Do you ever think about your career and wonder

what it would have been like if you had chosen a

different line of work? At one time or another, we’ve

probably all had thoughts and made comments re-

garding the opportunities for more money in a different profession or indus-

try. So why have we all stuck with the music business? I think part of it is

because we don’t “punch out” at 5 PM every day and then forget about it all.

What we do is not just a job, it’s a way of life for us, and it’s contributing to a

better life for thousands of people over the course of our working years.

(continued on page 2)

Let me just start

off by thanking

Glen Clutter -

on behalf of all

of us for his

service and ten-

ure as our president over the past two years.

Glen’s a great guy and we all wish him success

and happiness.

Often we travelers become too inured to the

“travel” aspect of our profession and we some-

times forget to stop and think about the social

and psychological benefits. We should be

mindful that we get to interact with a host of

people that are involved with music in so many

circles of influence: commercial, educational,

and entertainment related venues.

Traveling the whole country is not easy but it

has some upsides. One gets a better idea of the

local business climates across the country. The

common consensus among piano dealers is

that business is beginning to picking up again -

yes, indeed. I’m getting more positive feed-

back from dealers across the board.

Now maybe it’s too

early to hope that the

trend continues but I am optimistic. There’s no

question that the herd has thinned over the past

decade but I think we’ve weathered the worst and

things are looking better for the future… and

maybe there really is something to those theories

on Natural Selection and Survival of the Fittest,

after all.

Someone once said that of all art forms, music is

foremost because it ministers to the soul. We

would do well to remind ourselves that we are

part of a noble profession – blessed with an

abundance of friends, acquaintances, associates,

and communal opportunities that do not exist in

other professions. Our relationships with our

dealers are not only germane but essential to our

survival and well-being; anything we can do to

help strengthen our dealers will ultimately

strengthen our industry.

Pianos continue to be a vital part of music mak-

ing and perhaps Aldous Huxley said it best about

music…“After silence, that which comes nearest

to expressing the inexpressible is music”.

Inside th i s

i ssue :

President’s

Notes

1

New Vice

President

1-2

NPTA Road

Stories

2

Membership

Policy

3

Members

Directory

Policy

4

Year End

Report

5

Travel Tips 5

Updates on

NPTAF

6

Sponsors’ List 7

Contact Us 7

Spe c ial po i nt s

of i nt e r e st :

NAMM Show Dinner

Meeting Photos

Special Report

NPTA Future

Membership

Policy & Dues

Structure

Pay Online!

President’s Notes

New Vice President

THE PIANO RAG M a r c h 2 0 1 3 V o l . 1 6 I s s u e 2

Ray Chandler

“Because of all of you, the NPTA

will continue for years to come.”

Bob Dove

National Piano Travelers Association

Vice President

NAMM Mtg &

Dinner Party

8–

17

HAVE

A

LAUGH!

NPTA Road Stories

Most people who buy pianos aren’t just

buying a piece of furniture. They’re fulfill-

ing a dream for their kids or themselves.

How many people have told us over the

years that they “wished” they could play

the piano? It happens every time the sub-

ject of your job comes up in a conversa-

tion, or if you play, when people have lis-

tened to you. How many of them never do

anything about it? Most of them, right?

But then, there are the ones you and your

colleagues have convinced to try.

That’s nice to think about when the work

day (and often the evening as well) is

done. What would you be thinking about

instead if you were coming home from the

brokerage house, or the accounting firm, or

from a grueling day selling used cars? Sure,

there are times when you feel tired, or unap-

preciated and undercompensated, but what

else would you rather have done? Don’t you

have one of the best jobs in the world?

That’s also why when we get together at

NPTA we have such a good time. Who

would you rather associate with than a

bunch of like minded career music people?

Pass that message along to your colleagues

who aren’t yet involved. NPTA has recently

had a rebirth. Let’s keep the spirit strong

and continue to grow!

