The key elements the pianist is inherently sensitive to. It all boils down to the way your piano sounds and responds. Here is some more information on how to make sure these elements remain ideal.
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In a lot of regions in Canada, the relative humidity changes at certain times of the year. These fluctuations of moisture in the wood create tuning instability. It is important to remember your piano is a living, breathing thing. Your piano’s wood will continue to expand and contract with seasonal changes. In the spring the soundboard will have an increased level of moisture. In the winter, your heating system and colder temperatures will dry the air, causing the moisture levels to decrease. This and heavy use are the major reasons for your piano falling out of tune. It is wise to stabilize the relative humidity in your pianos environment to prevent this from happening too suddenly. Annual service is recommended to keep your pianos tuning great. As well, the installation of the Dampp-Chaser (Piano Life Saver) system is a fantastic option to maintain optimal moisture levels within the instrument throughout the entire year.
The piano is a tension based instrument and designed to sound its best at A- 440Hz, the international pitch standard. Tuning to anything other than A-440Hz is seldom appropriate. For example, if a very old piano has been allowed to remain far below pitch for a long time, some strings may break in an attempt to restore it to A-440Hz. Our technicians will advise you on the proper approach to these situations. If it has gone without tuning for an extended period it may have moved below or even above the pitch at which it was designed to perform. It may require a procedure we call “Pitch Adjustment” to get it relative to our universal standard. Then a fine tune from there. When the tension of each string on a piano is adjusted back to pitch, the additional load on the piano’s structure causes the pitch of previously adjusted strings to change. The only way to achieve a fine, accurate tuning is to have the tension of all the strings close enough to their proper position. This is so that altering the tension of one string would not affect the others. Most pianists would want to have their piano tuned before the pitch moves this far away. There is an acceptable distance away from standard pitch to be finely tuned.
Your piano is a major investment which deserves to be maintained and protected with annual servicing. In turn this will head off any preventable problems in the future. Most importantly, your piano will sound its best and give you and your family the most pleasure when it is tuned regularly and kept in proper playing condition.
The complex mechanical linkage that starts with the key that you press with your fingers, and ends with the hammer striking the strings is called the action. Regulation is the adjustment of the mechanical aspects of the piano to compensate for the effects of wear and settling in the felts, cloths, and leathers. It is comprised of over 9000 parts which require adjustments to critical tolerances to be able to respond to the pianists every command. As a conscientious piano owner, you have your piano tuned regularly by a qualified technician. You may, however, notice a deterioration of its performance despite regular tuning. Things like lack of dynamic control, sluggish playability, response time, lost motions (keys, trap work etc..), damper operations. No amount of practice will compensate for a poorly maintained action. Poor touch, chord playing where all the notes of the chord don't speak clearly and evenly, a gradual loss of subtlety in phrasing, an inability to execute quick passages or note repetitions evenly may be the fault of the piano, not the pianist.
The quality of the instrument out of factory may also need to be addressed. Some manufacturers do not go over the Regulation and Voicing processes as much as needed. Regulation is not needed often and it depends on the intensity and amount of time it’s used, as well fluctuations in climate conditions. Keeping your home piano at a steady temperature and 35-45% humidity here in Calgary will require less adjustment. A piano under heavy performance demands may require Regulation more often, sometimes even before each use.
Tone varies. Every piano has its own unique sound. Even pianos of the same make and model. Every pianist has their own idea of what they prefer as well. Some prefer a more powerful concert hall tone, whereas some might prefer a warmer lush relaxed sensitivity. Over time your pianos hammers will require service to maintain their fullest potential. These issues can be addressed with a voicing procedure. The process of voicing can adjust the relative brilliance of a piano and provide an even gradation of volume and tone over the entire range of the keyboard.
Voicing procedures may involve reshaping the hammers, the use of needles on the hammer felt and/or the application of special softeners or hardeners in order to produce the best sound possible. You should discuss with your technician what changes in your piano's tone are practical and together decide what steps should be taken to effect these changes. Although you may have your piano tuned regularly, you must specifically request regulation or voicing procedures. These procedures aren't included in a normal tuning. It should also be noted that voicing can only be accomplished after a piano has been freshly tuned.
