1. How often should I have my piano tuned?

Usually every six months to a year is sufficient for normal use. If your piano gets played a lot, you might need more frequent tunings, like every two or three months. Ideally your ear should be your guide. If some of the notes on your piano are sounding "sour," it's probably time to call the tuner. New or recently restrung pianos may need more frequent tunings for the first couple of years, because the new strings are stretching. Pianos with loose tuning pins also may need more frequent tunings.

2. What happens if my piano hasn't been tuned for a few years?

If it really is just a few years (i.e. 2 or 3) then there probably won't be much of a problem. If what is meant by "a few" is really "several" (i.e. four or more years) there are a number of consequences you may experience:

The piano many need more than one tuning to bring it back up to pitch. (Additional expense - $$)

You may get notes that still sound out of tune after the tuning due to something called false beats. This is due to little bends being formed in the piano strings where they pass around anchor points such as bridge pins. When the piano is tuned regularly these bends have a chance to be gradually eased out of the string. If the piano has fallen substantially below pitch (i.e. from not having been tuned frequently enough), the process of pulling the strings back up to pitch often brings these little bends out into the speaking segment of the string without having had the opportunity to straighten out gradually. A competent tuner can usually remove these unwanted bends in the string, but it's additional work, and you may get charged more. Some tuners who are not so competent just leave them and hope they'll straighten out over time. And sometimes, no matter how good the tuner is or how hard he tries to remove a false beat, you're stuck with it.

The piano may go out of tune more rapidly until it has had subsequent tunings on a regular basis.

Since the strings on new or recently restrung pianos are usually stretching or going out of tune much faster, it is important not to let these instruments go for more than about a year without tuning.

Most importantly, the piano will not be as enjoyable to play if it is out of tune.

3. My tuner says my piano needs 2 or 3 tunings to bring it up to pitch. Why is this?

Usually because the piano has been allowed to go out of tune for more than a couple of years. A piano that is tuned every 6 months to a year should not normally need more than one tuning. What happens, in a nutshell, is that every time a tuner tightens one string on your piano, it affects other strings and causes them to go slightly out of tune. If the piano has been kept relatively close to being in tune, these effects are not noticeable. But if piano has been allowed to drop significantly below pitch, or flat, over the years, and needs to have major tightening done to all the strings in order to bring it back up to pitch, the first strings the tuner tunes will have gone audibly out of tune again by the time he finishes with the rest. When a tuner must add additional tension to a string, (as when having to bring it back up to pitch), it not only affects the string he is tuning, but also the soundboard, the plate (or gold "harp"), the bridges, and numerous other structural components of the piano as well. This in turn affects all the other strings. Even in a normal tuning, strings that have already been tuned are affected by the strings tuned after them, and often tuners have to go back after the tuning is done and "touch-up" strings. The closer a piano is to being in tune before the tuner begins, the better tuning he can do.

4. If the piano needs 2 or 3 tunings to bring it up to pitch, can I just have the tuner leave the piano below pitch for now, and do just one tuning?

It all depends. If the piano is not so far below pitch that it sounds tubby or dead, and still relatively in tune with itself, it can probably be tuned flat. The drawbacks are that you probably won't be able to play with other instruments, (such as certain woodwinds, like the oboe or flute), that can't alter their pitch down sufficiently to conform with that of your piano, but if you usually just play the piano by itself, that shouldn't be a problem. Most pianos made in the last 100 years or so were designed for A-440 pitch (i.e. the A above middle C is supposed to vibrate at a frequency of 440 cycles per second; and all the other notes in proper relationship to that A). Pianos designed for A-440 usually do not sound as brilliant or powerful at a lower frequency, but then, some people like the mellower sound. A lot depends on how far below pitch the piano is, and how much out of tune with itself. Musicians, vocalists or pianists who have perfect pitch may find it very difficult or impossible to play, or perform accompanied by, a piano that is below pitch, because they have an internal pitch reference that disagrees with what they are hearing from the off-pitch instrument.

Many tuners, when confronted with a piano needing more than one tuning, and aware of customers' objections to having to pay more than the normal tuning fee, will try to accommodate the client and attempt to make do with one tuning, either by leaving the pitch of the piano low (i.e. where it was), or by raising the pitch only partway, so that the piano doesn't sound like it's gone out of tune again when they are through. There may be some justification for bringing a piano up to pitch slowly, over time: It reduces the possibility of false beats (see above, under "what happens if I don't tune my piano for several years?") Also the piano will be more stable and hold its tune better if the strings are not pulled up so much all at once. While many experts on the subject of tuning advocate doing a "pitch raise" (basically a coarse tuning to bring the piano immediately up to A440 pitch) and then a fine tuning immediately afterward, there are other tuners and technicians who prefer to bring a piano up to pitch more gradually, over several weeks or months, to avoid the false beat problem just mentioned. Since each individual situation is different, it's usually best to consult your tuner, and have him tell you your options, and his recommendations.

5. My piano tuner said that my piano can't be tuned. How can that be?

There are a couple of different things the tuner could mean by this. First, he may not be able to bring this particular piano up to pitch. This doesn't necessarily mean the piano can't be put in tune with itself, even if it's not up to A440 pitch. (See previous question). This situation could be due to a number of factors. The piano may be an antique that wasn't designed for A440 pitch. (Over the years there have been many different "concert pitches." It was only relatively recently that A440 was universally accepted as standard pitch, and there are still exceptions in places. Older pianos may have been designed for a lower pitch.) Or, the strings on the piano may be rusty and may break if the tuner attempts to stretch them the requisite amount to bring the instrument up to pitch.