Send in your road stories for future newsletters.

You can change names to protect the

innocent or the guilty.

We know you have more than one!

Email to Dawn DeMars.

Dawn.DeMars@verizon.net

Bob Dove from Pg. 1

T H E P I A N O R A G P A G E 2

“I don’t know

anything about

music. In my

line you don’t

have to.”

- Elvis Presley

“If I ever go to

China, I’m

going to find a

piano and play

“Chopsticks”--

only not with

my fingers, but

rather I’ll be

using two

forks.”

- Jarod Kintz,

REWARD!REWARD!

The Best Road Story gets 4 Free Drink TicketsThe Best Road Story gets 4 Free Drink Tickets

at Next Years Dinner!at Next Years Dinner!

The Board of Directors voted unanimously in favor of changing our membership policies. As of February 1,

2011 the following new rules apply to membership:

New Members:

Membership is available to all independent reps, reps employed by piano manufacturers, their executives

and employees who travel to support the piano industry, i.e. clinicians, product specialists. The piano indus-

try represents both acoustic and digital pianos. Also included are those who have worked in this capacity al-

though they might not be a ‘traveler’ at present, either retired or no longer in a ‘travelers position’.

New Membership Dues: $40 per year and $30 for seniors (65 and older).

Renewal Memberships:

A renewal membership is available to all described above who paid their previous year’s dues. Renewal

Membership Dues: $25 per year and $15 for seniors (65 and older).

Associate Members:

Associate members are those who travel in support of the piano industry aside from those who qualify under

New Members. These members include (but not limited to) national piano movers, independent reps, manu-

facturing reps and executives of manufacturer’s of piano lamps, benches, piano dolly’s, piano covers, and

other piano related accessories, those who travel to train or consult, NAMM employees, publishers of periodi-

cals, magazines and websites that support the piano industry, travelers of finance companies who make retail

credit and inventory financing for the piano industry.

Associate Membership Dues: Same as above.

It has never been so easy! Now you can pay your dues, pay ahead for the Annual Meeting and Dinner at

NAMM, make donations using your credit card on our website!

Go to pianotravelers.com . Click on Membership. Click on Make a Payment. Use the drop down menu to se-

lect your dues category (regular or senior) ; get renewal discount if paid by March 31st and make a donation.

You can also choose Subscription and that will pay your dues annually in January of each year!

Call Dawn DeMars if you have any questions.

Special extension! Get your discount for renewal through April 31st

The worlds largest piano is a Challen Concert

Grand. This piano is 11 feet long, has a total

string tension of over 30 tons and weighs more

than a ton

Fun Musical Trivia

Membership Policy and Dues Structure

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 3

Beethoven's Studio Piano is in the National

Museum, Vienna, Austria

A drop of 1/2 step in pitch can equal a change of

3000 to 5000 Pounds of tension!

Pay Your Dues On Our Website!

All current members will be listed in the

“Membership Directory” and available to all

members. The Membership Directory is

located on the NPTA website

www.pianotravelers.com. Also included are

those members who have not paid their

current year’s dues for the period of 12

months. That allows members in transition

or experiencing a hardship to have a grace

period of 12 months. If a member is more

than 12 months late with payment of the

current year’s dues, they will be deleted

from the Membership Directory.

Stay connected

to others

in the Industry

Re-new your

NPTA membership

Today!

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 4

Policy

Membership Directory

At a posh wedding reception in Beverly Hills the

pianist falls into the swimming pool. The pianist

flails furiously while calling for help, yelling "help

me! I can't swim!" One of the other guests who hap-

pens to be at the poolside says "So? I can't play the

piano and you don't hear me complaining”

Funny Musical Jokes

"I do not

have a single

white note on

my piano;

my elephant

smoked too

much."

- Victor

Borge

Forming New Committees

Historical Committee

We need members to collect and archive our NPTA history!

