The basic tools that the tech uses are simple enough: two wedge-shaped mutes, a tuning lever (sort of like a large allen wrench), and a chromatic tuning device. So it’s already a given that the tech must travel to you to make a house call, so to speak. With the weight of upright models starting at 300 pounds and grands topping off at 1,400 pounds, it would be impractical to transport your piano to the shop. You want to be able to trust them not to invent problems that don’t exist in order to jack up the service cost. This is where your discernment in choosing a tech comes in. With so many moving parts, there is bound to be wear and tear, particularly with older instruments. Your tech may find other things in your piano that need attention, driving up the cost. Some techs charge a flat fee no matter the type of piano, while may others charge by the hour. Our research has determined that you can expect to pay anywhere between $50 and $175. Much like mechanics, there are honest piano techs and there are less-than-honest piano techs. It’s recommended to have your piano serviced twice a year, so it’s best to find a quality technician with whom you can build a trusting relationship with. Don’t make the mistake of hiring someone who can potentially make a bad tuning situation worse. You’ll definitely want to look for someone with good reviews and strong credentials. All of the keys should be in tune relative to the standard of middle C.Ī quick search will find a piano technician near you. The middle register keys have two strings per note, and the upper register keys use three strings for each note. The lower register keys (the notes below middle C) are all connected to one string a piece. More specifically, there are two hundred and thirty strings! But you’ll find that there are many more than that. When you open the lid of your eighty-eight-key piano, you might expect to see eighty-eight strings. But when you see the time and tedious process it takes to do it right, you may very well decide to hire a professional. YouTube offers lots of DYI videos on the subject. It’s not impossible to learn how to tune your piano. You may be a master at tickling those ivories, but tuning a piano is a whole other skill set. You just whip out your tuner, turn some pegs, and your back in business in no time. Now if you were a guitar player, the fix would be easy. If this is you, you also know just how terrible an out of tune piano can sound! They’re certainly more portable than the big heavy uprights and grands and they don’t require the maintenance that their predecessors do-namely tuning!īut there are many keyboard purists out there who wouldn’t dream of replacing the acoustic, warm sound that only a wood and string piano can give, with the synthesized efforts of their electronic counterparts. There is nothing in the world like playing music on an acoustic piano.Įlectric keyboards are cool enough. This innovation eventually became what we now know as the acoustic piano.Ĭreating melodies and movements with wood and strings has been a celebrated skill among us humans for a long, long time. When he added pedals that connected to muting devices, the result was glorious! The player now had control over the loudness, softness, and sustain of the instrument. This softened the instrument’s sound considerably. He began by replacing the harpsicord’s pluckers with weighted, felt-covered hammers. The plucking mechanism inside the instrument made for a one-dimensional sound, leaving no space for dynamics and expression.īart knew he could do better, so he hunkered down in his shop and started tinkering. To Bart’s ears, the harpsichord sounded more like yelling than singing. He probably won’t mind!) was frustrated with the inability to control the volume of the harpsichord. Somewhere around the year 1700, an Italian instrument maker named Bartolemo Cristofori introduced a modified version of the harpsichord.īartolemo (let’s call him Bart. The best fix for that is to get the piano tuned, and though it can be pricey, the sound and satisfaction are well worth the cost. Playing an out of tune piano not only sounds terrible to any listeners, it’s also discouraging for the player, not to mention a little embarrassing. Then you work yourself up into the higher notes, where it sounds like angels singing until…. Your friends are impressed as you expertly pump the pedals, softening a note here and sustaining a note there. In fact, you thought they’d never ask! You lift your hands and begin to play a soft and lovely song. There’s a small group of people gathering around and asking you to play for them. Just imagine an intimate setting-a softly lit living room with your beautiful acoustic piano at its center. The cost will also depend on whether it’s a flat fee or if there’s an hourly rate. How much does piano tuning cost? The cost ranges from $50 to $175.
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