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Call or text Nathan to schedule a tuning at 214-934-3916
Basic Tuning Service
How much does my service cost?: $250 (includes sales tax)
What does the tuning service include?: A basic service typically takes approximately 1-1/2 to 2 hours, and includes major pitch adjustments, fine tuning, pedal adjustments, and minor action adjustments (correcting a few sticking or sluggish keys). Though my service price is firm, I do not charge extra for major pitch adjustments, even if the piano has not been serviced in several years.
If your piano is 5 or more cents flat, a "pitch raise" will be performed. If the piano is 5 or more cents flat and only a single pass thru tuning is performed, the piano will not sound nearly as satisfying as it could. If it has been several years since the pianos was last tuned, a pitch raise is likely necessary. Just like when you tune your guitar; if the instrument is severely out of tune and you only tune each string once, it probably will not sound quite as nice as if you go through it twice. This is because the soundboard (or top on a guitar) flexes with a dramatic changes in string tension. A pitch raise is free for all customers. Sometimes up to an extra hour is required if the piano is severely flat and requires additional tuning time. I will stay until the piano is at pitch, and the price will remain the same. A tip is always appreciated, though no solicited. ♪~ ᕕ(ᐛ)ᕗ
For an additional $50, grand piano customers can request a thorough, under-string soundboard cleaning prior to the tuning service (adds an extra 10 minutes). Some uprights may require cleaning as well, and customers may request cleaning for the same fee. I will refuse to clean a piano with signs of prior rodent or insect infestation. I have a keen eye for this, even if you have attempted to hide it. My eyes and nose will not lie to me!
Tuning a piano requires a great amount of patience, not only skill. You are hiring me for the decade and a half I spent learning to be patient with your piano and tune its 230 strings successfully in 90 minutes. Each of the 230 speaking string segments on the instrument must be properly pulled to the correct tension in order to sound like it should. Once these strings are brought to the correct tension, the tuning pins which hold the strings must be correctly positioned in the pinblock to maintain that precise tension. There are several historical tuning methods which result in varied spacings between notes up and down the keyboard, but the most commonly used today is called "equal temperament". This method results in all notes having an identical amount of space between them and their neighboring notes - at least, that's the goal. Depending on a piano's length, the tuning result will be different from other pianos. The size of a piano, and the amount of inharmonicity of its strings (determined by the length, thickness, and tension on those strings) play a big part in the quality of the sound of the final tuning. Because of inharmonicity and scaling differences, the tuning of a small upright cannot be precisely matched to a piano of a larger size all the way up and down the keyboard. Piano tuning, unlike guitars, is done listening to faint overtones. For this reason, a guitar tuning app or handheld tuner is not an accurate way to analyze your tuning. It is also the reason to avoid running vacuums while I'm tuning. Thanks you!
The tuning of Rhodes electric pianos does not take into account the issue of inharmonicity, as these pianos do not have strings. Other issues exist in Rhodes that can cause the owner with a discerning ear to question the tuning of lower bass notes. Longer tines are subject to a aural phenomenon that causes the tuning to shift over the sustain time. Immediately upon the hammer's strike, a tine has a much wider path of motion than several seconds afterward, while sustained. As the note continues to sustain, the tine comes overall into a closer proximity to the pickup and tends to sound sharper in pitch. For that reason, the bass tines are generally tuned slightly flatter to compensate.
What does the tuning service include?: A basic service typically takes approximately 1-1/2 to 2 hours, and includes major pitch adjustments, fine tuning, pedal adjustments, and minor action adjustments (correcting a few sticking or sluggish keys). Though my service price is firm, I do not charge extra for major pitch adjustments, even if the piano has not been serviced in several years.
If your piano is 5 or more cents flat, a "pitch raise" will be performed. If the piano is 5 or more cents flat and only a single pass thru tuning is performed, the piano will not sound nearly as satisfying as it could. If it has been several years since the pianos was last tuned, a pitch raise is likely necessary. Just like when you tune your guitar; if the instrument is severely out of tune and you only tune each string once, it probably will not sound quite as nice as if you go through it twice. This is because the soundboard (or top on a guitar) flexes with a dramatic changes in string tension. A pitch raise is free for all customers. Sometimes up to an extra hour is required if the piano is severely flat and requires additional tuning time. I will stay until the piano is at pitch, and the price will remain the same. A tip is always appreciated, though no solicited. ♪~ ᕕ(ᐛ)ᕗ
For an additional $50, grand piano customers can request a thorough, under-string soundboard cleaning prior to the tuning service (adds an extra 10 minutes). Some uprights may require cleaning as well, and customers may request cleaning for the same fee. I will refuse to clean a piano with signs of prior rodent or insect infestation. I have a keen eye for this, even if you have attempted to hide it. My eyes and nose will not lie to me!
Tuning a piano requires a great amount of patience, not only skill. You are hiring me for the decade and a half I spent learning to be patient with your piano and tune its 230 strings successfully in 90 minutes. Each of the 230 speaking string segments on the instrument must be properly pulled to the correct tension in order to sound like it should. Once these strings are brought to the correct tension, the tuning pins which hold the strings must be correctly positioned in the pinblock to maintain that precise tension. There are several historical tuning methods which result in varied spacings between notes up and down the keyboard, but the most commonly used today is called "equal temperament". This method results in all notes having an identical amount of space between them and their neighboring notes - at least, that's the goal. Depending on a piano's length, the tuning result will be different from other pianos. The size of a piano, and the amount of inharmonicity of its strings (determined by the length, thickness, and tension on those strings) play a big part in the quality of the sound of the final tuning. Because of inharmonicity and scaling differences, the tuning of a small upright cannot be precisely matched to a piano of a larger size all the way up and down the keyboard. Piano tuning, unlike guitars, is done listening to faint overtones. For this reason, a guitar tuning app or handheld tuner is not an accurate way to analyze your tuning. It is also the reason to avoid running vacuums while I'm tuning. Thanks you!
The tuning of Rhodes electric pianos does not take into account the issue of inharmonicity, as these pianos do not have strings. Other issues exist in Rhodes that can cause the owner with a discerning ear to question the tuning of lower bass notes. Longer tines are subject to a aural phenomenon that causes the tuning to shift over the sustain time. Immediately upon the hammer's strike, a tine has a much wider path of motion than several seconds afterward, while sustained. As the note continues to sustain, the tine comes overall into a closer proximity to the pickup and tends to sound sharper in pitch. For that reason, the bass tines are generally tuned slightly flatter to compensate.
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Call or text Nathan at 214-934-3916 or email him at [email protected]
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