391 W Broadway St, Idaho Falls, ID 83402
Phone: (208) 524-4302 (800) 627-0914
Hours: Tue-Fri 10:00am-6:00pm, Sat 10:00am-5:00pm Closed Sun-Mon

Building Trust

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Dave Sevy brings out the custom trombone he built in 1975. There are only two like it in the world, and he built them both. The other is still being used by his grandson, Caleb Sevy, in the Sugar City Advanced Jazz Band. Dave Sevy said he often does custom modifications for instruments, specifically for people who are disabled. He averages 10 to 15 of these custom jobs a year. Pat Sutphin / [email protected]

MusiCare offers a personal touch to instrument repair

Posted: April 18, 2016 10:00 p.m.
Post Register | Small Business Success Stories

By PAT SUTPHIN

[email protected]

For amateur and professional musicians, finding a good repair shop is like finding a good auto mechanic. And when the instrument is the equivalent in cost and performance to an Italian sports car, dropping it off with a stranger can be understandably nerve-wracking.

But for many local musicians, Dave Sevy is not a stranger. The repair man has been working on instruments for decades, and has built a reputation for impeccable work and the willingness to modify his repairs to fit the needs of each individual customer.

It is this commitment to customers that keeps Rob Spence from going anywhere else for his repair work. He has been a customer for nearly 10 years. Spence, who owns guitars in the $5,000 and up range, said Sevy “instantly won” his confidence.

“I had a good feeling that they knew what they were doing and that I could trust them with my equipment, and of course they proved it,” Spence said. “They are the only ones I’ll let touch my guitars.”

Sevy said that kind of loyalty is common.

“There’s a kind of trust that people expect from us,” he said. “This is their livelihood.”

Sevy opened MusiCare Musical Instrument Service Center, Inc. on Feb. 15, 1982. His experience with musical instrument repair spans 62 years. Sevy said he’s always known he wanted to be in the music industry, but getting into repair work was harder than he expected.

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Owner Dave Sevy disassembles a customer’s flute as he prepares to clean it Wednesday at MusiCare Musical Instrument Service Center, Inc. Despite 62 years of experience, Sevy said mistakes can still happen with repairs. “This job isn’t about not making an error, it’s about knowing how to recover when an error is made,” he said. Pat Sutphin / [email protected]

Living in Caldwell as a young man, Sevy approached Don Bell, owner of Bell’s Horn Shop, in hopes of becoming his apprentice. Bell was quick to turn him down. Not to be deterred, Sevy spent the summer repairing and refinishing his own cornet; a brass instrument similar to a trumpet. When Bell saw what he could do, he hired him on the spot.

This started Sevy’s long career in instrument repair. He worked with Bell for 22 years before taking over the business. Eventually he moved to Idaho Falls and closed down the Caldwell location.

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Manager Jim Sevy restrings a customer’s guitar Wednesday at MusiCare. He is the second of three generations working in the shop. “The thing that differentiates our approach to repair is the fact that we’re all musicians,” he said. Pat Sutphin /[email protected]

Over the years, MusiCare became a family business. Sevy’s son Jim manages the business and handles most of the guitar repairs.

MusiCare can repair any instrument except acoustic pianos. The shop can also help those who can’t play standard instruments.

“I’ve done lots and lots of custom modifications for the handicapped,” Dave Sevy said. He once modified a saxophone for a customer that lost his fingers in a table saw accident. By extending the tabs on the lower keys, the musician was able to reach notes he thought he’d never again be able to play.

Spence said at first he was hesitant to have MusiCare do any large repairs until he realized it was the “real deal in instrument repair.” He said it is very easy to ruin a guitar if the worker is not an absolute master.

The other main appeal for Spence is how MusiCare will tailor its work to fit his needs.

“Jim and Dave have learned through our interactions what my setup is. The work they do is personalized to me,” he said.

June Cannon agreed that the Sevys’ devotion to customers is what retains her patronage. The Blackfoot flute teacher has been a client for 20 years. Cannon said she’s very picky about her instruments, but Sevy is more than happy to accommodate her needs.

“If it’s not the way I want, he’s willing to take another look at it and adjust it until I’m satisfied,” she said. Cannon said she sends all of her students to MusiCare to learn about proper instrument care and handling.

Sevy calls his speech to aspiring musicians the “grumpy old grandpa” speech. It’s a talk he’s given to many children to determine if they are ready for the responsibility of owning an instrument.

“I’ve given that speech to second and third generations of the same families,” Dave Sevy said.

MusiCare plans on continuing to offer quality work with a personalized touch for as long as it can. And the customers could not be more thrilled.

“It’s nice to have someone locally with his level of skill. I feel like I’ve been spoiled by having him here,” Cannon said.

Pat Sutphin can be reached at 542-6780