21 August 2017 What’s The Easiest And Safest Way To Move Your Piano?

What’s The Easiest And Safest Way To Move Your Piano?

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Sometimes the easiest way to spruce up your home is to rearrange the furniture. And while that’s easy with a chair or a coach, it becomes much more difficult with a piano. Inspiration is the easy part – moving the piano into place is considerably more work. 

Not only is it risky for your piano, but can be dangerous for you as well. You’ll want to hire a professional piano moving company if you are going between tight spaces or moving it to another floor in your home. But if your location is only a few feet away, we have some advice for your more.What’s The Easiest And Safest Way To Move Your Piano?

Prepare the path

The very first step is to determine the final resting spot for your piano. Make sure you have a clear path with nothing to block the path from beginning to end. If it has a lid, close it. This is especially important to ensure your fingertips aren’t injured in the move. 

Make sure there aren’t any rugs that can get in the way, pieces of furniture that can bump or block your path, or cords that can cause tripping hazards. Measure every crucial detail, including doorways and spaces you’ll have to travel through. 

In some cases, grand pianos can be easier to move as they often have wheels to get it to where you desire. While wood flooring can be easy, be especially careful on carpets, where the wheels can stick and be difficult to budge. It may be simpler to remove the legs rather than put them at risk for damage. Upright pianos may be easier to handle, but they can be top heavy and more prone to falling sideways. 

Gather your tools

Pianos are the bulkiest, heaviest pieces of furniture in your home. This is especially true with pianos that do not have wheels. A dolly can help make the move easier. You’ll need several people on all sides of the piano as it travels from place to place. 

Depending on how complicated your move is, you may also wish to invest in moving pads and straps. Be sure to strap down the lid to prevent it from being damaged, or from hurting you during the moving process. Blankets and pads will protect your walls from being scuffed and your piano from having exterior damage. 

It’s better to be over prepared and have too many tools on hand rather than putting your piano or your health at risk. 

And if it’s something you can’t handle, give us a call. 

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7 August 2017 6 Tips For Proper Piano Maintenance

6 Tips For Proper Piano Maintenance

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Pianos are surprisingly delicate objects, considering their size and weight. They usually become the focal point of a room, no matter how often they are played.

If you expect them to make music indefinitely, a piano needs a little bit of TLC from time to time. They aren’t the same as other pieces of furniture in your home where an occasional dusting will do the trick. Pianos have to be maintained inside and out to remain viable instruments.

The first thing most people realize is that to stay playable, a piano needs regular tuning. Most manufacturers recommend about every six months. But if they are in a stable 6 Tips For Proper Piano Maintenanceenvironment and aren’t moved, it can last for up to a year. New pianos should also be tuned more often than well-stabilized instruments. Consider the fact that a violin or guitar will be tuned every time it is played, where as the piano will only receive one or two tunings per year. If you neglect piano tunings, the piano may fall significantly in pitch and require a much more elaborate pitch raising to bring it back into tune.

While regular tuning will handle most of the maintenance issues, you should also consider having your instrument voiced occasionally. Voicing adjusts the density of the hammers. Each time a note is played, the hammers strike the piano strings, separated by small felt pieces. With each strike, these felt pieces compress and wear down. The result is a piano that slowly becomes brighter. Your piano should be voiced to your taste by a technician who understands the final quality you are looking for. It’s usually voiced as a new piano, and then again every three to five years.

As your piano ages, it will probably need regulation. Regulation is the process that a technician uses to adjust the way the keys and action operate in order to cause the hammers to hit the strings. This action repeats again and again every time the piano is played. Over time, this motion can become sloppy and difficult to play. It’ll start to feel sluggish and worn down. This is especially difficult for young children or for beginners learning how to play.

As your piano continues to age, it may reach a point where you’ll eventually have to consider rebuilding. Rebuilding includes replacing the hammers, dampers, pinblock, strings, the action, and sometimes the soundboard. This is an extensive process and can be quite expensive, depending on the instrument in question. If you’ve had the piano for many years, it’s a part of the family, it may be worth the time and effort to breathe new life into your piano. The only way to determine the condition of your piano and the possibilities rebuilding would offer is to speak with a reputable dealer who can answer your questions.

