Piano Tuning
Schedule an appointment: https://gazelleapp.io/scheduling/LfYFH6BcqLjqRsDyNvflMznc
Basic tuning - for clients tuning at least once/year. 1 hour appointment gives me time to tune once through and then touch up a little. I target A=440 standard pitch @40-45% indoor humidity. I will adjust the target pitch based on the room humidity unless 440 is required. Golf analogy - we are on the green and putting! $170/up to 60 minutes
Tuning PLUS
Basic tuning with an added 30 minutes to help stabilize pianos that haven't been tuned in many years - or to achieve a more polished tuning. Possibly will include some minor adjustments to the action. Golf analogy: Chipping to get to the green and then putting.
$220 /up to 90 minutes
Tuning and extended service - 2-2 1/2 hr A longer appointment allows for additional time to stabilize a piano way out of pitch and/or make more improvements to touch and tone. Preferred first appointment for pianos that haven't been serviced in a number of years, or if you have just purchased a used piano. I'll triage the instrument and decide what to do given the time to make the most improvement to the piano. Also great if you'd like to improve the performance level of any piano. Golf analogy: I'm using the driver on this one!
$330/ up to 2 to 2 1/2 hrs
General information:
All pianos get a custom tuning based on a traditional approach to support tonal music.
I'll adjust the pitch to the recognized standard of A=440 Hz @ 40-45% indoor humidity, or allow the overall pitch to float depending on indoor humidity, for those that only tune once a year or less. (We can discuss options for your specific situation.)
Some pianos that have not been serviced in a great while may need some extra tuning time to get them to stabilize at pitch. If it has been many years since your piano was tuned, consider adding time to the standard tuning by choosing one of the other options.
The cost for additional services is $100/hr.
For service calls without tuning, the first hour is $170, and then $110/hr for longer times. More information and options at the self-scheduling portal.
It helps to have the top of the piano cleared off before I arrive, and if your piano room is dark, a strong overhead light or floor lamp helps me see into the dark inner parts of your piano.
Thanks!
Voicing
Voicing is the term used to describe changing the tone of the piano. Most often the work is requested to even out the tone to make all the notes similar in sound. Often this service is accomplished during a normal tuning without any additional cost. Sometimes a request is made to brighten up the whole piano or darken down the whole piano. I have years of experience working with clients to achieve the appropriate tone for the room acoustics.
A full voicing may require regulation work as well as hammer shaping/sanding to achieve the desired result.
Regulating & Repairs
Regulating is the term used to describe the process of adjust the action, that link that translates the motion of the finger into the motion of the hammer that hits the string and makes the music. The goal is to make the action an efficient, predictable machine to enhance the connection between the performer and the sound.
Minor repairs can often be included in a tuning appointment if you let me know and I schedule time. (Sticking or non-working keys, pedal problems, broken strings etc...) I refer out larger repairs , finish and restoration work to other techs.
Golf analogy for tuning?
"Cents" is a unit of musical measurement. 100 cents is roughly the distance between each note. Getting within 1/3 cent of our target for each string is the goal: sinking a putt. Just going through and tuning each string once usually takes 30-40 minutes.
If all strings are within 2-3 cents of the target, we are already on the greeen with a very short putt. (The only pianos we see that are already here are in recording studios between takes and on the stage between rehearsal and performance!)
Most of the pianos I tune with seasonal changes around Chicago are within 15-20 cents of the target - a long chip to the green. Technology is a great help to predict where the pitch will land after that first time through.
For those pianos that haven't been tuned in a few years, the pitch may have dropped 30 to over 100 cents from the target. I'm on the tee and pulling out my driver - it is likely to take more passes through all of the strings to land on the green and start putting!
If all strings are within 2-3 cents of the target, we are already on the greeen with a very short putt. (The only pianos we see that are already here are in recording studios between takes and on the stage between rehearsal and performance!)
Most of the pianos I tune with seasonal changes around Chicago are within 15-20 cents of the target - a long chip to the green. Technology is a great help to predict where the pitch will land after that first time through.
For those pianos that haven't been tuned in a few years, the pitch may have dropped 30 to over 100 cents from the target. I'm on the tee and pulling out my driver - it is likely to take more passes through all of the strings to land on the green and start putting!