Does a piano really only stay in top shape if its tuned and serviced several times per year?

What happens if you haven’t tuned your piano in a few years?

When it comes to pianos, they are more than a typical instrument you can put away in a case and hide from sight. Instead, a piano becomes a part of the décor in your home; an item that will provide years of entertainment and beauty for years to come if you service it on a regular basis. But what does that mean? Here are a few myths and facts to keep in mind for the piano in your home.

Myth #1: Time played determines how much tuning it requires.

Fact: Its easy to assume the more you play a piano, the more maintenance it will need. Conversely, if you rarely play it, it can survive long periods of time without tuning. However, no matter how often a piano is used and played, it still wears in a similar manner. Therefore all pianos – no matter how much use they receive – should be serviced and tuned on a regular basis.

The purpose of tuning is not to make your piano sound better. Instead, with regular maintenance, a technician can watch for preventative maintenance and determine the viability and integrity of the instrument. If a piano sounds good and works well, the user will enjoy making music more. And if you do decide to sell it in the future, you will have all the records you will need to prove the condition of your investment.

A new piano should be tuned two to four times per year. All pianos should be tuned at least once per year.

Myth #2: Only someone with a good musical ear can tune a piano

Fact: Makes sense, right? Tuning a piano means bringing it back into pitch and giving it good sound quality. But in reality, there is much more to tuning a piano than “listening” to the sound it makes.

A qualified piano tuner has special training to be able to tune temperament, hear beats and to learn effective hammer technique. It involves just as much maintenance to the pieces of the piano itself as it does listening to the music it makes.

Myth #3: Placement of a piano makes little impact on performance and tuning schedule

Fact: Humidity and dryness affect everything differently, and pianos are no exception. If your piano resides in a high humidity area, keeping windows closed around your piano and keeping the temperature at a fairly constant rate will improve the conditions of the piano. Also, if your piano is placed on an outside wall where it is exposed to humidity moving through the walls, or even cold spells in the winter, all will impact the overall sound quality of your piano.

Pianos have a lot of moving parts that are affected by all kinds of things. Weather, climate, even moving a piano can impact the sound quality and the performance of the internal pieces.

If you want to keep your investment in top shape, and keep your piano in top musical condition, set up a maintenance schedule with your local piano tuner on a regular basis.