<html> <body> I should have said: "barring floating the pitch for whatever reason". I do. But I work at a university. :-) Avery At 01:12 PM 1/28/2006, you wrote: <blockquote type=cite class=cite cite="">At 08:35 AM 1/28/2006, you wrote: <blockquote type=cite class=cite cite="">I think this might be m probl= em with speed in tuning.  As I'm learning this awesome trade, I'm finding that I need to raise pitch on any practice piano.  For some reason, I feel like I'm doing less quality work etc if I were to leave it flat or sharp, flat in most cases.  </blockquote> If you're trying to do good work, DON'T leave it flat or sharp! <blockquote type=cite class=cite cite="">It's a perfectionist thing.  I feel as if it's not a440, I'm doing a poor job and my collegues with more experience are saying, "it's not a440."  So how do I just tune for the sake of tuning and gaining experience without the necessity to match it to a440?  </blockquote> That's part of the learning! Just pull it A-440 (& a little sharp, if possible) as fast as you can go. THEN go back and tune it to A-440. That's the only way you can if it's that flat! Avery <blockquote type=cite class=cite cite="">Marshall <dl> <dd>----- Original Message ----- <dd>From: <a href="mailto:john@formsmapiano.com">John Formsma</a> <dd>To: <a href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">'Pianotech List'</a> <dd>Sent: Saturday, January 28, 2006 8:16 AM <dd>Subject: RE: frequent tuning - floating pitch? was tuning <dd>Jason, <dd>  <dd>I float the pitch all the time. Stability is my goal rather than having the piano “dead-on” A440 all the time. <dd>  <dd>Here’s the typical scenario…it’s winter now and the piano is 4-5 cents flat in the bass, -12 in the tenor, and -5 in the treble. So, I do a one-pass tuning to A439. This way, in the summer, things will be a bit sharp of A440. If you pitch correct all the time, the piano is not as stable. In the summer, when the piano is sharp, I’ll tune to A440 or A441, whichever will give the best stability. <dd>  <dd>Now, if the piano is in a church that uses other instruments, it gets tuned to A440. However, in certain less “critical” situations, I’ll ge= t within 2 cents of A440 depending on the season. Most people don’t ever notice that difference. Again, the goal is stability rather than being at A440 all the time. <dd>  <dd>From the perspective of most customers, they want a piano in tune with itself, and don’t really care if it’s at A439 or A441. They do care about paying extra for pitch corrections every season to have it right at A440. If I see other instruments like a guitar or violin near the piano, I’ll ask the customer’s preference first. Yes, I do offer DC systems. <dd>  <dd>John Formsma <dd> <hr> <dd>From: pianotech-bounces@ptg.org [ <a href="mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org" eudora="autourl"> mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org</a>] On Behalf Of Jason Kanter <dd>Sent: Saturday, January 28, 2006 1:22 AM <dd>To: 'Pianotech List' <dd>Subject: frequent tuning - floating pitch? was tuning <dd>  <dd>I imagine that if you "recently" tuned the piano (last week or last month or two months ago) and now it's still "in tune" but a couple of cents sharp, you tune it where it lies? That makes it a half-hour tuning instead of an hour and a half, and the following week (or month or couple of months) you again tune it where it lies, and within six months, when you have the couple of hours, you bring it all to 440 again. Yes? Or do you keep adjusting it to 440 every time? Or sell Dampp-chasers? <dd>  <dd>|| ||| || ||| || ||| || ||| || ||| || ||| || <dd>Jason Kanter . jkanter@rollingball.com <dd>Piano tuning, regulation, repair <dd>Serving Seattle and the San Juans <dd>425.830.1561  <dd> <hr> <dd>From: pianotech-bounces@ptg.org [ <a href="mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org" eudora="autourl"> mailto:pianotech-bounces@ptg.org</a>] On Behalf Of PJR <dd>Sent: Friday, January 27, 2006 5:16 PM <dd>To: Pianotech List <dd>Subject: Re: tuning <dd>I tune cruise ship pianos once a week.  On them you have the problem of rocking, vibrations, salt air, hard players and continuous playing (mechanisms).  Comes down to the fact that you tune a whenever it needs it. <dd>Phil Ryan <dd>Miami Beach <dd>pianotune05 wrote: <dd>Hi everyone, <dd>How often is too often to tune a piano?  I typically see twice a year, or even every three months.  Is anything less than that necessary such as once a month or even once a week which I 've heard of? <dd>Marshall <dd>  </dl></blockquote></blockquote></body> </html>