“The Rag” Newsletter Committee

We need members to collect interesting musical articles or stories for our Newsletter .

If you are interested in either of these committees contact Dawn DeMars

When a musician plays a scale on a newly cleaned

piano, he plays from C to shining C!

Piano players are considered to be a Baldwin they lose

their hair.

A music company put pianos outside for a sale but

protected all their internal organs.

4. Save your boarding pass.

Do you usually toss your boarding pass as soon as you step off

the plane? You might want to reconsider. Your boarding pass

can serve as proof of travel if your airline fails to give you the

proper

5. Mark your bags with an easily recognizable item.

Mark your bags by tying a colorful ribbon, stitching a unique

patch or putting a large sticker on your bags. You won't see other

passengers pulling your bags off the carousel to check for their

tiny name tags, and you'll be able to see your suitcases come out

the door from miles away..

6. Remember your flight number.

This may seem like a no-brainer, but knowing your flight

number can make your life easier in small or foreign

airports that do not list the full names of destination

airports, or list by flight number alone.

♪ TRAVEL TIPs

1. Leave time to get to economy lots.

These lots are often significantly lower-priced than other

lots. As a result, they're the best place for economy-minded

travelers,

2. Pack essentials in your carry-on.

Recent statistics indicate that, on average, at least one bag

on every flight is lost or delayed. If there's anything you

can't live without, pack it in your carry-on.

3. Know your hotel information.

If a) your baggage is lost or delayed; b) you miss your con-

nection and will be late checking in; or c) you are going to a

destination you've never visited before, you'll want to have

complete contact information for your hotel on your per-

son. Before you leave home, print out the hotel's name,

address and phone number, and program the latter into

your cell phone.

Travel Tips

Future

Travel

Tips

Coming

From

American

Express

&

AAA

Year-end Report from Dawn DeMars 2012 Treasurer’s Report

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 5

Beginning cash on hand $ 7,171.96

2012 Income from memberships & sponsors $5,040.00

Expenses as follows:

2011 Dinner $4,782.12

Credit Card Fees $ 362.78

NAMM Dues $ 195.00

Legal Fees $ 61.00

Postage $ 75.53

Total Expenses $6,483.49

Net funds on hand from 2011 $5,728.47

NPTA & NPTAF Mission Statements

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 6

National Piano Travelers Association Since it's formation in 1904, The National Piano Travelers Association is dedicated to

supporting and encouraging the progressive development of the Piano / Keyboard in-

dustry. While promoting and preserving the professionalism of the Salesman, the

NPTA continues to build a strong foundation for the future of the piano industry

through comradeship and integrity.

National Piano Traveler's Association Foundation, Inc

The National Piano Traveler's Association Foundation's mission is to improve the quality of life through the experience of playing music and specifically the piano. We do so by raising and distributing funds for music and piano education so that millions of people can experience of joy of making music.

NPTA Foundation News

1. NPTA Foundation, Inc has been established and has received it’s tax ID number.

2. A bank account has been opened.

3. The current board of directors are as follows:

Ray Chandler, Pres/CEO

Mel Shiaman, Vice President & CPA

Dawn DeMars, CFO

Robert Dove, NPTA Vice President

Glenn Clutter, NPTA Past President

Gary Ingle, MTNA Exec Dir/CEO

Christopher Patterson, Attorney

Madeline Crouch, NPF Exec Director

Arnold Poppenburg, NPTA Member

David Rooksby, NPTA Member

4. The board met following the NPTA dinner/ meeting and accepted the By–Laws, Mission Statement, and other business.

5. What’s Next: Continuing selection of additional board meetings, obtaining non-profit status, creating website.

Arnold, Gary, and Mel are not in the photo above as they were not available… will get them next time!!

Many Thanks!

2013 Pledges and Contributions

Can we add you or your company’s name here?

Glenn Clutter

Dawn DeMars

Madeline Crouch

And a special thank you to Yamaha Corp of America for the loan of their

Conservatory Grand for our Dinner and Meeting.

