Piano Tuning

Piano tuning is an essential part of owning a piano. In order to keep it structurally safe and sounding beautiful, working with a professional is the only way to really look after your instrument. We offer competitive prices as we passionately believe that everyone should be able to have access to our high levels of service if they need it. Our priority is keeping your instrument safe, so please feel welcome to get in touch and discuss your options with us.

Why does my piano require tuning?
Over time your piano will need a tune up. This is necessary because the tension of the strings that make the beautiful sounds changes and must be set back to its correct tension. When the strings change, the sound becomes slightly warped and is less pleasant. There are on average 230 strings in a full-scale piano and each string is stretched to 50-100 pounds of pressure! All piano experts recommend tuning 3-4 times a year for a new piano, and 1-2 for an older one. This process will keep the string tension at the right place to ensure that the sound is good as well as protecting the piano itself. It is important to note that when the strings tension changes it will eventually affect the soundboard/bridges and cast-iron plate. So, when untuned, the piano will suffer from damage to its structural integrity.  

How do we tune your piano?
Tuning a piano is considered an art by many. It seems mechanically simple but is extremely difficult to master. All of our staff members have been highly trained and have many years of experience in this complex specialism. You may have seen the electronic tuners that pick up the sounds. Depending on the situation our team may use this method, but commonly you will see them practicing the amazing art of tuning by ear. The process of tuning itself revolves around the ‘hitch pins’. The strings of the piano are wrapped around the hitch pins at their base, pass through the tuning pins and then attach to the correct position along the keyboard. The tuning process involves turning these hitch pins in order to find the correct tension in the piano strings.

Tools
There are two main tools that our piano technician will use when piano tuning. The most important is the Piano Tuning Lever. This tuning lever is what enables us to turn the pins in the piano. It is specifically shaped to fit the uniquely shaped pins and has a strong handle that allows us to have great control over the adjustments. Our tools are all extremely high quality, so they really assist us to feel the intricacies and subtle motions of the pins, thereby allowing us complete control in minute detail. The other main tool that we use is called a mute. It is essentially a collection of rubber wedges that are in a variety of sizes. We use them to silence other strings by placing them between strings. This enables us to focus in on one string in particular.