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Beyond Tuning—Reconditioning Your Piano
The piano is a marvel of mechanical ingenuity. Hundreds of individual parts work together, but give the illusion of something very simple. You press the keys and are rewarded with musical tone. A soft touch gives you a soft, lyrical sound. A stronger touch brings forth a sound that is much more stirring. Under the hands of a skilled player, the machine we call a piano becomes almost transparent, allowing what seems to be almost a direct expression of the heart and the soul of the musician.
But a piano is still a machine, and as with any machine, time and use bring about wear and deterioration, and the ability of the instrument to do its magic begins to fade a little. The first and most obvious issue is usually the tuning. Most of us recognize over time that the sound of the piano in not what it was, even though the change is gradual enough that we don't hear a difference from one day to the next.
There are many other parts of the piano, however, that are subject to wear and tear. Over time, if this wear and tear is not addressed, the capacity of the piano to respond to the expressiveness of the player diminishes.
Have you ever sat down at the keyboard of a new piano that has been freshly tuned and regulated, and noticed how much different the experience is from playing an older piano, even one that is tuned regularly? If the instruments are of comparable quality, the difference you feel is the difference of accumulated mechanical wear. Even though a piano can still be functioning a hundred years after it was built, it will exist as a faint shadow of its former self if the only care it receives is tuning.
Can anything be done about this deterioration? The good news is that a skilled piano technician can address virtually all of the issues of wear and tear that arise. In many cases, a piano can be made to perform even more expressively than when it was brought home new from the store. High value pianos from even the late 19th century are routinely returned to new or better-than-new condition in the hands skilled craftsmen throughout the world.
Total rebuilding is an expensive proposition, though it is justified in the case of high-value/high quality instruments, and even with some more ordinary instruments that are highly valued for historic or other reasons. Total rebuilding, however, is a rather small part of the piano maintenance picture.
Most of us as piano owners will be interested in a more modest scenario. Perhaps we have newer pianos, and want to keep on top of maintenance so that the enjoyment of our instruments does not diminish over time. Or perhaps we have an instrument that has fallen behind in its maintenance, and we simply want to do what is within our means to regain some of the lost ground.
What is possible? I would suggest there are at least four levels of approach. The highest and most expensive level, which was mentioned above, would be the rebuild, which involves extensive use of new parts, and in which pinblock and soundboard replacement exist as very real options.
The second level is that of extensive or comprehensive reconditioning. Here, all of the major wear and tear issues are dealt with, but many existing parts are reconditioned and reused if doing so will keep the cost lower. Hammers will typically be replaced and oversize tuning pins might be installed (if they are loose). Perhaps some or all of the strings will be replaced. The cost of comprehensive reconditioning can be comparable to the cost of purchasing a new entry-level piano, but assuming that the piano being reconditioned is a larger, high quality instrument, the final product will be more satisfying.
The third level is the one-to-two-day reconditioning and regulation. Here, the most pressing wear issues are dealt with, and the piano is regulated to factory specifications (where possible) at about the cost of four to eight piano tunings. Labor costs are controlled by fixing in advance how much time will be invested, whether eight, twelve or sixteen hours, and doing the most that can be done with the available time.
The fourth level involves simply investing thirty to sixty minutes of labor at every tuning, addressing whatever issues are most pressing at the time. Here the effect is cumulative, and while some issues, like hammer replacement, cannot be done in short blocks, there is much that can be done. Over the course of a few years of annual or semi-annual tunings, a great deal of ground can be gained. This approach can also be used to keep on top of maintenance with a newer piano, though there would not necessarily be work to do at every tuning.
Much is indeed possible, even with a modest budget. It all starts with an awareness that wear and tear is an issue that exists, and that can be dealt with in a way that is practical and reasonable. Keeping your piano expressive and responsive can be a very satisfying investment!
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