Some consideration should be given to the outside of the piano. Never use spray polish on your natural wood piano. Never use furniture polish on the black polyester finishes on many of the modern pianos. Instead, use a slightly damp soft cloth and wipe it down. You can use a non-ammonia window cleaner sprayed onto the soft cloth to keep the sheen in place.

Finally, be careful where you place your piano. Avoid placing it along outside walls where it may be impacted by extreme conditions. Avoid sunlight, drafts, heat vents, and humidity that may affect the wood and the internal workings of your piano.

What other questions do you have about maintaining your piano?

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28 July 2017 Piano Maintenance

Piano Maintenance

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The piano requires various forms of maintenance throughout its life for it to produce the best sound possible. 

Tuning

Tuning isn’t something where there is a standard for every piano. A new piano may need several tunings a year to keep it properly balanced. A piano that has been well cared for and in a stationary position in the home may need tuning once or twice per year. A concert piano that is played by professionals on a daily basis made need a regular tuning every few weeks. Some professionals prefer to have their piano tuned before every major event. Piano Maintenance

When a piano is only slightly out of tune, it loses the tonal quality characteristics of a recently tuned piano, especially in the middle and upper ranges of sound. Even a slight out of tune sound can be unpleasant to the listener. It can even deter a budding pianist from continuing with lessons because it doesn’t sound quite right. 

Voicing

The felt on the hammers of the piano tend to harden over time. The felt becomes depressed by repeated impact as keys are struck. They also form grooves and wear marks as they connect with the strings. While hammers are used to produce a bright tonal quality, these wear marks can change the sound being produced to something harsh and undesirable. 

Piano technicians use special tools to soften the hammers. They can also use hardening agents if the hammers soften up. Since the hammers are not used with equal frequency, they tend to wear in uneven increments. How much change is required to each hammer is dependent on both the piano’s settings and on the preferences of the player. 

Regulation

Over time, the performance of the piano action declines. The wood may warp. The tension may falter. The sound declines. The goal of regulation is to make the piano’s sound consistent across all notes. It makes the keys movements more subtle to the motions of the player. 

There are dozens of adjustments a piano will go through when being regulated. The most important include:

  •  Key weight – to regulate the action mechanism of the key springs
  • Repetition springs – which allows the hammer to repeatedly strike with minimal lifting of a key
  • Drop – how far the hammers fall back when let off
  • Let off – the point when the hammer disengages from the jack

 Restoration

After a lifetime of use, usually measured by decades, pianos may need complete restoration to keep its sound healthy and functioning. If well taken care of, the frame and some parts of the action may remain in good condition. Piano restoration experts try to maintain originality whenever possible, rebuilding or maintaining as much as they can as possible. Restoration is labor intensive, and therefore can be time intensive and quite expensive as well. 

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23 July 2017 Why Piano Playing Is Therapeutic

Why Piano Playing Is Therapeutic

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“Where words fail, music speaks.” Hans Christian Anderson

Music has long since been a part of our lives. We incorporate songs into our culture and use them to hand down stories throughout the generations. 

New studies are now showing that music does more than bind us as a culture; it also shows dramatic lifelong improvements in everything we do: language, math, memory skills and more. What’s more, music is also being integrated into therapies, helping everyone from special needs kids to elderly suffering from debilitating diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Why Piano Playing Is Therapeutic

By definition, music therapy is an interpersonal process in which a therapist uses music to address health concerns. Music can impact all aspects of well-being: emotional, physical, mental, social, and spiritual. 

Private piano lessons or learning on one’s own via software is not considered music therapy. Yet it does show positive effects by engaging in a challenging activity; the benefits are therapeutic. It’s something that is known to be a stress reliever, and can be used for stress reduction throughout one’s life. 

When taken to the next level and integrated into a therapy program, the results can be astounding. 

Behavior – music can be mood-enhancing, helping to stimulate the senses and focus attention. It can slow inappropriate behavior and increase compliance. 

