Posts Tagged ‘piano teachers’

Which Piano Should I Own ?

Thursday, May 3rd, 2012

This question is among the most asked questions that I get on the sales floor.  Here’s my response.

I Love My Piano

I Love My Piano

PICK THE ONE YOU LOVE !

So you walk into the store and here’s ALL these pianos.  Black ones, brown ones, grands, uprights, digitals OH NO which one is mine.  You sit and play every one but the one you love is the last one you would have thought you would love.  Yep.  That’s right.  You came in with a predetermined idea of exactly what you thought you wanted.  The shiny black grand with “that name” on it.  However, the one you really, I mean REALLY like is the satin brown one that is 4 inches bigger than what you had in mind, and to top it all off – it has (more…)

It’s a Revolution

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

What a great idea.   I got this link today and after investigating the group I learned that these guys actually choose a place to play, go in and have some pretty cool little concerts and venues.  Of course it’s all classical music and well presented.  Take the time to watch this and if you have the chance to do this, it is a nice promotion.

 

 

I really believe with all of my heart if we all pull together and do things like this in unexpected places.  We all have the power to make powerful influences within our personal circles.

Our piano teacher and piano tuners  also have powerful influences.

Ric Overton

http://pianosd.com

Powerful Influences – Teachers

Tuesday, February 21st, 2012

Today’s podcast is about influential people in our musical journey.  I also covered the passing of Whitney Houston and my own personal experiences as a student when I was first learning to play.

I hope you enjoy.

Ric Overton / http://PianoSD.com

Beverly Aiken, Central Coast Music Teachers Association, Piano Outlet of Nipomo, Ca. and Ric Overt

Sunday, October 16th, 2011

As many of you are already aware,  I manage a small store for the Piano Outlet of Oxnard, Ca.  www.thepianooutletco.com in Nipomo, Ca.  I have long been an advocate of music and piano teachers since I was with Baldwin Piano Mfg.  I believe that they are the key to the success of the piano/music business because the teachers are teaching people to play what we have to sell so, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand the correlations.

Ric Overton

Yesterday, the Central Coast Music Teachers Association held a conference in the store here in Nipomo and I was delighted to host them.  I sat while one of the leading technicians of our area gave an hour lecture on the history of the piano “A comparison of pianos through the ages”.  It was very intriguing.  Those of you who follow my blog on a regular basis know that I write a lot about the history of pianos and their origin.  It was a very captivating hour.  She brought out points that I had not thought of and refreshed my memory on other points that I had simply forgotten.

It was a pleasure to listen to a knowledgeable person bring such an enlighting path of our history.  It brings me to a new point that I will be discussing in some upcoming blogs and articles about our business.

This bring me to the point that I wanted to discuss today.  Max Morgan of www.MaxMorganDesign.com has been working with me for several years now helping to (in most cases) read my mind about the direction that I have been wanting to take the PianoSD website. Through a series of trial and error and much discussion (MUCH DISCUSSION) I have finally decided to launch a new website in the next few days www.ricoverton.com where I will be able to discuss business strategies as well as personal muse in two new blogs.

In the new site I will have the opportunity to challenge the current thought process of the piano industry and the current mood of the industry and keep it more personal than non-commital than I would attempt to do on PianoSD.  PianoSD is becoming a “go to” resource on everything piano related and RicOverton.com will be my personal opinions about business and then some personal things I would like to be able to discuss.

I look forward to the challenge of keeping up with three blogs as well as what I am

Piano Outlet, Nipomo, Ca

Piano Outlet, Nipomo, Ca

doing with the companies in the U.K. that I am currently writing for as well as the one I am developing for France and Austria.  Additionally, I write for two other companies as well as a couple of artists too.  So, I will be busy.

See you soon.

Ric Overton

for www.PianoSD.com via www.MaxMorganDesign.com

Passion for Pianos

Wednesday, August 10th, 2011

I have been ready a really good book about passion.  NO! Not the sexual kind.  Passion is the thing that invades your mind all of the time.  The thing that you think of at odd times.  The thing that draws your mind away when you think of something funny or sad.  Passion.  Its the thing that drives people to do what they do.

Pianos are truly my passion.  I know most people never think of it.  When I look at pianos I think about all of the hands that worked on 15,000 parts to put it all together.  I see the trees in the forest being cut down and then crafted into the wooden parts that are used in the piano.  The sheep that were sheared to get the wools.  The hands that were used to make the strings, not to mention the assembly.

European pianos, Asian pianos or American pianos.  Its the same all around.  So much handcraftsmenship that went into each and every single piano that is constructed regardless of the point of origin.

Since I have moved to Nipomo, Ca, just south of San Luis Obispo and north of Santa Maria.  When Bob opened his satelite store in Nipomo and I moved here, I have learned to slow down a little (at least in some ways) I have started enjoying life a little more.  This crazy passion for pianos seems to multiply.

Pianos are a world wide statement.  They are one of the most widely accepted musical instruments and I am truly proud when someone asks me what I do to say, I’m in the piano business.  I really want to see the piano to make a ressurgence in the market place.  Its very tough in the present economic situations and many people are deciding to work outside of our industry.  Yet, when you sit down at a piano and start to play people smile.

