JOSHUA ZABATTA

When thinking about the amount of maintenance needed to take care of a piano, one must consider how the piano is made and what causes it to go out of tune. The average piano has around 230 strings and 88 keys.  The lower registers of the piano have one or two strings per key, while the middle and upper registers will have 3 strings per key.  The average string usually holds around 160 pounds of tension.  This great amount of tension from the strings themselves can be enough to make a piano go out of tune.  Other reasons a piano can go out of tune can include environmental factors (heat and humidity) as well.

 

Pianos are easier to tune, stay in better condition, and maintain their value more easily when they are tuned on a regular basis. Regular tuning also prevents damage that can occur when someone plays on overstretched strings. If a piano hasn’t been tuned for a while, it will be more expensive and time consuming to get the piano back into tune.

 

When the piano hasn’t been tuned in a long time (causing the pitch to be lowered significantly), a piano tuner might perform what is called a pitch raise. This involves more work pulling the pitch of the strings sharp, even past the point of perfect.  This overcompensation will hopefully cause the piano to settle back in tune when the strings naturally stretch over time.  If a pitch raise has to be performed on a piano, it is important to have follow-up tunings since the tension can pull the pitch back under where it needs to be.

 

In order to help ensure the strings on your piano last as long as possible, you should have the piano checked twice per year on average. If the strings deteriorate too much, or if the strings are out of tune and not actively used, then the piano may have to be restrung.  This can sometimes cost more than the piano is worth itself.

 

On average, the cost of a tuning can range from $100 to $140, but in the long run, it takes less money to tune a piano twice a year than it does to repair a piano that hasn’t been maintained for several years. 

 

For those who have purchased new pianos, tunings should happen multiple times during the first year, because the new strings will stretch more and can potentially go out of tune faster. Pianos tuned regularly in the early years of ownership are more likely to stay in tune for longer periods of time during the later years of its life.

 

The reasons for tuning a piano listed above help the value and functionality of the instrument.  However, the most important reasons to tune and maintain a piano are for the development and enjoyment of the people using it! It is important for those learning to play the piano to have an instrument that is in tune so they can correctly learn the pitches.  If a person learns to play on a piano out of tune, it can hinder his or her ability to play and learn new music.  This is because the pitches will sound off to them when they play on a different instrument.  On the other hand, those who play on a tuned piano enjoy a boost of confidence.  It can be exciting to play on an instrument that’s tuned and sounds good to the ear.  This motivates the player to come back to the instrument more often. 

 

Moral of the story: If you properly care for your instrument, it will enrich your life for years to come.