Calming – anxiety is one of the biggest challenges faced by children today. Classical music can reduce stress and ease frustration. It can also reduce muscle tension and slow down the heart rate. Studies continue to show that children with all types of special needs – autism, cerebral palsy, ADD, ADHD and more – can relax and calm down when music is integrated into their lives. 

Communication – music can help build social skills and encourage interaction and conversation with peers. Music helps people define pitch changes in speech and increase vocabulary. It can also make people more apt to pick up a second language. 

Memory – people of all ages have found that music helps them focus and puts them in a better mood for learning. We have an innate ability to memorize songs. and it stays with us for a lifetime. 

Music can be the gift that keeps on giving now and throughout our lives. Are you incorporating piano playing into your family’s life?

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19 July 2017 Piano Strings and Restringing

Piano Strings and Restringing

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Pianos are not guitars. Yet there seems to be a perception that piano strings are similar in nature, needing re-stringing from time to time.

Guitar strings are much thinner. They are in contact with oils and acids on a player’s fingers. That cuts into the life of a guitar string, requiring that new strings are put into place from time to time.

The piano is different. Strings are struck by hammers and buffered by compressed wool felt in between. They are also much thicker than guitar strings, and strung at a much higher tension.Piano Strings and Restringing

When the tone of a piano begins faltering, it’s unlikely that it’s due to the quality of the strings. Piano strings should last for decades with normal usage. Other things might be wrong instead, including:

The hammers: Wear to the felt on the hammers substantially change over time. Reshaping and voicing worn felts can make a huge difference in tonal quality.

Soundboard: Pianos are made with a soundboard. The curvature, or crown, resists the downward push of the strings as they pass over the bridge. As a piano ages, the soundboard can flatten and lose the “springiness” that creates a rich sound. Replacement is the only answer when this wears out.

Action: Felt, leather, and cloth parts in the action can all wear out over time, creating mechanical sounds that dull the tone.

Bridges: Piano strings are secured at both ends as they pass over the soundboard and are connected at the bridges. Problems can occur at any point, with bearing bars, studs, holes, or other connection points.

When a piano reaches a point where the strings are in need of replacement, chances are a vast majority of the piano could use refurbishing too. While restringing may be the most labor intensive and complicated part of a restoration, it is a process that will breathe life back into a piano, and create and update something that will continue to give you enjoyment for decades to come.

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13 July 2017 Does Your Hand Size Impact Piano Playing

Does Your Hand Size Impact Piano Playing

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When you watch a professional piano player in action, you’ll see their hands zip up and down the keyboard, flying over the keys. Between their thumbs and fingers, they touch note after note bringing music to life. 

Musicians come in all sizes, male and female. It doesn’t seem to matter how large their hands are or how large of a hand span they have to stretch two specified intervals on a keyboard. Or does it?Does Your Hand Size Impact Piano Playing

The average octave placement for hand span ranges around 6.7 inches. Adding in a 9th note increases the hand span to 7.6 inches, 10th note increases to 8.5 inches, and 11th note increases the hand span to 9.4 inches. 

When you compare that to the average hand span of a woman, you’ll find that 70 percent can not comfortable span an entire octave, with an even larger majority not being able to add a 9th note to their playing ability per hand. 

For males, the playability is better, with a significant majority of males able to play an octave very comfortably, stretching to a 10th note or more fairly easily. 

The female hand is, on average, 15 percent smaller than the male hand. And because children often start playing the piano at an early age, it is also important to realize that they will have an even smaller range than the average woman. 

Standardized keyboards are a relatively recent development and the size we commonly use today is large compared with historical context. The 6.5 inch octave keyboard does not suit the vast majority of women and children. It’s also often not the best choice for men, from an ergonomic perspective. 

Some of the greatest pianists of the past have used pianos with narrower keys. And with people who enjoy playing the piano and have a passion for improving the way they play, they often find using alternative sized piano keyboards to be a better fit. Downsized keyboards allow pianists to play more music without fear of injury. Hand position is immediately improved and power increases because the hand is compact. Redistribution of complex fingering is no longer necessary. 

As it becomes more apparent that the art of piano playing can change simply by rethinking the size of a keyboard, we’ll see more changes in the instruments we play. 

