About Me
Keith Macfarlane – Born into a musical family in 1945, My mother was a concert pianist and a well known piano teacher in Durban.
I studied piano and violin from an early age and started classical guitar lessons at the age of 11. The guitar has proven to be an important part of my life and I have continued playing it as a soloist and together with other musicians.
Leaving school I joined a well known Durban piano business which was started in the early 1900’s by my late Uncle Percy Cooke. I worked an apprenticeship in this company and later started my own business Durban Piano Tuners and Repairers. This company was awarded the contract for the tuning and maintenance of all schools in the province of K.Z.Natal. This involved the tuning of +- 1,200 pianos twice a year.
I was appointed sole contractor to the Kwazulu Natal Natal Philharmonic Orchestra at the time of it’s conception. This meant being in charge of a fleet of 13 brand new Bosendorfer pianos. In order to justify this appointment I spent some time in the Bosendorfer factories in Vienna and subsequent periods at a Swiss piano firm who specialised in Steinway repairs. I was focusing on all aspects of voicing and regulation of concert instruments.
I later undertook restoration of Steinway grand pianos for export to the U.K. and California. During this time I also became interested in the concept of piano teaching laboratories and was responsible for the installation of laboratories in Schools, Universities and Training colleges. This gave me an insight into the realm of electronic and digital pianos. I was also a key member of the SAQA Committee which established SITA standards for the local Piano Tuners Association.
I am now settled in Tokai ,Cape Town to be near to my grand children. Although I am not running a company anymore I am still tuning for private customers and schools. I believe that I can be useful to buyers and sellers as a consultant not only to prevent first time buyers from unwise purchases, but also to assist sellers arrive at the correct selling price.