PTG (Piano Technicians Guild)

Norbert Abel formed the Abel Hammer Company (Helmut Abel GmbH) in 1982 along with his father, to manufacture piano hammerheads, shanks and flanges for the piano industry.  Over the years, they have created many interesting products such as chemical free felt and high quality hammerheads for both upright and grand pianos.  The products are manufactured in their Frankenhardt, Germany factory and distributed throughout the world. Norbert has been involved with several industry associations over the years including the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG) where he has not only exhibited but

Paul Adams began his career as a piano technician in New Jersey after earning his degree in music at Rutgers University in 1972.  Soon after establishing his business, Paul joined the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG) to learn all he could about his profession.  Within a few years it was Paul who was teaching classes and helping grow the guild.  He earned his Registered Piano Technician (RPT) certificate and has since been a strong leader within the PTG to grow the relevance and quality of the testing process for all tuners and technicians. Paul was elected to the PTG National Board a

Rick Baldassin is the President and Founder of Baldassin Pianos in Salt Lake City, Utah.  As a piano technician, Rick has been an active and passionate member of the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG) both serving with his local chapter as well as on the board of the guild.  Over the years he has developed a strong knowledge of the inner working of the piano action and the role and construction of the hammer.  As a result he has provided countless training classes for the PTG attendees to help grow the knowledge and credibility of the guild and technicians the world over.

Bill Brandom enjoyed playing piano as a kid and was even voted “most musical” in high school.  He later was given a book on piano tuning, which changed his life because he realized it would be his passion.  He attended a piano tuning school and opened his own shop in Kansas City before being asked to join the Yamaha team in 1980.  His first role with the company was to manage the service department for the Everett Piano factory in Michigan, which was owned by Yamaha at the time.  He later moved to the Yamaha corporate headquarters in California and joined the Yamaha piano service

Wally Brooks grew up in the piano business. His father was a piano technician and Wally followed in his footsteps. Wally was 16 years old when he joined the Piano Technicians Guild in 1958. Since that time he has been a true leader within the PTG and the industry, forming life long friends and strong business relationships along the way. He formed Brooks LTD in 1980 to supply the needs of piano technicians with products such as piano actions, tools and parts.  

Melanie Brooks grew up around music! Her grandparents owned a music store and her parents established Brooks LTD Piano Products, which she purchased from them in 2009. Her father created several products to aid piano technicians in their craft, including replacement action parts. She continues to sell those items as well as products made by Abel Hammer and the Tokiwa product line. However, Melanie feels her company provides much more than parts, they provide service to the technician and education to assist each of their customers.

Dave Campbell grew up in a household full of music, with both grandmothers being piano teachers and his father a professional piano player. With such a strong musical background, it was no surprise that Dave became a professional musician, making it his career until his early 30s. Dave also had a strong interest in engineering and merged both passions by entering the piano industry. He worked for Kimball Pianos before being hired by Charlie Kaman to help form Carrier Pianos in North Carolina. After building the factory and running operations, he was hired by his long-time friend,

Norman Cantrell attended the University of Oklahoma City where he earned his degree in music education. He soon realized his passion was not in teaching but rather in piano repair and tuning. As a teenager, he studied the craft for several years with a local technician, which included installing pipe organs, and after college realized it really was what he loved to do. Norman opened his own shop in 1984 and worked closely with area piano stores, including Sharp & Nickels, tuning their floor models. When a piano was sold, the store would recommend Norman go to the customer's ho

Bruce Clark was interviewed for the NAMM Oral History program during the 2015 Piano Technician Guild’s (PTG) annual convention in Denver, Colorado in July 2015.  During his interview he covered his passion for music and well as his long association with the piano industry.  Much of his design work has been related to his association with the Mason & Hamlin Piano Company.  Over the years, Bruce has been a passionate spokesman for the company, which was established by Henry Mason and Emmons Hamlin in Boston back in 1854.  In addition to his role with Mason & Hamlin, Bruce ha

Chris Climer wanted to play the piano and organ when he was 16 years old.  He did not have the money to purchase an instrument so he made an arrangement to work in a music store in Arkansas to earn the money to make the payments –and he has been in the industry ever since!  He learned to deliver and service pianos before he was given the opportunity to sell the instruments.  Chris took a liking to the process and relocated to Dallas in 1969 to work for Goodman Music.  In 1980, Chris and his wife opened the Family Music Center in Dallas and designed the website www.worldwidepianos.

