Piano Tuning Procedure  

 

Tools

1. Stainless steel and hardwood tuning hammer x1
2. Muting felt temperament strip x1
3. Tuning fork x1
4. rubber mutes x2
5. rubber mute with handle x1
6. Protective zip case with wrist strap x1
 

Piano Tuning Procedure

1: Tune a single string from a single note in the middle octave.

2: Match the remaining strings in the note to the one first tuned.

3: Use the first octave to tune the others by ear.

The following table lists the beat frequencies between notes in an equal temperament octave.  The top row indicates absolute frequencies of the pitches; usually only A440 is determined from an external reference.  Every other number indicates the beat rate between any two tones (which share the row and column with that number) in the temperament octave.  Begin by tuning one note to the other so that the beating disappears, temper that interval in the appropriate direction (either making the interval wider or narrower, see further below) until the desired beat rate is achieved.  Slower beat rates can be carefully timed with a metronome, or other such device.  For the thirds in the temperament octave, it is difficult to tune so many beats per second, but after setting the temperament and duplicating it one octave below, all of these beat frequencies are present at half the indicated rate in this lower octave, which are excellent for verification that the temperament is correct. One of the easiest tests of equal temperament is to play a succession of major thirds, each one a semitone higher than the last.  If equal temperament has been achieved, the beat rate of these thirds should increase evenly over the range of the piano.

This next table indicates the pitch at which the strongest beating should occur for useful intervals. As described above, when tuning a perfect fifth, for instance, the beating can be heard not at either of the fundamental pitches of the keys played, but rather an octave and fifth (perfect twelfth) above the lower of the two keys, which is the lowest pitch at which their harmonic series overlap.  Once the beating can be heard, the tuner must temper the interval either wide or narrow from a tuning that has no beatings.

Piano tuning 
is the act of making minute adjustments to the tensions of the strings of a piano to properly align the intervals between their tones so that the instrument is in tune . The meaning of the term in tune in the context of piano tuning is not simply a particular fixed set of pitches .  Fine piano tuning requires an assessment of the interaction among notes, which is different for every piano, thus in practice requiring slightly different pitches from any theoretical standard.  Pianos are usually tuned to a modified version of the system called equal temperament ( see Piano key frequencies for the theoretical piano tuning ).  In all systems of tuning, every pitch may be derived from its relationship to a chosen fixed pitch, which is usually A440 .
 


How do you keep a piano from getting out of tune?
 The primary strategy is to keep the environmental conditions as consistent as possible. Minimize changes in temperature and humidity; avoid placement near sunlight, windows, heating ducts, etc. 
After that, the best way to keep your piano in tune is to (surprise!) tune your piano. Once the piano is in tune, it is easier to keep it in tune with touch-ups and regularly-scheduled tunings. 
Don't wait until you can't stand the sound anymore. The more strings left untuned, the more the tension changes on the soundboard, causing a cascade effect where more and more strings to go out of tune. 
The typical recommendation is to do a complete tuning twice a year, shortly after the heating and cooling seasons begin.

 

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