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From: Douglas Tate
Date: Thu, 12 Feb 1998 22:31:10 +0000
Subject: Re: Hohner selling out

Life without Hohner around is almost unthinkable.

I have played Hohner reeds most of my harp life (sounds atomic ... the Harp
life of a human... just *seems* like forever) I like the noises i can make
with them... I have quarrels with some of the designs of
chromatic...So..I'm human.!..sue me!

But

In the past couple of years I have gained an impression of what Hohner
(USA) is like... I see a reasonably friendly face turned towards the
harmonica player... I hear about people getting good service from the
repair department, I read a Hohner representative on Harp-L (our friend
Rick Epping) and think what a lucky load of %*&^$s you all are.

In the UK the situation is ever so slightly different.
I want a spare part for a harmonica. If I actually ring Hohner in Wales
(UK!) I am told that of course they don't keep spare parts, this has been
said to me more than once with the feeling in the answer of .."What on
EARTH are you coming to US for???" They point you at one or two
independant repairers.. So ... you go to the independant repairers and
find that they have great difficulty getting bits and pieces because Hohner
in Germany will not accept an order of wholesale value less than $850.
So... if the bit is not in their stock ..you have to wait until another
order goes in....

It has been the case for quite a few years that the local MD for Hohner in
UK is not even interested in the harmonica side of the business. The
feeling many of us have is of coldness and total disinterest. (I believe
that there is a 'good guy' there, but in the past four years I have only
once managed to touch base with him)

I did a big review of the Amadeus harmonica several years ago .... it was
a good review, about 4 magazine pages and basically I said that I thought
it was a VERY good harp. no... Excellent.... !!! At the end of the month
I had it for I sent it back... and then tried to get in contact with
somebody to see about buying the instrument as I would like to use it
professionally. Eventually after nearly six months of trying to contact
somebody they said they might be willing to knock about $15 off the going
price.... ie about 2%....

I do know that others have had better fare, but there are also some who
have had worse!!!!
Quite frankly, if Hohner (UK) went to the wall I think it would be a good
thing.

Does that sound sacreligious??? maybe... but it is so different from the
experience I hear from the US and also from Hohner Germany.

In this country we have had golden ages with the company when they were
outward looking, promoting the harmonica in a vigorous manner, Holding
summer schools for hundreds of teachers, publishing books for use in
education, heavily sponsoring competitions etc etc... They even went so
far as trying to make me into a pop star ( HEY... stop laughing!!) and it
was soon after that the management changed (NOT as a result) and things
haven't been the same since... We too had a kindly face of Hohner ...
Willi Danneker ... a giant of a repairer, philosopher, inventor and VERY
nice guy. Sadly he retired.

Someone told me that they had asked someone high up in Hohner Germany about
Hohner in the UK and been told...'He doesn't listen to what we say'.....

Sounds like good management structure.

For all my grumbles Hohner products have been good to me and I would hate
to be without them.
I sincerely hope, for all our sakes that whatever form the take over is
evolving into it doesn't take away some of the excellent traditional values
and designs but uses the new blood to invigorate and expand.

Soapbox for hire..... offers?

Douglas t

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