“It may come as a surprise to you, as it did to me, to learn that tuning a piano is not at all the same as tuning a violin or a guitar. Not only is it physically more difficult (and time consuming) because every piano has at least 250 strings, and they are “tied down” very firmly by their tuning pins --- not only that: a piano is tuned by a wholly different philosophy.” (from ‘Author’s Preface’)
“A piano is born into the world in a state of high tension, much more so than a wheelbarrow or a lamp. The piano is sent into the world with this tension arrested. It is the task of the tuner to re-arrest.” (from ‘Second Interval’)
“IN THE BEGINNING – Like a fish, a piano forgets easily. It does not matter whether this piano and I have met before. I address it, even before I open the lid. The listening begins with my eyes, then my hands. I am hushed before it, waiting. . . .” (‘Tuner’s Monologue #4’)