Your piano is an investment in your future. It can bring you and
your family a lifetime of music, adding immeasurable joy and beauty to your home. Because
it also is such a large investment, it should be maintained with the utmost care. Regular
servicing by a qualified tuner-technicians will preserve your instrument and help you
avoid costly repair in the future.
Because your piano contains materials such as wood and felt, it is subject to change
with climatic conditions. Extreme swings from hot to cold or dry to wet cause its
materials to swell and contract, affecting tone, pitch and action response of touch. You
can reduce the severity of these effects by placing your piano near a wall away from
windows or doors which are opened frequently. Avoid heating and air conditioning vents,
fireplaces and areas which receive direct sunlight. Your piano will perform best under
consistent conditions neither too wet or dry, optimally at a temperature of 68 degrees F
and 42 percent relative humidity.
While pianos generally fall into vertical and grand model categories, each
manufacturer selects its own materials and utilizes its own unique scale and furniture
designs. Every piano requires a different level of maintenance, depending upon the quality
of materials used, the design and level of craftsmanship. Manufacturers can provide
general advice on tuning frequency but your technician can give specific recommendations
based upon your usage and locale. Here's what some of the major piano manufacturers
recommended.
At Astin-Weight, we recommend a minimum of three tunings the first year and two per
year thereafter. these are minimum standards and changes in temperature, humidity, or
heavy use will make it necessary for more frequent tunings. Stories of pianos staying in
tune for years on end are just that -- stories.
Not giving a piano regular tuning will cause the instrument to be much more unstable
from a tunability point of view in subsequent years, and may be cause for invalidation of
the manufacturer's warranty.
Because it take some time for any new piano to become thoroughly settled and adjusted
to the atmospheric conditions in its home, proper tuning and servicing are especially
important for the first year after purchase. Any new piano should be tuned several times
during this first year. During these tunings, your technician should check the action and
regulate to compensate for adjustment of new action parts to climate and use.
After the first year a piano should be tuned at least twice each year. If the
environment has not been kept as uniform as possible, a piano may need frequent tuning.
Quality pianos demand quality care. Pianos require periodic maintenance in three areas:
tuning, action regulation and voicing. Tuning is addressed more frequently than the other
service areas depending on circumstance and atmospheric variance.
Due to stretching, settling and the effects of climate, one should allow at least
three tunings in the first year and a minimum of twice per year thereafter.
The regularity of service is as important as the frequency in keeping the piano in top
condition. We recommend four tunings a year, at regular intervals, for optimal stability
and performance.
Regulation is also required periodically to maintain the proper function of keys,
action, and pedals. A qualified piano technician or reputable dealer can provide advice
concerning regulation, as well as perform tuning or other services required for the proper
care of the instrument.
Your Steinway piano was tuned many times before it left our factory. It was tuned to
and should be maintained at A440 pitch. This is the internationally accepted standard and
the standard for which all Steinway pianos are engineered.
Unfortunately, no matter how expertly a piano is tuned, atmospheric variations and
the nature of the piano's construction constantly conspire to bring it off pitch.
Your Steinway has been designed and built so that in normal use and under normal
conditions it should need only periodic tuning. We recommend that your technician be
called at least three or four times a year. You, however, are the final judge and should
have the piano tuned as often as you think necessary. To put the matter of tuning into
perspective, remember that a concert piano is tuned before every performance, and a piano
in a professional recording studio, where it is in constant use, is tuned three or four
times each week as a matter of course.
Tuning is an art practiced by skilled professionals and under no circumstances
should anyone other than a professional be allowed to tune your Steinway piano.
In the first year, Piano Manufacturers Association International recommends that you
have your piano tuned four times. This is a period of adjustment for a new instrument and
proper attention is important.
After the first year, you should have it tuned at least twice a year depending upon
the frequency of use and atmospheric conditions.
New pianos should be tuned a minimum of four times the first year to compensate for the
normal settling that takes place
Subsequently, as a matter of standard maintenance, a piano should be tuned at least
twice a year. Of course, some musicians will choose to have their own piano tuned more
often to satisfy their own personal musical requirements.
When you piano need tuning ask your authorized Yamaha piano dealer or call a skilled
qualified specialist such as a Piano Technicians Guild Registered Piano Technician (RPT).
Piano owners will receive the longest life and optimum performance from a
new piano if it is properly serviced during the first year and regularly care for
subsequently. It is our recommendation that a piano receive at least 4 tunings during the
first year of ownership, and a minimum of 2 tunings per year thereafter. We suggest that
the piano owner follow the recommendation of his/her local piano technicians, who is most
qualified to advise the owner about the needs of the piano in its specific location.
Your piano, like those in homes and on stages throughout the world, is an instrument of extraordinary promise which can bring you and your family a lifetime of enjoyment. To ensure its performance over that lifetime, it is important to have your piano serviced regularly by a qualified professional. Complete piano service should include periodic regulation and voicing in addition to tuning. Your technician can consult with you to recommend a maintenance schedule customized for your instrument.
©1993 Piano Technicians Guild