I love our teachers, technicians, tuners, movers as well as artists, dealers,etc.  I do wish you the very best.  Hope to see you soon.

Ric

posted by Ric Overton via http://maxmorgandesign.com

Piano Teachers

Wednesday, June 1st, 2011

Of all of the things in the piano industry, I love piano teachers.  I know, I know, I love the manufacturers, piano builders, tuners, technicians, artists, etc.  but, teachers are the key to our industry.

Heres some facts.  Piano teachers generally speaking have the love and compassion needed to take kids into the next level.  They have to deal with young men and young women as they come into and out of the most important parts of thier lives on a much more personal basis than the average teacher.

As a child is going through the loss of a loved one, divorce of their parents, not to mention puberty and growing into young men and young women.  Then theres school, school functions girlfriends, boyfriends, best freinds, soccer, football, cheerleaders and such.  All the while they are doing their very best to work with the children through the situations.

Piano teachers are teaching our kids to play the piano but also are adding to thier imaginations.  Most people dont realize that learning to play a musical instrument helps kids increase their ability to learn.

I have had a lot of pleasure teaching adults.  Like teachers that teach kids I have listened to stories about everything from marriage problems to kid problems and financial problems and every possible topic in between and loved every minute of it.

Teaching adults to play has been very rewarding because they are learning to do something they have wanted to do all of their lives and never had a chance.  Take for example one student that I had who was in his early 70’s and had never played before.  When he played the first  bars of When the
Saints Go Marchin In, you would have thought he had just won a lottery.  Yet, he had it in him all along and simply needed an avenue and permission to get it out.

At the Piano Outlet in Nipomo, Ca.  I have begun classes that are for adults and another teacher is teaching the children.  If you are interested in joining one of our classes or are interested in learning on line, please contact me and I will get you into one of our classes.

Hope to see you soon.

Ric

posted by Ric Overton of www.PianoSD.com  via www.MaxMorganDesign.com

What’s the difference in pianos

Friday, May 20th, 2011

I am probably asked at least once during a sales presentation the difference in pianos and why one may be $2500.00 and the next piano of comparable size is $7500.00.

Pianos now come from at least three main areas of the globe.  #1 by far is the production that is going on in Asia.  Whether Japan, Korea, Indonesia, China or Vietnam (yes, Vietnam) the largest percentage of piano being produced now are from Asia.

Years ago when you spoke of an Asian piano it was with some disdain that you even mentioned it.  While some still don’t like it, the truth is that they are doing a really good job in building pianos.  For some time we have identified Asian pianos with a really bright, almost “tinty” sound.  Today we are seeing many pianos such as Pearl River’s Rittmueller, Perzina, Brodmann and others that are arriving from China in a near perfect tuning, good regulation and a European smooth sound.

It has been an incredible change in production that we have witnessed right before our eyes.  I for one am constantly amazed at the differnce in quality of the piano as well as the quality of sound that is being produced in Asia.

I will continue to discuss the various areas of the world that pianos are currently being produced in and the sound textures and differences that you can/should expect.

Eventually in the transition of PianoSD I will be discussing various pricing and with the help of some others I will start to hopefully explain piano name brands and give my opinions on what you can and should expect with each.

While pianos are my passion, I have a great love for piano teaching and a respect for the piano teachers and hope to promote thier craft.  I am certainly trying to bring music education to Nipomo, Ca.  where I presently manage The Piano Outlet.  You can find us at www.thepianooutletco.com .

I hope you enjoy this blog as much as I enjoy bringing it to you.

Ric

posted by

Real or Fake ?

Monday, May 24th, 2010

I hear more than my share of talk about real or fake pianos.  Some people have actually commented that they don’t like fake pianos.  They were talking of course about digital pianos. 

Although there are certainly some arguments about accoustic vs. digital pianos, there are still people who would prefer accoustic pianos over digital pianos.  I recently had a discussion with a gentleman from Carlsbad who told me that he was convinced that the digital piano was a terrible thing to learn on – that is until he actually sat down and played one.  He was so overjoyed with the digital piano that he purchased one on the spot.

We have many piano teachers who are turning to digital now too.  Teachers are finding many ways to use digital that was never possible before.  You can record, use computer functions to help you compose, always in perfect pitch, automatic transpose, easily transportable, heat and humidity dont effect it at all, several voices to choose from which give you the capabilities to play and entire orchestra score with recording and really the list goes on.

 httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpnsZKmuO0Q

Of course, the accoustic piano will never disappear but, we are finding that more and more people are turning to digital pianos as an alternative for use with more demanding music that is being performed today.

The touch is very realistic and the sound is incredible.  I know when I was first introduced to the idea of digital piano I was not completely sold, however, once I understood the basics of how digitals operated I was just absolutley thrilled with the possibilities that the digital world opened to me. 

We have customers from many parts of  San Diego such as Rancho Santa Fe, La Jolla and San Marcos that have become real fans of the Roland digital pianos because of thier realism in touch, tone and clarity of sound.  More information can be found at www.RolandUS.com

If you have any questions or comments feel free to let me know and I will try to help you.  Feel free to stop by our store located in the heart of Mission Valley in San Diego, California.

Stop by and see us we would love to meet you.

Ric Overton

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