And another special thank you to Daniel Ene of West Hills, CA for his con-

tribution of a concert tuning prior to our dinner.

NPTA Board of Directors

And General Information

Ray Chandler, President

Glenn Clutter, Past President

Robert Dove, Vice President

Dawn DeMars, Secr./Treas.

and Newsletter Editor

Address:

442 Glenwood Pl Thousand Oaks, CA 91362

Phone:

(818) 416-4308

(805) 379-9888

Fax:

(818) 735-0188

Email: Dawn.demars@verizon.net

The “New” Piano Rag

Pass it On

Send this to another piano traveling friend

and send Dawn his/her name and email

address.

Let Us Know

What did you think?

Email Dawn any suggestions,

comments, or other feedback.

We will incorporate

you’re thoughts and ideas.

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 7

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 8

2013 NAMM Meeting & Dinner

NPTA Booth

Below: Tess Clutter, Glenn and Lori Clutter and Bob Jones

Right:

Tess Clutter,

Liesa Covey,

and Bob Nolen

at the NPTA

Booth at

NAMM

The Llew Mathews Trio! T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 9

2013 NAMM Meeting & Dinner

Reception

Liesa Covey … let’s get a drink!

And some

Appetizers!!

Joe Orbin

& Ray Chandler

To the far right:

Lothar Kiesche

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 1 0

2013 NAMM Meeting & Dinner

Right:

Mr. and Mrs. John Schienke and Jim Coleman

Left: Tom Dorn, Dick Christian, and Jay Valle

Right: Mr. and Mrs. Richard Deutsch

Left: Gary Galanti, Larry Fresch, and Cindy Caruth

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 1 1

2013 NAMM Meeting & Dinner

Left:

Mark Baughman and Michael Sayyad

Right: Bob Popyk and guest

Left:

Arnold Poppenberg and Baik Lee

Right:

Bob Popyk and Larry Fresch

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 1 2

2013 NAMM Meeting & Dinner

Left:

Left to Right: Robert Dove, Madeline

Crouch, Chris and Pennie Patterson

Right:

Don Glasgow, Thomas Broukal, Ray Chandler,

Mr. and Mrs. Richard Deutsch

Left:

Don Glasgow and Thomas Broukal

Left to Right:

John Larson and Joe Orbin

2013 NAMM Meeting & Dinner

Right:

Bob Popyk sharing memories

and special times with Bob

Jones

2013 NPTA Lifetime Achievement Award

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 1 3

Below:

Baik Lee speaking of his years with

Bob Jones at Samick.

Far Right:

Dick Christian talking about his

working with Bob Jones and

many good stories of those days.

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 1 4

2013 NPTA Lifetime Achievement

Left:

Bob Jones giving his acceptance

speech

Right: Dick Christian, Bob

Jones, and Glenn Clutter

Right: Bob Jones receiving

his Lifetime Achievement

award

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 1 5

2013 NAMM Meeting & Dinner

Right: Hannes Schimmel and Lothar

Left: Facing to the East , Looking to Arizona,

with a toast and cheers to Wilton Sykes who was

facing west, looking to Anaheim and toasting at

the same time!

Right and Below:

Annual Meeting Photos

Annual Meeting photos

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 1 6

2013 NAMM Meeting & Dinner

Right:

President Glenn Clut-

ter calls the January

2013 annual meeting

to order.

Above:

Dawn DeMars presidents last’s years minutes and the Treasurer’s report

T H E P I A N O R A G , P a g e 1 7

2013 NAMM Meeting & Dinner

Right:

Glenn Clutter and Dawn DeMars

honoring Dick Christensen as he

retires his position as Past-

President.

Left:

Presenting the Retiring President

Award to Glenn Clutter

Right:

Our new President, Ray Chandler, as

the meeting is turned over to him.