FAMILY and friends have paid tribute to popular Earley musician and piano tuner Steve Gavin who died on August 8.

The 61-year-old died of cancer in the Duchess of Kent House Hospice and his funeral will be held at Reading Crematorium on Friday.

Mr Gavin's wife Ruth said she had received many letters from his piano tuning customers saying how they would look forward to his visits.

The 51-year-old said: "I've been overwhelmed by the letters from his customers.

"Not only do they say they looked forward to his visits but especially to when he had finished and gave them a mini recital.

"It is very comforting to know he was happy in his work."

Mr Gavin attended school in Petersfield, Hampshire, and went on to study Philosophy & Psychology at Birmingham University before being employed in marketing at engineering company Lucas in the city.

He moved to join 3M in Bracknell before deciding to retrain as a piano technician at the London College of Furniture in 1985 the year he met Ruth. He learnt how to tune and restore the instrument.

He not only tuned the pianos of private clients but also the theatres across the Thames Valley including the Hexagon and South Hill Park.

The parents of Amy, 22, and George, 20, Mrs Gavin added: "We were a very very happy family."

Friends and former neighbours Simon Mayor and Hilary James asked the Gavins to be the witnesses at their wedding eight years ago.

Hilary said: “There were only eight of us and it was very special.”

Mr Mayor said Mr Gavin would wheel his piano around to their house to play music when they had parties so they could have a “good old sing song”.

He said: “He was the most even-tempered, calm, unflappable man you could imagine meeting.

“He was called superman by the children in the neighbourhood as he was a well-built, handsome man who worked on his car in blue overalls!”

Ms James said despite being extremely ill Steve did not want his customers to suffer and divided his clients up between fellow tuners.

She said: “He was incredibly reliable he made a list of his customers and asked other piano tuners to look after them.”

Colm Daly, of Newtown, a member of the Newtowners group said he met Steve 20 years ago when he tuned his piano and started playing boogie woogie train blues.

He said: “I didn’t realise he was a musician and that is how we got to know him. But I just knew from then he was a friend for life – musical twin brothers.

“It was impossible not to like him, he was a lovely person.”

Mr Gavin was diagnosed with cancer in April.