needed some serious tutelage.  For the next four years I worked side by side with my dad, eventually taking over even his concert tunings for the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra. I had honed my ears by tuning the instruments in my parents store, and learned the art of piano tuning alongside of my father, and that in a nutshell, is how I got my start. Now, over thirty-five years later, every time I tune, I am reminded of my Dad, and of those first initial lessons so many years ago. Credo Many Piano owners have learned from bitter experience that not all Piano Tuners are knowledgeable, or even reputable. Some have had poor, or just plain bad advice from "a friend who plays the piano", and others have been confused or even bullied by piano sales people. As strange as it may seem, Pianos are important to me; I am passionate about what I do, and want you to feel some of that passion; this is why I have created this web site. To demystify the process of choosing a new piano, to convey the importance of regular Piano maintenance, to help you choose a reputable Piano Technician, and to inform you about how a piano works. In short: Everything you need to know about pianos.