Piano Repairs

Repairing a piano will involve considerable expense - some of the new parts are relatively inexpensive but, for example, if you wanted a set of new hammer-heads fitted, suddenly the price for the work soon begins to look like a serious amount of money. Sentimental reasons may push aside fears of overspending but if, after parting with a whole load of cash, the piano is still an untuneful and uninspiring instrument then the cost to honour a memory will seem to have missed the mark.

 

Of course, opinions will vary from technician to technician, but here are some guidelines for the careful piano owner who wishes to avoid overspending on their piano:

1. Assuming the piano to be repaired is an average, mid-range quality, regularly used and up to pitch. ...in this case there is scope for fairly extensive repair - some refelting, replacing of springs etc. but unless it is a family heirloom, do not have it completely rebuilt.
2. If the piano to be repaired is less than an average piano, straight-strung, overdamped, difficult to keep in tune, has numerous broken parts. ... in this case, spend any money upgrading the piano. If funds really don't stretch that far, find a tuner who will help you keep it going without charging you the earth. Any serious money spent on these pianos is money down the drain!
3. If the piano to be repaired is a top quality, named piano, total rebuilding, though expensive is not out of place. If the existing condition of the piano is tired and worn out, sometimes rebuilding is the only way to restore its sparkle. However, on a personal note, the older the piano, take extra care. ...in my opinion, only this kind of piano stands as a sensible candidate for the cost of rebuilding!

Are there exceptions to the rule?  

As ever, yes! Occasionally I meet with a piano which does not neatly fit into the categories mentioned above, but if it has enough of that difficult-to-define piano charm to set it apart from the ordinary, then go ahead. The last such piano for me was a very fine old French piano. Rare, and well-preserved, it did not need a complete rebuild. New hammerheads, new damper felts, kept the original strings and the result? All things considered, a good value-for-money option for the owners.

The Piano World

© Steve Burden 

Pianology

Don't Fall for a Cheap Bargain

A Tuner is no stranger to surprises:

Some people, in their search for a cheap piano, are very unfortunate. Hoping for a valuable and useable piano, they look for an advert that says 'free to collect' or perhaps, they are willing to spend £10. Excitedly they get the piano delivered and expect the tuner work a miracle! 

When a tuner is called in to choose the better of 2 such pianos, the chances of finding a half-sensible piano are slightly enhanced. But a good outcome was not to be: neither piano was of any use - one was a curious relic, the other a bad example of a mini-piano. There is no polite way of telling an optimistic piano-hunter that their find would never make a useable piano without spending the kind of money they didn't want to spend in the first place!

A 100 year-old piano has had plenty of time to develop problems that would depress the keenest technician. It is a mistake to imagine that old is always good. This is not Piano agism, rather it is realistic reflection of fact. 

Unless it is top make to begin with, do not consider spending your hard-earned cash on improving it.

Tuner's tip: Don't fall for a cheap bargain!

Tuner's Journal

© Steve Burden

Pianology

The Purpose of Tuning

As Piano Tuners, when our job is done, we leave the house, hall or studio until next time. The pianos, when we are gone, become tools of the piano-playing art for learner, student, amateur or professional. Although we hear nothing of the music played between our visits, we have an enormous influence on the pleasure felt by those who play and hear the piano. 

An extra dose of satisfaction for the tuner comes when we are able to listen to somebody - especially a professional - playing a piano we have tuned. At a public recital, the room becomes a place of intense emotion as the soloist fills the hall with wonderful, stunningly played music. The tuner hears every note, and listens carefully to be sure the tuning is holding up well. I love the sound of big, rich chords, held for a few seconds. The sustained harmonies hang in the air, like a choir trained to sing out their parts, loud and clear!  

The tuner gives shape to the harmonic relationships between every note. This finger-print-type interconnection of sounds is the palette of tones made available for the pianist to use during the practice session or the recital. 

However, the tuner is never the main event. It is the same when we tune a piano in a small terraced house for a nine-year-old who is learning to play! Truly, the main event is what happens when we leave to get to our next job. Does the player, young or old, rush to the piano to relish the fresh, in-tune sound, and thereby be inspired to climb another rung of the great piano-playing ladder? Or, does the player notice a few octaves and unisons that are not quite right, and lose some of the enjoyment of playing? - And perhaps, lose a little of the desire to succeed!

Tuners are often fussy and inflexible, but we should try hard not to be purists for the sake of it. Spending time fussing about minute details in one area of the keyboard is not always the best way to get 88 notes in tune. Our job is to restore structure and harmonic beauty to the full seven and a quarter octaves of the piano we have in front of us - or at least, as far as that piano will allow. 

We should strive to excel but know there will always be room to improve our abilities further!  

Tuner's Journal          
© Steve Burden
Pianology