Why does my piano go out of tune?

Many factors can affect the ability of a piano to hold its tuning, with changes in humidity being one of the biggest. Summer brings warmer, moister air, causing a piano's soundboard to swell and push the bridge harder against the strings, driving the pitch up. In the winter, furnaces create very dry air, causing the soundboard to lose moisture and the pitch to drop. The fluctuations of the soundboard can move the bridge unevenly and cause it to tilt, causing intervals to go out of tune and the strings for a single key to disagree with each other.

How often should I have my piano tuned?

Most people notice their piano going out of tune with seasonal changes. To enjoy an in-tune piano for as much of the year as possible, tunings should typically occur twice a year, after a major change in a home's humidity.

What’s the difference between aural and device-based tuning? Why do you tune aurally?

Good tunings can be achieved both from aural tuners and tuners who use a device. Given that the human ear is what perceives how a piano sounds, I prefer to rely on mine to assess what sounds right. Plus, tuning aurally is something I enjoy doing as a skill passed down from my mentor.

What are regulation and touch weight analysis?

Each key has many moving parts that transfer the pressing of a key to the hammer and allow the hammer to bounce freely off the strings, even when the key is still fully depressed. Over time, friction develops where the parts come into contact with each other. Wooden parts can warp, and felt and cloth in the action compress, changing the alignment and distances that parts travel. During regulation, a technician checks the various connection points for the proper alignment and friction, lubricating and adjusting parts as needed for an even playing experience across the keys. Using weights and touch weight analysis, a technician can measure the friction in each key to guide decisions and create precise uniformity.

What are temperaments? Do you offer historical tunings?

The modern, default way of tuning is equal temperament, in which each note is equidistant from its immediate neighbors. However, this only became the standard in the 20th century. Historically, different temperaments were used, in which the distances between notes were not uniform. This allowed some intervals, chords, and keys to have a more pure and calm sound, causing others to have more brightness and motion. Because different keys had different characters and moods, classical composers could choose keys for certain pieces accordingly. I offer both equal temperament tunings and modified meantone tunings, in which the keys of Bb, F, C, and G major and their relative minor keys have a more pure sound.

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