The other thing that the tuner could mean is that the piano cannot be put in tune at all, even below pitch. This could be due to such things as loose tuning pins that will not hold the strings tightly enough to sustain a tuning, structural defects in the piano itself, such as a cracked pinblock or plate, or strings that are so old or rusty that the tuner breaks several in attempting to tune the piano. A bridge coming loose or falling apart, a pinblock installed poorly at the factory, or a number of other problems can make it impossible for a tuner to tune your piano.

6. I'm thinking of selling my piano. Should I have it tuned?

Yes, unless you don't plan to let potential buyers play it. And not only should it be tuned, but you should have any sticky notes, squeaky pedals or other noises or problems taken care of. Unless you just plan on selling the piano to a dealer or rebuilder for wholesale (about 1/2 the current market value or less) the piano needs to sound and look its best. You will be competing directly with dealers whose pianos are generally well-prepped. Any piano that hasn't been tuned within three months can benefit from a tuning.

It might be different if the potential buyer doesn't play and is willing to just take your word that it's a good instrument. But usually people who don't play have a habit of bringing along someone who does, and then you will wish you'd had the piano tuned. We have pre-selected tuners for you across the country. Click on Hire a Technician and you will be able to find out if there is a technician in your area that we have selected.

7. But won't someone buying my piano just have to have it tuned again when they get it home?

Usually, yes. But let's not put the cart before the horse. Before they take the piano home they first have to want to buy it, and that's why it needs to sound, and look, it's best in your home. -Because there are plenty of other pianos for sale out there that are in tune.

11. My tuner says my piano needs regulation. What is that, and why is it necessary?

Pianos are made of wood, wire, felt, and leather, among other things. There are literally hundreds of different felts in a piano. Over time, felt, and also leather, compresses, wears, and changes dimensionally. Hammers (the felts which strike the strings) wear and get grooves in them. Felts underneath the keys and in action parts get packed down. After a few years of regular playing, a piano needs to be readjusted to compensate for changes in the felts, and other wear on the action parts. The process of readjusting the action to restore it to it's factory settings is called regulation.

In regulating a piano, a piano technician usually performs numerous adjustments on each note. These adjustments affect how the keys feel when you play them and how sensitively the piano responds to your touch. Regulation may also affect how the piano sounds. If your piano isn't feeling as nice, or responding as well as it did when it was new, chances are it needs regulation. It may also need voicing (see below).

Regulation should usually be performed on a piano in normal use about every five to ten years. New pianos or ones that have been rebuilt will probably need regulation after the first six months to a year of use, because the new felts will be settling. On pianos for finicky artistic use or which get a lot of playing, regulation may need to be done more often. Regulation can be anything from a few touch up adjustments to a comprehensive restoration of all the factory settings. Usually regulation does not include parts replacement, but in order to do an effective regulation, a tuner or piano technician may have to replace felts or other parts that are worn unevenly or beyond their usefulness.

A touch-up or partial regulation may run anywhere from $50. to $200. A complete regulation may cost several hundred dollars or more on a finer grand.

12: My tuner says my piano needs voicing. What is that, and why is it necessary?

Voicing is a general term pertaining to a number of different repairs and adjustments performed on the piano to improve the sound quality or change it to suit customer tastes. Voicing may include hammer reshaping, hammer hardening or softening, aligning strings to hammers and/or hammers to strings, adjustment and/or repair of strings and their anchor points, and also tuning, and/or regulating. Generally, most voicing has to do with adjusting the hardness, softness, or shape of the hammers (the felts which strike the strings), and adjusting their relationship to the strings. Generally the basic principle is that harder hammers will cause a brighter, louder, brassier or more metallic sound, softer hammers will sound more subdued or mellow.

When a tuner or piano technician voices your piano, they will usually be making it brighter or mellower to suit your tastes. They also may be building the power and tone of the piano's sound, or evening out the sound from note to note, so that adjacent notes sound similar to their neighbors, and so that you can play a scale with even pressure on each key without some notes sounding too loud or others too soft. Voicing, like regulating, usually gives you more control over the sound, and makes it so that you don't have to either work excessively hard, or else "walk on eggs" in order to get the particular tone or dynamic (loudness or softness) you intend when you depress a given key.

A technician usually softens a hammer by piercing it or loosening the felt with needles. Hardening a hammer my be accomplished by sanding it, ironing it, or adding chemical hardeners.

Most pianos will need voicing when the hammer felt packs down, or when grooves appear, or when the hammers have become flattened or lose their shape from playing. Typically, though, voicing usually only ends up being done when the tuner brings it to the owner's attention, or when the owner is dissatisfied with the piano's tone, even after tuning. On many pianos, voicing and regulation are never performed because owners are not aware they need to ever do anything besides tuning. And unfortunately, many owners become dissatisfied with their pianos and dispose of them or buy new ones when all the piano needs is some regulation and voicing.

Voicing can cost anywhere from $25. to 50. for some touch-up voicing adjustments, to several hundred dollars for complete voicing adjustments including major hammer reshaping and realignment of action parts and strings.