The annual Years End party was held at Buca di Beppo Jan 7th , we had a good turnout of members and spouses. I’m still full from the wonderful Italian cuisine, and the group sampled a good portion of the menu. It appeared that everyone enjoyed themselves and no one could have possibly left hungry. It was not a good evening to start the resolution of going on a diet.

...

... Bring on the food -  January New Year Meeting

Chapter News & Notes:

February 21, 2006 Meeting at 7:30 pm 

The February meeting will be held at the home of Kim and Bud Hoessly’s 3411 Clearview Ave. Columbus, OH 43221 
Kim will present the technical on the work she has done on her personal Steinway Upright. She explains that it is still a work in progress as in the “cobblers son syndrome” working on your on piano always takes a back seat to the paying jobs.

The Chapter has received several more requests about membership application, included are KeralWagner fromMarietta, Don Carle from Zanesville, Rob Murphy of Columbus I have contacted all by email. David Stang and Dwight Hansen have both successfully completed their written exams.

BE THERE FOR FREE STUFF! The Chapter has received a number of DVD's from Dampp-Chaser Corporation. These include the latest installation instructions for grand and verticals along with 'Frequently Asked Questions'. Everyone present at the next Chapter meeting will receive one of these free DVDs.
 

Notice to all Associates / Technical Exam Date

The PTG Technical Exam will be given at Hughes Hall on the OSU campus on FridayMarch 24, 2006 beginning at 10am. Examiners and Examinees need to arrive by 9:30 for orientation. All those intending to take the exam at that time should get in their request by February 24th. The first 3 applicants will be accepted, we will set a second exam for anyone who applies after that. You must have passed the written examto qualify to take the Technical Exam. The cost is $90 payable that day (no money, no exam). Letters with other details will be sent out the end of February. We will need 4 other RPTs to administer the exam besides myself and Mitch (assuming 3 examinees, we need 2:1 ratio examiner: examinee). Please email me at khoessly @ columbus.rr.com or phone me at 614-326- 3630 to get your name in. Thanks! -- Kim
 

There seems to be some confusion on the use of the PTG logo by an individual member. This would be on business cards or letterhead, or other such advertising. If you use this logo as a personal ad you must include a category description which would either be - Registered Member or Associate Member, not just member. (see excerpt from manual below) .
 

Rochester in June! 2006 Annual PTG Convention 

Welcome to 2006!! The turn of the New Year is always a time of rejuvenation, goal setting, and resolution making. This is the year!! Mark you calendars NOW and resolve to attend the Annual PTG Convention held June 21-25, 2006 in Rochester, NY. Make a commitment to improve your livelihood:

Multi-Day Programming: Hands-on, small group, intensive regulation programs available for both grand and vertical pianos. Hands-on Skills Sessions: Available following many of your favorite instructed classes, you too have the opportunity to try newly learned skills.

 Rebuilders Showcase: We have invited the best rebuilders in our trade to showcase their work and lecture on skills not previously seen at PTG seminars.

 Holding on to your Money: A ½ day dedicated Business Seminar exploring many aspects of the “Business of being in Business.” 

For up to date information, please visit our website regularly: http://www.ptg.org/conv/2006/ Checkout next months column as we take a closer look at our Multi-Day Programming Sessions highlighting Samick and Yamaha.
 

 Name The Piano

OK - I’ll agree, last month’s Name The Piano was pretty easy. Did you get it? A.B.Chase, "The Ohio Steinway", of Norwalk, Ohio. According to the stories I’ve been told, Mr. Chase married a daughter of the Steinways, the pianos built here in Ohio bore a striking resemblance to the Steinway piano. The firm was taken over by Calvin Whitney in 1877.
...

Try this one -- it may be a little harder ! The photo isn’t quite as clear (phone photo) but I think it’s recognizable. (clue : only made verticals but manufacture name might not suggest it.)
 

World's longest concert sounds second chord

A new chord has sounded in the world's slowest and longest concert, which will take 639 years to perform.
An abandoned church in eastern Germany is the venue for the 639-year-long performance of a piece of music by American experimental composer John Cage.
The performance of "organ2/ASLSP" (or "As Slow aS Possible") began in the Buchardi church in Halberstadt on September 5, 2001, and is scheduled to last until 2639.
The first year-and-a-half of the performance was total silence, with the first chord, G-sharp, B and G-sharp, not sounding until February 2, 2003.
Two additional Es, an octave apart, were sounded in July 2004 and are scheduled to be released later this year on May 5.
Today, the first chord has progressed to a second, comprising A, C and F-sharp, and is to be held down over the next few years by weights on an organ being built especially for the project.
New pipes are being added to the organ in time for when new notes are scheduled to sound. Cage originally conceived the piece in 1985 as a 20-minute work for piano, subsequently transcribing it for organ in 1987. But organizers of the John Cage Organ Project decided to take the composer at his word and stretch out the performance for 639 years, using Cage's transcription for organ.
The enormous running time was chosen to commemorate the creation of Halberstadt's historic Blockwerk organ in 1361, 639 years before the current project started.
The organ, built by Nikolaus Faber for Halberstadt's cathedral, was the first ever to be used for liturgical purposes, ringing in a new era in which the organ has played a central role in church music ever since.
Cage was a pupil of one of the 20th century's most influential composers, Arnold Schoenberg. Cage's avant-garde oeuvre includes works such as the notorious "4'33", a piece for orchestra comprising four minutes and 33 seconds of total silence, all meticulously notated.
The organizers of the John Cage Organ Project say the record-breaking performance in Halberstadt also has a philosophical background, to "rediscover calm and slowness in today's fastchanging world".
Cage died in New York in 1992. - AFP 

(ed. note: call Ticket Master today or you could miss out) 
 

This organ will play the John Cage composition 'organ2/ASLSP' over the next 639 years. (John Cage Organ Foundation Halberstadt)