Retrospective

 
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oBITUARy

Gregory Neelson Hulme

February 5, 1947- August 27, 2019

     Greg Hulme passed away on Tuesday, August 27, 2019, at the Missouri Veteran’s Home in Warrensburg, Missouri. He was 72 years old. He was surrounded by his devoted wife, GaeBelle and family.
Greg entered Ouachita Baptist University, Arkadelphia, Arkansas in 1967. He served in the United States Air Force for 4 years, beginning in 1969. He was in the 745th Air Force Band squadron. In 1974 he entered UMKC Conservatory of Music, a piano performance major, studying with George Gajek and Joanne Baker. At that time he began teaching privately and tuning. He later took the position of Piano Technician at UMKC. He was instrumental in creating a Piano Technology course at UMKC and was instructor, for his duration there. Greg was a member of the Piano Technicians Guild for 38 years. During that time he was an instructor at many of the National Conventions. He also mentored many who desired to enter the profession of Piano Technology. He was always generous with his time and knowledge. In 1981 he built his piano rebuilding shop on the family’s property in Greenwood, Mo. His shop is still in operation, followed by his son, Conrad Hulme. Over the years Greg restored hundreds of vintage Steinway grands. People would wait years to have their Steinway’s restored by him. His work was impeccable and his relationship with his clients were very special to him. His love and passion for music, family, and the preservation of fine pianos will long be remembered.
Greg is survived by his wife, GaeBelle, of the home and his children, Chris Hulme of Lee’s Summit, Oliver Burnette of KCMO, Emily Burnette Greenstreet of Durham, NC, Conrad Hulme of KCMO, Helmut Tweer and eight grandchildren. Also survived by two sisters, Ann Bruening, Patti Young, and a brother, Jim Hulme. He was preceded in death by his Father, Gilbert Hulme, Mother, Lillis Hulme and brother, Bob Hulme.
In lieu of flowers the family request donations be made in Greg’s honor, to the Friends of Chamber Music KCMO or Alzheimer’s Association.
A memorial service will be held October 12, 2019 at Grace United Methodist Church, 2400 SE US 50 Hwy. Lee’s Summit, Mo 64063. Visitation 1:00pm with the service following at 1:30.

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Greg and a teenage Conrad applying the glue before soundboard installation

Greg and a teenage Conrad applying the glue before soundboard installation

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Retrospection

By Conrad Hulme

Over the course of his long career my father worked on thousands of pianos, many of which are in the Kansas City metropolitan area. Hardly a day passes that I don’t find myself confronted with one of these instruments, a fact that I relish with great pride. Having lost him 8/27/19 has only amplified the connection I feel though his work. The corners he could have cut but didn’t, the humble way he strove to achieve each pianos potential without ever inserting his ego for others to see. His words echo in my mind as I sit in someone’s living room tuning their piano for an hour…. Perhaps it’s someone I’ve never met, or someone who never met Greg. I can see his work as I sit down at the piano immediately, the way he painstakingly strung the piano so each of the 234 stings are coiled perfectly around each tuning pin ending at 3:00. The obsession he had with matching the colors of various cloth and felt inside a piano. His unyielding desire to put things back the way they belong. Down to the finest details. I see the love he put into his work over all those years, and I see him wanting to pass these things to me, and I see him wanting to teach me, yet crippled by Alzheimer’s for those last difficult years of his life. I realize these pianos are just inanimate objects that I’m dealing with, however I can’t deny the profound feeling of a continuation of a relationship that we share. He continues to teach me through his work, and to enrich the lives of so many people through the music that comes out of these instruments. I am so grateful to have known him and to have had such an amazing teacher, mentor, and father.