I’d been meaning to film myself piano tuning for a while, thinking it would be something a bit more interesting to put on this website. After piano tuning for a living, keeping my own piano in tune can sometimes seem like a chore (seeing as I’m doing it for free). I tuned the piano in my own house here in Sheffield last week, but forgot to film myself first time round. There were one or two unisons that were close but not 100% in tune, so I went round the piano again and filmed myself tuning one of them. There’s something strangely satisfying about an out of tune string sliding in tune! I’m sure piano tuners will agree…
Category Archives: Sheffield Piano Tuning
Tuning the piano outside A440
I was piano tuning in Handsworth, Sheffield earlier this week and a customer requested that the piano be tuned differently to accomodate other instruments. He had an electric organ that was almost half a semitone above A440, and would like the piano to be tuned to that pitch. My own view is that it’s ok to tune a piano to itself when its flat (this is the advisable route when the piano hasn’t been tuned in years and is too flat for a standard pitch raise) but I’d never want to risk tuning a piano so far above A440 as it would put too much pressure on the soundboard. A piano is designed to be at concert pitch and sounds best at concert pitch. Practicing in different tunings can hinder a student’s musicality as they get used to playing pieces outside the pitch they were intended to be played in. Not only that, but pianos that are in tune with themselves but flat, tend to sound dull and lifeless compared to ones kept at A440.
As many people know, A440 is what’s known as ‘standard pitch’ or ‘concert pitch’, which simply means that the first A (known as A4 to or middle A to keyboard players) above middle C is tuned to 400 Hz. Before the baroque era, there was no standard pitch that all instruments were tuned to, so tunings differed as widely as A-392 to A-465. The vast majority of music today will be tuned to A400, but some orchestras playing traditional renaissance and baroque music will use earlier tunings (however the piano wasn’t invented until the early 19th century, so that’s not an issue for us), and there are some modern classical composers such as Terry Riley have experimented with different piano tunings.
- Richard, Piano Tuner Sheffield.
The Summer Ends
For anyone who needs to get their piano tuned, now might be the perfect time. Pianos don’t like to be too hot or too cold and you may have noticed your piano has begun to sound less in-tune during the small bouts of hot weather we’ve had this summer. This is because the piano’s wooden soundboard warps slightly with these seasonal changes in humidity, which affects the tension of the strings, dragging them out of tune. This happens even in rooms which seem ideal for a piano. There’s little that can be done to combat this, save getting your piano tuned regularly (once every six months). Some people may recommend putting a jar of water in the bottom of the piano, but this is not advisable for people reading this in Sheffield, Rotherham, Barnsley, Doncaster (or anywhere else in the north of England for that matter) as the problem with our climate is dampness rather than dryness. Piano humidity regulating systems are available, which may be worth looking into for the more dedicated piano owner.
- Richard, Piano Tuner Sheffield.
A year of piano tuning
So, according to my calender it was August of last year that I had my first paid piano tuning. Before then I had done free piano tuning for friends in Rotherham and Sheffield, but only a year ago did I start tuning professionally. It’s been a year of ups and downs, with some weeks busier than others, but I enjoy it more and more as it goes on and, even though I could tune a piano upon finishing my piano tuning course, my piano tuning has improved since then, in that my tuning is more precise (particularly unisons) and I can set the pins with more ease and tune the whole piano faster than I could a year ago.
Customers will receive a text reminding them that their piano has not been tuned in a year and asking them whether they want me to come round and tune it. Not wanting to seem pushy with new customers, I’ll continue this policy for the forseeable future.
- Richard, Piano Tuner Sheffield.
New Facebook business page
I have just made a ‘Piano Tuner Sheffield’ business page on facebook, which seems like something you have to do nowadays if you want to reach more people. I was in a pub outside Sheffield city centre last night a friend made the point that I wouldn’t lose anything by making a piano tuning page on facebook (point well made), and seeing as people search for local Sheffield businesses on there it would be stupid not to do so. If it connects me to people around Sheffield, Barnsely, Rotherham, Chesterfield, Doncaster, Holmfirth, Huddersfield etc, or anywhere else in South Yorkshire/North Derbyshire who need a piano tuner, then it will have been worth making the page.
If you are a regular facebook user check it out and click the ‘like’ button if you approve: https://www.facebook.com/pianotunersheffield
- Richard Lidster, Piano Tuner Sheffield.
False Harmonics
As I was tuning a piano in Sheffield last week, a customer asked a question about the ringing quality of an individual string on the piano. He had recognised what are know as false beats.
As most of you know, each note on the piano is sounded by the hammer hitting 3 strings which are tuned in unison to each other. A badly out of tune piano will have the recognisable ‘honky tonk’ sound, where . A well-tuned unison will sound practically beatless, although there is always some noise coming from each individual string which give the note a singing quality. Some strings, however, produce what are called ‘false beats’, where multiple beats are produced on a single string making one string sounds like a bad unison. Even though these false beats are a nightmare for the piano tuner (getting a unison in tune with fluttering harmonics ringing away is extremely difficult), we have no other option that to try and work around it, as even electronic piano tuning devices don’t know what to make of such notes. As false beats best to spend extra time on strings with false beats to get the unison as well-tuned as possible. Replacing the string sometimes helps but usually the problem is caused by bad design and the cheaper the piano the more false beats will be found (particularly in the high treble).
- Richard Lidster, Piano Tuner Sheffield.
Booking Time
My preferred working hours are between 10 and 6, but I can make a piano tuning earlier or later if your schedule is too busy to fit me in during those hours. Let me know ahead of time (please give me at least 12 hours notice) if you require the piano tuning a bit later or earlier than the time we decided on. Occasionally it is convenient for me if we book the piano tuning outside that timeframe, but that’s usually if I have a long journey from a piano tuning job outside Sheffield and need an hour or two in between piano tunings.
I prefer the room to be reasonably quiet when piano tuning but I don’t require complete silence. Vacuum cleaners and the TV on at a high volume in the same room are my worst enemies when piano tuning! I can usually concentrate more on the piano tuning and get it done faster during the day when there is less noise distracting me; it can get a bit hectic if its early in the morning when people are getting ready for school/work.
- Richard, Piano Tuner Sheffield
Piano tuning time
Depending on the condition of your piano a tuning may take longer than 90 minutes, but this usually only applies to grand pianos (which involves a more difficult piano tuning technique) and older pianos which haven’t been tuned in a while. A piano tuning on a well-maintained piano will take approximately 90 minutes.
- Richard, piano tuner Sheffield.
People in Sheffield with second hand pianos
If anyone in Sheffield or elsewhere in South Yorkshire is thinking of upgrading to a better piano and has an old one they are trying to get rid of, please let me know. If you live close to me in Sheffield then I could inspect it for you and see if it is worth restoring. I’ve already met piano tuning customers in Sheffield who are in this situation so I know you are out there!
- Richard, piano tuner sheffield
Piano tuning in Sheffield
Most of my piano tuning jobs have been on one side of Sheffield, the west side around S10 and S11 areas, and quite a few around Woodseats and Gleadless. If you live in on the east side of Sheffield in or nearby Attercliffe or Woodhouse or know anyone who owns a piano and lives in that side of Sheffield (and who needs to hire a piano tuner) please ask them if they would call me next time they need their piano tuning. I’ve only started promoting myself on that side so I have no idea how many people have pianos laying untuned…
I take my driving test next month, so hopefully I will be able to drive to that side of Sheffield and promote my piano tuning once I’ve passed…
- Richard, Piano Tuner Sheffield