I'm taking a fruit orchard class from the local Extension office - and yes, they suggest (ow!) whacking away at your tree to do two things - open the center so the fruit inside gets sunlight to ripen and pruning back the top of the tree since fruit over about 12' generally is just too hard to get at - we had an OLD bartlett pear foryears that was about 50' and the squirrels got nearly all except windfalls.

If you just want to keep picking, I'd recommend pruning back the upward branches. Your ordinary (not dwarf rootstock) fruit tree can go 20-30' easy.

Your local county extension office may even have a video, surely a brochure on pruning fruit trees. And if it's as good as you say, a little xtra effort might be worth it. Do it now and maybe once more next year and that would take care of any major pruning.

Elaine - sticking to gooseberries and raspberries and currants while my one lone apple grows up (gotta find me a fruiting crabapple for pollinating and jelly!).