PIANO TUNING & REGULATION

PIANOS OUT OF TUNE

This may be the most misunderstood aspect of pianos. There are several reasons that pianos go out of tune, and more ways than one that they do.

PITCH

First of all, a piano can stay at Standard Pitch (A-440), and still sound out of tune because the individual strings are drifting a little sharp or flat. This causes a “twangy” sound when played.

You may notice only a note or 2, or many notes that sound this way. If it has been more than a month or 2 since the last tuning, this condition is indicating that it is time to have the piano tuned again.

Also, a piano can drop in pitch, which then requires more tunings to re-stabilize. This usually occurs over a period of more than one year, and is more difficult for the average piano owner to determine.

There are 3 reasons a piano goes out of tune:

1. Humidity Changes: which cause the wooden soundboard to expand and contract. This changes the tension on the strings and causes them to change their pitch, which results in the piano being forced out of tune.
2. The tension on the strings. Each of the approximately 220 string on a piano are pulled to an average of 180 pounds of tension each, totaling nearly 20 tons of tension on the piano. This tension is held in check by a combination of the cast iron plate (or harp) and the wooden structure. The strings tend to stretch (as steel does), and the Plate and wooden structure change with temperature and humidity changes. All of this results in a nearly constant state of movement, causing the strings to go out of tune.
3. Heavy usage. If a piano is played more than a few hours per day (such as in a practice room at a music school), then the actual playing will accelerate the process of going out of tune.

PITCH RAISE

Probably, but not always. It depends on how far the pitch has dropped below A-440 (Standard Pitch). If the pitch is very near A-440, one regular tuning may be all that is required.

In some cases, especially if the pitch is substantially below A-440, a Pitch Raise tuning may be required (performed at the same time as the regular tuning, at additional cost).

In other cases, a regular tuning followed by another tuning in a few weeks will suffice. In either case the objective is to re-stabilize the piano so that it will hold its tuning again. Often it takes a couple of years to re-stabilize a piano that has not been tuned for many years, with tunings being scheduled further apart as the piano stabilizes.

Your Piano Technician will be able to give you the options before beginning the tuning process.

TUNING FREQUENCY

Most piano manufacturers recommend 4 times per year, or once per season. However, tuning frequencies can range from once per year for a home piano that is not used much, to once per day (or more!) for a heavily used Concert Grand. The tuning frequency that’s right for your particular situation is dependent on several factors:

1. The age and condition of your piano
2. Where your piano is placed in the home or room
3. The number of hours per week the piano is played
4. The level of expertise of the pianist
5. What the piano is used for

YOUR TUNING SCHEUDLE

Your Piano Technician can help you decide what the best tuning schedule is for you. Most home pianos should be tuned at least twice per year in order to keep it “in tune”, while a piano teachers piano may require tuning every other month. The worst thing you can do is let it get so far “out of tune” that the pitch drops below A-440 (Standard Pitch). When this happens, several tunings in quick succession may be required to re-stabilize the piano, and no real longterm savings is realized.

A piano that is tuned regularly will stay in tune between tunings. A piano that does not get regular service will never really stabilize, and will go out of tune within weeks or even days after a tuning. This can be frustrating to the player and the “check-writer”. Avoid this scenario by following your Piano Technician’s advice.

STAYING IN TUNE

There are several things that will help maintain a stable tuning:

1. Place your piano away from outside doors. Repeated cold and/or hot blasts of air when doors are opened will cause your piano to go out of tune more quickly.
2. Keep the temperature and humidity constant. Drastic changes from hot to cold, or from dry to moist will also cause your piano to go out of tune more quickly. A special humidity control system can be installed in your piano to keep it from getting too moist or too dry. Ask your piano technician about this “Piano Lifesaver” unit.
3. Regular maintenance. Have your piano tuned at recommended intervals (at least once or twice per year) by a qualified piano technician.

TUNING FREQUENCY

Tuning a piano is the process of turning the Tuning Pins in order to raise or lower the pitch of the strings. There is an average of 220 strings on a piano, and each must be set to the correct frequency in order for the piano to sound as it should. Not only must the string be set to the correct pitch, but the tuning pin must be set so as not to twist or turn and allow the string to quickly drop in pitch.

“Setting the Pin” is an art that takes years to learn, and is probably the one thing that differentiates expert tuners from the average piano tuner.

REGULATION

Regulation is the process of adjusting all of the moving parts of the piano action to correct specifications. There are an average of 8 adjustments per key (times 88 keys!) that must be set to within a few thousandths of an inch in order to make the approximately 5,000 parts of the piano action work correctly. This “Action Regulation” should be performed every few years on a home piano, and is checked before every performance on a Concert Grand.

WHAT IS REGULATION ANYWAYS?

Everyone understands that a piano needs to be tuned regularly for it to be pleasing to the ear when someone sits down to play it. But many don’t know that all pianos must be Regulated occasionally so that they will respond
correctly when being played.

So, what is Regulation, exactly?

Regulating involves adjusting all of the action parts so that they work together as designed, resulting in a “touch” that allows for good control when playing. This sounds pretty straight forward – 88 notes, so 88 adjustments, right? Well, it’s not quite that simple. In order to understand the process, let’s first consider the action itself.

There are somewhere between 2,000 and 6,000 parts in an average piano action. Although the number varies from one model to another (and how the parts are counted), suffice to say that there are a lot of parts. And these parts are mostly made from wood and felt, which as you can imagine change over time (wood shrinks and swells, felt compresses). So the factory regulation that your piano received when it was new slowly changes as it
ages and is played, requiring that adjustments be made to keep the piano set to “Factory Specs”.

If there are thousands of parts, then how many adjustments are we talking about here?

In fact there are 8 -10 adjustments per key that are made, totaling around 800. Some of these are set to a tolerance of .001 (a thousandth of an inch). Most pianos that we determine are “due for a regulation” are off by as much as ¼” (.250). The fact that these pianos even function is pretty amazing, but what is really amazing is how much of an improvement the client notices once the regulation is completed.

Another important fact is that the regulation is broken up into two areas; the Keys and the Action.

Key (or Keyboard) regulation consists of Leveling the keys so that they are all the same height when at rest, and then adjusting how far each key travels when pressed. There are instances where this portion of the regulation is within tolerance and can be skipped. The action portion of the regulation is another story. Since the majority of the adjustments are done there, coupled with the fact that the action takes most of the abuse when played, this is more often required.

How long does a regulation take?

An Action-only Regulation takes approximately 6 hours, sometimes more. Keyboard Regulation can add another 4-6 hours. Grand Actions generally require the action to be removed from the piano and taken to the shop, since all adjustments must be made on a special regulation bench. Upright actions (including old uprights, spinets, consoles, studios and professional uprights) are regulated in the piano, so the work is competed at the client’s home.