Have you ever been to a antique car show? The owners take great pride in their cars, shining them up and detailing them to make everything look brand new.

If you have a musician in your life, you probably have experienced the same thing. They take great pride in their instruments, making sure they are at peak playability.

When a piano is freshly tuned, there is no other sound like it. When someone loves to play the piano, they can get lost in their own music. That’s a feeling most piano players can relate to. Every note sounds perfect. Every chord blends together impeccably.

But the more you play, the more the music loses that preciseness. Its not difficult to know when a piano is out of tune. Even those who are tone-deaf can usually pick up on the cues fairly quickly. It’s a flat note here, and an off-sound there. And when it doesn’t sound right, its just not as fun to play.

Sound is only the first aspect of tuning a piano. Its usually the easiest to pick up on, the cue that lets you know immediately that something is changing. But tuning goes beyond creating a balanced tune.

• A proper tuning helps the soundboard retain its shape, creating the perfect tension that enhances the sound quality.

• A proper tuning keeps the strings perfectly taut and kink-free, to keep the notes from sounding “off”.

• A proper tuning eliminates broken strings.

• A proper tuning protects the pinblock from receiving too much wear, which can reduce the piano’s pitch.

• A proper tuning can provide a stable environment that helps keep a piano in tune for longer periods of time. The more regular you are with tuning, the more stable your piano will become.

If you are wondering if its time to schedule tuning for your piano, ask yourself two questions.

When was the last time your piano was tuned?

What is the sound quality of your piano as you play it?

Those two questions can be big indicators of when its time for a tuning. Not only will it improve your playing, but it will keep your piano in top shape as well.