Do you have experience with a smaller keyboard?

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10 July 2017 Caring For Your Piano’s Finish  

Caring For Your Piano’s Finish  

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Pianos are the largest, most unique instrument you will ever own. If you play a guitar, a trumpet or a flute, at the end of your practice session you place it in its case and close it up until the next time you play. A piano also serves as a piece of furniture, proudly on display in your home day in and day out. Caring For Your Piano’s Finish  

The piano was one of the most prominent pieces of furniture on display in a person’s house for decades. The term “piano finish” has come to equal one of the highest qualities of wood finish available for fine furniture. After all, it may be the oldest piece of furniture in your room, and if well taken care of, can keep going for generations. 

Pianos today are finished using multiple types of materials. You’ll find polyurethanes, traditional lacquers, and polyester resins. While the main purpose of the piano finish is to protect the instrument itself, it also is intended to minimize any impact from the surrounding environment, including damage from heat and humidity. 

Most important, modern finishes are created to do their job with no additional help from waxes or polishes, and are best maintained with simple cleaning methods. 

Because a piano is constructed from wood, the cabinet expands and contracts with changes in levels of humidity. If the changes are severe enough, the finish will eventually begin to develop cracks and deteriorate over time. So moderating the environment and controlling where your piano is located is a vital part of caring for the finish. A piano should never be kept in an area where it is subjected to swings in moisture or temperature. Keep it away from vents, windows, open doorways, and heat sources, always avoiding direct sunlight. 

Dust is one of the most abrasive items that can damage the finish. To avoid scratching, remove dust with a soft fabric towel, like cotton, and avoid synthetic materials as they are usually quite coarse. 

Avoid polishes and waxes at all costs. Furniture polish can ruin a piano’s finish, as they contain silicone and other oils that soften the finish and make it more vulnerable. It can contaminate the wood and spread inside the piano, wreaking havoc on the interior parts. If you choose to use a cleaner, stop by your local piano dealer and pick up a cleaner made exclusively for piano finishes. 

With just these few precautions, you’ll keep your piano looking as good as new, for however long you choose to own it and keep it on display. 

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28 June 2017 Keeping Your Piano Healthy

Keeping Your Piano Healthy

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A good piano is designed to be a part of your family for generations. But in order for it to stay high quality for that long, it needs a little maintenance. 

While bringing in a technician from time to time to tune and regulate your piano is a good idea, there are a few things you can do too to keep it in good health. 

1. Stop Closing Your KeylidKeeping Your Piano Healthy

Pianos have keylids for a good reason. They help keep dust and air particles off of your keyboard, allowing grime to form between the keys. Keeping the keylid closed is a good idea – 70 percent of the time. If the keylid is down all the time when not in use, mold growth can occur inside the piano. This is especially true if your piano is kept in a dark place, or if the surrounding area is humid. 

A good practice is to leave it up a couple of times each week. Indirect sunlight and proper air circulation will reduce the chance of mold growth and keep the innerworkings of the piano in good shape. Be sure to dust with a soft cloth or a soft vacuum attachment on a regular basis. 

2. No Drinks At The Piano

Liquid can be an enemy in more ways than one. Setting a drink on the finish of a piano can cause unsightly rings and stains. But if the liquid spills and seeps between the piano keys and reaches the interior, it can cause major damage. If you do spill, wipe up excess liquid from the keys immediately. Try not to press the keys while wiping to prevent liquid from seeping inside. If liquid does slip between the keys, have a technician evaluate the situation as soon as possible. 

3. Regulate The Environment

Before you decide on a final resting spot for your piano, evaluate the environment. Temperature can be an enemy of your piano’s condition. Cold can weaken delicate parts. Heat can negatively affect the strings. Somewhere around 70 to 72 degrees is best. While your room temperature may change due to the seasons, be sure you keep your piano away from exterior walls, where fluctuations occur the most. Avoid drafts, air ducts, or windows and doors that can allow fluctuations. Also avoid direct sunlight, which can heat your piano to very high temperatures, impacting not only the interior workings, but also the finish of the piano too.  

