Customer Handout -- for review (and flameage)

[Brian Doepke]

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Can=92t wait to read the finished product.  Great idea!
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      Brian P. Doepke
      A.A.A. Piano Works, Inc
-----Original Message-----
From: pianotech-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org] On
Behalf Of Piannaman@aol.com
Sent: Friday, June 03, 2005 12:58 AM
To: pianotech@ptg.org
Subject: Customer Handout -- for review (and flameage)
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Hi All,
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A while back, I put out a post about a sheet with piano service
information on it, written for the layman.  Here's what I came up with.
It's short, easy, and it fits on one page.  The brevity of it really
appeals to customers.  People who have just purchased instruments are
happy to have something to chew on, albeit piantech-Lite.
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Any criticisms, witticisms, and suggestions will be appreciated and
considered for the next iteration.  Feel free to use this in whole or in
part as a public resource (insert your name instead of mine, of course!)
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Thanks for reading,
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Dave Stahl
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Piano Service Recommendations
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All pianos need periodic maintenance.  Depending on the type of piano
you own, the climatic/environmental conditions the piano is exposed to,
and the frequency and intensity of play, service intervals will vary
greatly.  The three main areas of in-home piano maintenance are Tuning,
Regulation, and Voicing.

Tuning is the area that will need to be addressed by your technician
most frequently.  Tuning consists of adjusting tension of the piano
strings so that they are at the proper pitch.  Maintaining standard
concert pitch--A 4, the A above middle C, set to 440 Hz., or cycles per
second--is important for the developing ear.=20

New pianos usually need to be tuned more frequently than older ones.
Strings are still stretching, the various wood components are still
adjusting to the relative humidity in your home.  The piano is not a
static object.  Tuning can change dramatically in a short period of time
due to climatic changes.  Most manufacturers recommend that their pianos
get tuned 3-4 times in the first year.  Though our climate in the San
Francisco Bay Area is a bit more hospitable to pianos than most,   Your
piano should be tuned twice a year for the first 2-3 years in order to
maintain and stabilize at concert pitch .

Tuning older pianos is necessary as well, but they are more likely able
to hold tune for longer periods of time.  Let your ear be your guide,
but if the piano gets played or is in an environment with changing
climate, once a year is the normal recommendation.  Even if the piano
never gets played, letting it go for more than 3 years without attention
is probably not a good idea.  Once an old piano drops well below concert
pitch, there can be problems associated with pitch adjustment*.
Pianos develop squeaks, clicks, clunks, buzzes, and other annoying
noises that can be a detriment to your playing enjoyment.  Many
technicians will deal with these at your regular tuning call, as they
come up, if you have your piano serviced regularly.

Regulation becomes necessary when various felt and leather parts in your
piano=92s action** have become compressed or changed shape from wear.
There are several points of regulation that should be addressed within
your first few years of ownership to insure that the action performs as
it should.=20
A complete regulation is seldom necessary on newer instruments, but
there are several functions that should be addressed within 1-3 years of
delivery, particularly on grand pianos.  If you are interested, I will
be happy to demonstrate how your piano action operates. =20

Voicing deals with the tone of your piano. What is =93good=94 tone =
quality?
That is up to the owner-player of the instrument.  Some like a bright,
lively sound, while others prefer a mellow, and darker sound.  Whatever
type of tone you prefer, a piano should be able to play soft passages
with delicacy, and loud passages with brilliance and power=97within the
limits of the instrument, of course.=20

In order to be properly voiced, a piano needs to be well regulated and
tuned to ensure that the inconsistencies in tone are not because the
piano is out of tune or because the action plays unevenly. Sometimes
voicing is a matter of going through all of the hammers to soften or
brighten the tone, and sometimes it=92s just evening out the tone by
voicing a few hammers or sections of hammers that are overly bright. =20
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*Pitch Adjustment: this is necessary when a piano gets too far below (or
above) pitch.  In short, it is a rough tuning to get the piano close
enough to pitch so that fine-tuning is possible.
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**Action:  all of the moving parts between the key and the string)
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This is just a brief outline of maintenance that your piano will need
during its time in your home if you want an instrument that sounds good
and plays as intended by the manufacturer. If you would like more
detailed information about specific functions, feel free to=20
contact me at:
650-224-3560
Velopresto@AOL.com
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Thanks for reading!=20
Dave Stahl / Dave Stahl Piano Service

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