What to Expect
The first time I come to your piano, I'll inspect it to be sure everything is solid in order for it to hold a tune. While I'm doing this, I'll clean the inside. (I believe that people who have time to clean the inside of their piano need to get a life!) After I'm finished, I'll go over my findings with you, and together we'll decide the best way to proceed. My years of tuning have taught me that people have different needs, and I strive to meet every client's expectations. I encourage you to ask questions and be involved. In short, I treat you just as I want to be treated when someone comes into my home to perform a service.
Tuning/Voicing/Regulation
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Tuning. This is what most people think of when they consider piano care. It involves making adjustments to the tuning pins to raise or lower the pitch. For example, the more you stretch a rubber band, the higher the pitch goes, and vice versa. If the pitch has changed too much, a pitch correction is done prior to a fine tuning in order to have the tuning last longer.
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Voicing. Over time, hammers can become hard and the tonal quality isn't what it used to be. Voicing softens the hammers and makes the sound pleasing.
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Regulation. This is how the piano feels to play. Maybe you need to press the keys too hard, or you can't play a repeated note quickly enough. A regulation makes it all work the way it should.
Humidity Control
Living in Pennsylvania is great, isn't it? The dogwoods in the spring, pool-side fun in the summer, gorgeous reds and golds in the autumn, and diamond-flecked snow in the winter--who could ask for more natural beauty, right? However, those same wonderful seasonal changes can be hard on your piano. Fluctuations in humidity are one of the biggest causes of a piano's going out of tune and developing rusty strings or cracked bridges. A piano is happiest at 42-46% relative humidity. For comparison, in the wintertime, if you can scuff your feet on the carpeting and shock someone, it's around 20%; in the summer, it can reach 80% or more!
A Piano Life Saver System is the answer to these fluctuations. It continually monitors the humidity level inside your piano and keeps it in a safe range. I can provide you with details upon request or you can click here. It's the single best thing you can do for your piano, and the manufacturer is fabulous to work with--they really stand behind their product.