Humidity is equally as important as temperature. High humidity levels can warp the wood; low humidity levels can cause cracking. To ensure proper humidity levels in the room, consider a humidifier or dehumidifier depending on your needs. A 40 percent humidity level is ideal. Be sure to adjust, especially in volatile weather patterns. 

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15 June 2017 Watering Your Piano

Watering Your Piano

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Your piano is ever-changing, constantly fluctuating depending on the weather and the climate. It’s only natural that your piano will act differently depending on its environment. 

If you have a piano that has been passed down for generations, you may have heard the term “watering your piano.” No, that doesn’t mean you should pull out your watering can and drip water over it. In fact, it’s the quickest way to ruin it. 

Instead, what “watering your piano” refers to is a phrase used to explain the presence of a piano humidifier. Watering Your Piano

A piano is made up of thousands of parts, the vast majority of them made up of wood. And wood is sensitive to the presence of water. Too much water and wood begins to swell. Not enough and the same wood begins to crack and warp. The right amount means a stable, happy piano that continues to make beautiful music. 

Ideally, the humidity level in the room where your piano is on display should be around 45 to 60 percent. When in doubt, err on more humidity, as dry air will cause more damage to a piano than humid air. That being said, too much humidity can cause mildew and mold to set in, especially if dampness exists in the corners and crevices. 

By picking up a hygrometer from your local hardware store, you can measure the humidity levels of your home. You may wish to store it in your basement or crawlspace where dampness can be a problem. But you should also occasionally check the room where your piano is housed. Also, keep in mind that it will be different in winter months than in the summer. 

Based on your findings, you may need to introduce a humidifier to regulate the humidity levels around your piano. There are many different options, from a room humidifier to a whole-house option. 

Now, back to the “watering your piano” concept. Decades ago, before modern technology offered our current HVAC systems that include proper heating, cooling, and ventilation systems, people would worry about the condition of their pianos. They knew low humidity was bad for a piano, so they would keep a jar of water inside the piano to maintain humidity. 

If you find an old piano in a back room at your grandmother’s house, passed down for generations, the jar may still be there. However, a jar of water inside the piano is never a good idea. Water is damaging no matter where it spills on a piano. And if it introduces too much water, which can be the case here in our humid environment, what you may introduce is mold and mildew instead. 

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4 June 2017 Piano Flooring: Does It Matter?

Piano Flooring: Does It Matter?

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When you set out to invest in the perfect piano for you, you probably consider things like type, style, manufacturer, even color. But have you stopped to consider the surrounding area? 

Will your flooring choice be perfect for your piano investment?

Depending on where you’ve practiced and played, you’ve probably found the rooms to be decorated in many styles. You’ll find wood, laminate, even carpeting underneath. Piano Flooring: Does It Matter?

In general, wood flooring will increase volume, while carpeting will decrease volume. Thicker carpets will also further decrease the volume when compared to a thinner one. 

Look to some of the greatest concert halls in the world, and you’ll find pianos live and on stage, surrounded by hard surfaces. Wood is often the flooring of choice, adding both elegance and ease to move a piano around. 

And while that may provide you with direction for your own room, it isn’t the only factor that comes into play. 

Grand pianos produce sound differently than verticals. What type of piano you own will impact the perfect flooring for your room. 

But it does stretch beyond the flooring too. Projection is key – what sounds are produced when they collide with the surrounding area. 

Loudness comes from voicing the piano and voicing the room. 

Voicing the piano comes through the tuning process and ensuring the hammers create the right sounds for the music. Voicing the room comes from creating the best sound possible. That includes selecting the right flooring. And a lot more. Area rugs, wall hangings, cloth furniture, bookcases with books in them – all of it absorbs sound in different manners. 

By adjusting one thing at a time, you’ll find your piano creates a different sound. Some will sound richer and fuller; some will begin to lose their spark. 

If you’ve invested in a new piano and it simply doesn’t sound the way you’d desired, concentrate on your decor. Add and subtract things within your music room to give off a new wave of sound. You may be surprised at what combinations you can use to compliment the sound you desire.  

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