Here is what Peter Serkin says about tuning frequency in his 1990 video, "The Anatomy of a Piano--How Your Grand Piano Works": A freshly tuned piano has a sparkle and clarity of sound that begins to deteriorate even after a few hours…that is why a performance piano should be tuned immediately before each performance or recording session. For most of us our pianos should be tuned at least twice a year…. Six months is a long time to expect a piano to stay in tune, so those of you with more sensitive ears will want to have it tuned more often [such as] four times a year, with each change of season…. Professional players or pianos with heavy use will require more frequent tunings, perhaps every 6 or 8 weeks. John Baird Millikin University Decatur, Illinois "John D. Chapman" wrote: > Avery, > I went through this a couple of years ago. Here is what I suggested: > > Concert instruments need thorough regulation and key rebushing every year, > new hammers every four years, restringing and new dampers every six years. > When restringing time arrives, consider if rebuilding is a better idea > based on pinblock and soundboard condition (maybe very twelve to eighteen > years). > > Each grand piano should be considered for, depending on usage, a touchup > regulation every year, key rebushing every three years, a thorough > regulation every six years, new hammers and dampers every twelve years, > and restringing every eighteen years. When restringing time arrives, > consider if rebuilding is a better idea based on pinblock and soundboard > condition, if the instrument is worth rebuilding. > > Each upright piano should have the same as above but based on five year > intervals instead of three years intervals. Replace the instrument > instead of rebuilding. > > All pianos should be tuned at least four times per year. > Piano faculty studio pianos should be tuned every month. > Concert instruments should be tuned the day of performance. > > Computer data base should be kept on piano inventory, condition, history, > repairs, scheduling for future work, etc. > > John Chapman RPT > Wake Forest University > Winston-Salem NC > > On Mon, 5 Feb 2001, Avery Todd wrote: > > > List, > > > > Our business manager for the music dept. just called and told me > > that the Provost's office wants some kind of maintenance schedule > > for our pianos. Things like: > > > > 1. How often should they be tuned > > 2. How often rebuilt > > 3. How often replaced > > 4. etc., etc. > > > > She said they are in the process of evaluating the fees charged > > to students and wanted some kind of information pertaining to this. > > Even generic info would be helpful. > > > > I have a few ideas but would appreciate some feedback from you are more > > experienced in dealing with this type of beaurecratic @#$%$^&. :-) > > > > Any ideas? Thanks. > > > > Avery > > > > ______________________________________ > > > > mailto:atodd@uh.edu - Work "I haven't failed. I've > > found 10,000 ways that > > mailto:avery@ev1.net - Home won't work." > > > > Avery Todd -Benjamin Franklin- > > Moores School of Music > > University of Houston > > Houston, TX 77204-4201 > > 713-743-3226 > >
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