Jim Coleman Jr. has proudly served as president of the Piano Technicians Guilds (PTG) Board as well as provided classes and training for its members.  He grew up in the industry and followed in his father’s footsteps, who also served the PTG over his long career.  In addition to tuning, Jim Jr. began creating his own tools at an early age.  Feeling the tools he made could be of benefit to his fellow piano technicians, he opened his own company.  The Coleman Tool & Supply Company offers products such as the 20 Degree Tuning Head, temperament strips, string sealer, key pin polis

Jim Coleman Sr. recalled watching his father, a true traveling music man, tune a piano when Jim was just a boy. He not only went on to make a career of tuning, but set standards for testing tuners for the Piano Technician’s Guild. Over his long career, Jim owned and operated his own music store in Arizona where he began teaching the fine craft of piano tuning. For a while Jim worked for Conn and Baldwin but found his greatest interest was in the developing world of electronic piano tuning tools. Along with his long time friend, Al Sanderson (also interviewed for his collection), t

Richard Davenport was the winner of the 2022 Golden Hammer Award, the highest honor bestowed on members of the Piano Technician's Guild. The award comes after a long and influential career that has included his own amazing career as a technician and his inspiring seminars and clinics that have aided the education of the next generation. Working in the Hollywood movie and recording studios, Richard gained a reputation for quality craftsmanship and the willingness to help out even at the last minute. As a result, he has worked on several high-profile projects for leading artists suc

Patrick Draine is the piano technician who established the Draine Piano Services, offering tuning, repair, regulation and voicing in the greater Boston area.  Patrick joined the local chapter of the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG) in the late 1970s and has been active in the organization ever since that time.  After qualifying as a Registered Piano Technician, Patrick helped the PTG strengthen the exam process and helped expand the training available to members both during the annual conferences and at the local chapter level.

David Durben grew up in Fargo, North Dakota where he forged a career as a piano technician. After forming Durben Piano Services, David worked with area schools and churches as well as the local Baldwin dealer to repair and tune their pianos. His passion for the craft led to his involvement with the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG) for which he served on the board and as president. The guild was expanding their scope when he was president (1998), especially regarding their training and certification programs, which were very important to David as they helped elevate the role of the pi

LaRoy Edwards was the celebrated piano technician who began his long association with Yamaha back in 1961, the year before the company officially entered the United States market. Along the way he helped create the bond assurance program for retailers to track customer satisfaction, and the Little Red School House program for piano tuner training on new products. LaRoy was the first person to receive the Yamaha Life Time Achievement Award, an honor that was deeply meaningful to him.  

G. Frank Emerson is a piano designer whose roots are firmly based in piano technician training and experiences he was involved with in the early part of his career. He became a well respected piano designer for the Baldwin Piano Company in the 1970s while continuing to support the Piano Technicians Guild, for which he has often provided educational presentations. Frank was hired by Hailun Piano Company, based in China, and has since worked with the factories to implement the craftsmanship needed to build the instruments he has designed. He was awarded the Friendship Medal, China’s

Delwin Fandrich, as a teenager, often spent time with his older brother Darrell, who was a piano technician. Delwin slowly developed his own skills with the trade and focused on learning all he could about the design of the pianos he worked on. After serving in the US Air Force during the Vietnam War, Delwin returned to work with his brother before opening his own piano shop. He continued with his education in piano designs, which served him well when manufacturers called on him for his expertise. These included the Baldwin Piano Company and the Charles Walter Piano Company.

Jim Geiger’s first memory of hearing a piano was when his mother carried him into church in her arms. By the age of seven, he was taking lessons and within ten years he was being trained as a piano technician. The occupation fit him perfectly and he soon discovered that the greatest reward was not in being paid, but rather the fact that he was allowing his customers to make music again. Jim maintained the pianos at several colleges over the years including Houston Community College and Morehead State University where he often served informally as a counselor while there to tune th

Wilhelm Gertz was often seen working on the action of a vintage grand piano whenever you stopped to visit him in his store. After all, he has been doing this same thing most of his life. He was born into a family in Germany who ran the largest piano company in the country. He learned the craft, which he proudly passed along to his son. The W. Gertz Piano Company was located in New Haven, Connecticut, where his son carries on the family traditions.  

Marshall B. Hawkins was the first African American to lead a US Navy band. He was also the first African American to serve not once, but four times, as president of the Piano Technician’s Guild. Yet, he shies away from being called a pioneer, “I just am doing what I love.” Marshall provided tremendous insight and background into the establishment and growth of the guild, as well as the challenges facing keyboard technicians in America. He was among a few charter members who worked long and hard to create a useful teaching criteria that has served the industry for over 40 years.

