SECRETS TO STABLE TUNINGS

Tuning a piano so that it will stay in tune for as long as possible involves several concepts, but the most important is getting the tuning right in the first place.

Imagine a dart board with a bull’s eye in the middle and three concentric circles around it. A key that is tuned PERFECTLY is represented by a dart in the center of the bull’s eye. A key that is slightly out of tune lies in the first inner circle surrounding the bull’s eye, and the farther out of tune the key is, the farther from the center the allegorical dart.

As a key drifts out of tune, it strays farther from the center, until it becomes objectionable. Therefore, it is imperative that the note start right in the center of that bull’s eye target. When it starts to drift, it has farther to go before becoming noticeably out of tune.

A key that is not in the bull’s eye, but just close to it, will drift to the outer circle faster than the key that started directly in the center. The more keys that are tuned perfectly to begin with, the longer the tuning will last.

Beyond the quality of the initial tuning, other factors do come into play.

1. If the piano was severely out of tune prior to the tuning, this will negatively effect the tuning stability. This is why your piano should be tuned regularly. A piano that is slightly out of tune will stay in tune much longer after being retuned, than the piano that was nearly a quarter-step flat.
2. Seasonal changes in humidity have an effect on the piano. Pianos go flat in winter, and go sharp in summer. A good way to minimize this effect is to have a humidifier in the music room. Keeping the humidity at 30% or so during the winter months will help that tuning last longer.
3. Don’t put the piano next to a heat vent. This not only will throw the piano out of tune, it can cause damage to the soundboard, bridges, and action.

When a piano is severely out of tune to begin with, it will require a pitch raise. As mentioned elsewhere on this site, there is no extra charge for this procedure at Sivak Piano Service. Here is a general rule of thumb regarding the instability of pitch raised pianos.

Let’s say your piano is 100 cents flat prior to the tuning. (100 cents = one half step) Tom Sivak raises the pitch to A440 and tunes the piano. Within 6 months, that piano will fall approximately 33% of the change made in the pitch raise.

Therefore, 6 months later your piano will be 33 cents flat. (When a piano is 10 cents flat, it is very noticeable.) Tom Sivak returns and tunes the piano again, and this time the pitch raise is 33 cents.