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from the issue of May 4, 2006
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West to turn in tuning tools
BY TROY FEDDERSON, UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS
Days after joining the School of Music in 1975, Richard West could hardly believe what he got himself into.
| | IN TUNE - Richard West, piano tuner for the School of Music, makes an adjustment on a piano hammer in his Westbrook Music Building repair shop. Photo by Troy Fedderson/University Communications.
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"There was so much to do that I felt I would never get caught up," said West, piano tuner for the School of Music. "I was under a lot of pressure. I was still fairly new to this career and I had just left Iowa City, one of my favorite places to be.
"If anything else would have happened, I would have left."
That final straw never came. West erased the backlog and - 25 years later, as he prepares to retire from the university on May 12 - he can look back on those first days fondly.
"After those first five years, it's been all down hill," West said. "This has been an interesting profession considering I backed into it."
Pianos have always played a roll in West's life. He started college studying piano performance, but opted for a major in German when he realized he wasn't that talented at tickling the ivories.
He remained interested in pianos, in particular how to tune and repair. West enrolled in a correspondence course and started to "fiddle" with a piano.
"I didn't have anyone to show me what I was doing, so I gave up on it," West said. "Then, later on, I heard about this school in Sioux City that offered a piano tuning program."
West enrolled at Western Iowa Tech and started learning about what he planned would be a part-time job to supplement a career in education.
"I spent a year up with the idea that it was probably not going to be my main career," West said. "For me, it was a stop gap decision that ended up being a good career choice."
Completing the tech school course, West started working at a piano dealer in Iowa City. When he saw the UNL position advertised in the local paper, he applied and journeyed to Lincoln in 1975.
Westbrook Music Building was built in 1967. When West started working in the building's basement, Westbrook was home to over 130 pianos, many of which were in need of tuning and repair eight years after the move in.
"Some of those we just had to sell," West said. "I regret that because some of them were Steinways. They were trash, but now I know that even trash can be rebuilt, like a phoenix."
West remains tied to the traditional methods of piano tuning and repair. He owns an electronic tuner, but favors his ears. He also continues to use horsehide glue on certain repairs.
He has been responsible for maintaining 100 pianos in the school, including those used in Kimball Recital Hall. West also tunes pianos for performers in the Lied Center. Those experiences rate as some of his best stories.
"A few years ago, Eric Olson was playing the Lied," West said. "He came in and liked the piano after I was finished with it."
West left before the Olson's performance to pick up his daughter at the Omaha airport. Luckily, a snow storm forced him to turn around at Waverly.
| | TRADE TOOLS - Tools West uses to tune and repair pianos rest on a stool in his repair shop.
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"I got home around 8:30 (p.m.) and received a call a few minutes later," West said. "They said a string broke and asked if I could come down right away."
A half hour later, the break - which included two strings - was repaired and the performance went on.
Even the degree in German has been useful as West worked in a piano factory in Germany during the summer of 1987.
West said he continues to love working on pianos, and in retirement plans to establish a repair shop in his garage.
While the work remains a passion, West said retirement will allow him to accomplish other goals in his life. And, his final decision reflects back to those first few months in Westbrook.
"Those pianos that I rebuilt that first year need it again," West said. "That is what really made me decide it was time to retire. I thought I should leave those for the next guy."
A search is on to fill the opening. Regardless who steps in, West believes they will have an smoother transition than he did.
"I think he or she will be in a much better position," West said. "There will be plenty to do. It is a never ending cycle."
GO TO: ISSUE OF MAY 4
ARTS HEADLINES FOR MAY 4
West to turn in tuning tools
American Life in Poetry
Annual BFA Capstone exhibition open through May 5
Faculty artists open studios for fund raiser
732435S35885X
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