Klarinet Archive - Posting 000882.txt from 2003/02

From: CBA <clarinet10001@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] Eefer overhaul
Date: Thu, 27 Feb 2003 22:08:25 -0500

Christy,

I fully understand supporting the local store, but have also
encountered the local store gone $ crazy. I think a 10-20%
markup from wholesale prices is a maximum for me to support a
local store. Anything more than that is worth me FLYING to
another city to support a local store for an instrument or major
music purchase. $50-100 difference is one thing. $500+ is quite
another. I hate when I hear people being taken for a ride,
especially in a situation of a small church that probably had to
pull money from another part of the budget to spend on a
sub-standard instrument when they could have gotten a truly
great instrument for that amount of money with the right
salesperson to guide them.

As far as the repair situation, if you can get your instrument
repaired there, great. I do believe Walter Grabner at
www.clarinetxpress.com is within 3 hours of you driving (a
little less than 2.5, if Mapquest is right) if you need someone
else for a possibility.

Good luck on the repairs. Thanks for the kind comments in your
other note too!

Kelly Abraham
Woodwinds - New York City
--- Christy Erickson <perickso@-----.net> wrote:
> Kelly, Thanks so much. The man who works on my clarinets is
> Scott Winkler
> in Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin. He overhauled my R-13 in 1999
> and I've never
> been so happy with it. Andrea Splittberger-Rosen is in
> Stevens Point,
> Wisconsin and she is our clarinet "guru" in our neck of the
> woods. She
> recommended Scott to me and said she wouldn't send her
> clarinets to anyone
> else. I'm sure everyone else here that has been recommended
> is great also
> and most music stores have people that do good work. I always
> love to have
> extra names to give my students, since Scott is usually very
> busy and I need
> to make appointments months in advance to have any major work
> done. I'm
> convinced this must be another art form (the mechanical part
> of the clarinet
> work). When you live in an area like we do (northern
> Wisconsin small town)
> our choices aren't exactly plentiful. Many times, the best
> music store in
> town is just that due to the fact that it's the ONLY store in
> town.
> Although I don't live in Stevens Point, I'll have to say
> that Mitchell
> Piano Works is one of the best little piano stores around. Of
> course, my
> cousin owns it but even if he wasn't my cousin, I'd still say
> that. I'll
> never forget going out to buy my first piano in the "big
> city"(won't say
> which one) and I felt like I was buying a used car-the
> salesmen were that
> obnoxious. My cousin tells me his "bottom line" and that's
> it-no nonsense,
> so I bought my Yamaha grand from him.
> This is a bit off-topic since I'm getting into piano talk
> but I have to
> tell this story. I judged a piano festival last Saturday at a
> small church
> in northern Wisconsin. I walked in to find a Yamaha grand
> piano in the
> church sanctuary. I remarked that it looked just like mine
> and was much
> relieved to be able to judge students who had a great
> instrument to play on.
> My hopes weren't so high after sat I down and played a bit on
> it though.
> The action was very light and the sound quite bright and thin.
> (Sorry Dan)
> It puzzled me until the minister at the church talked with me
> after a break.
> He was so proud. It seems the church had gotten a great deal
> on the piano.
> It was rebuilt in Japan and the church had been able to
> purchase it for the
> unbelievable bargain basement price of $10,000. He told me
> the local music
> store quoted a price of $25,000 on the same piano and they
> were so thrilled
> to have obtained this "treasure." I didn't say anything more
> about it to
> him-just let him think he got his "good deal." Makes me
> wonder where that
> piano really came from.
>
> Christy Erickson
>
> "Music ought to be a stress reliever, not a stress producer."

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