David Horine opened a small piano store in Bloomington, Illinois in the 1980s.  David became a piano technician and gathered a nice reputation for tuning and repairs before he decided to open his own retail store.  He found in short order that his customers were eager to try new models of the Steinway pianos he had to offer, and a long and successful career in music retail followed.   David is very proud of the fact that his son has joined the team as both a salesman and piano technician.

Lucien Hut dedicated his entire career to teaching, selling, restoring and designing the piano!  As a retailer he established Pianos International in Colorado.  He later moved to Montana where he taught at the university for several years.  His interest and involvement in music began when he received piano lessons as a ten year old boy during World War II.  He later studied to be a piano technician and even designed several models for the Young Chang Piano Company.

Jane Jones began her career as a piano technician while working in music retail.  She noticed pianos in the repair shop lined up and wanted to do all she could to get those instruments back in the home making music.  She began teaching herself as a tuner and soon joined the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG) to take classes and gain her certification.  Since that time she has been a strong supporter of the guild and has worked both as a technician as well as on the manufacturer’s side of the business.  Jane is the current Service Manager for Samick Piano Company.

Carl Lieberman has a fascinating career as a piano technician. Not only does Carl tune and maintain the pianos for recording studios in Southern California, for over 50 years he has provided this service for the Princess Cruise line. His parents owned the first Yamaha piano store in the United States, where Carl had access not only playing the instruments but learning to tune and repair them. He tuned pianos for many of the clubs in Los Angeles including the Roxy Theater and the Troubadour. Working for The Village Studios in Santa Monica, Carl lent his skills to hundreds of record

Taylor Mackinnon grew up in a very musical family and his father played a key role in introducing Taylor to a variety of instrumental music. Taylor was a choral music major and earned a masters degree in music before teaching for nearly a decade. In 1974 he moved to Oregon where he began working as a piano technician, a skill his father and uncle taught him. Taylor became very involved with the Piano Technicians Guild and in fact served on the organization’s board, becoming president of the PTG from 2000 to 2001.  

Don Mannino has always loved fixing things, his first job as a teenager was as a bicycle mechanic. After studying at San Diego State University as a piano performance major he became an apprentice at a local music store learning the craft of piano repair. In 1980 he established his own piano business servicing home pianos and restoring pianos in his shop.  He also worked for local music stores tuning their floor models, which he loved as he got to know most of the new pianos coming out. He has been providing training classes at the Piano Technician Guild’s meetings on action repai

Kathy Maxwell answered an ad in the newspaper for an opening at the main office for the Piano Technicians Guild in 2000. The Kansas City, Missouri-based association was seeking help with its educational and training programs. Having a background as a pianist and in teaching, Kathy applied for and received the job. After serving as a school teacher, Kathy spent several years as a trainer for the Red Cross, which helped her greatly when she transitioned to the PTG.

Larry McDonald grew up surrounded by music in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with a father who performed in the symphony. By age 13, he was mastering classical guitar, igniting a lifelong passion for both playing and teaching music. His insatiable desire to learn led him to music education, and in 1975, while attending college, he took a job at a local music store—where he met his future wife, Ellen. The couple later purchased the business and transformed it into Hartland Music, a thriving hub for lessons and the latest gear during the 1980s rock boom. Their success led to a major expansio

Jim McEvoy apprenticed as a piano technician in his native Ireland in 1946. The following decade he and his bride moved to San Diego, CA where he worked at a local music store before opening McEvoy Music. The store had a well-respected sheet music department, which was originally created by Jim and his wife Margret. After the store closed in 2006, Jim continued to tune and restore pianos, including those for the NAMM Foundation’s Museum of Making Music.  

Ben McKlveen had a very colorful life as a service man during World War II and a piano technician who cared for the instruments of many top performers and orchestras. He played oboe in the military band before serving in George Patton’s Third Army and traveled straight across Germany with Patton. After the war he studied music performance and played solo and utility for several symphonies. He continued to perform until after his 89th birthday. Back in 1952 his piano tuner retired and Ben decided the craft would be a great sideline while he performed.

Bob McNabb is a well-known and respected piano technician in Bakersfield, California, who began his training in 1973. He enjoyed the role of piano tech for the Civic Center for over 20 years. That position allowed Bob the opportunity to tune for such performers as John Browning, Roger Williams, and the comedian George Burns, who was 99 years old at the time. Bob played trumpet and baritone horn in the Salvation Army Band for several years before becoming and officer in that organization for thirteen years, after which he decided to follow in his father's footsteps and become a pia