My name is Terry Bouricius, and although I am not a piano technician (able to do complex repairs), I can do basic tuning cheaply. My service area includes most of Chittenden County, Vermont: Bolton, Burlington, Charlotte, Colchester, Essex, Hinesburg, Jericho, Milton, Richmond, St. George, Shelburne, South Burlington, Underhill, Williston, and Winooski. For an additional cost I may travel beyond this area.
After a quick assessment, I will give you a firm price quote for a basic tuning before I start work. I can also tell you if the piano needs repair work beyond my level, and needs a professional piano technician.
A full tuning costs $80. If only some notes need fixing, or only the middle part wants tuning (such as for a beginning student), my fee is $60. If you want the piano raised to concert pitch (A=440Hz), this can cost substantially more (at least $120). Most home pianos are tuned a little bit low on purpose, to put less stress on everything. If every string needs to be tightened, the whole soundboard flexes a bit making the notes that were first tuned now flat again, so the entire piano needs to be tuned top to bottom at least twice through. Unless you are uploading audio files for mixing with other musicians remotely, or playing with a friend using an un-tunable instrument (like an accordion), there is no compelling reason to raise pitch to concert pitch. Tightening every string also increases the risk of snapping a piano wire (which costs at least $20 to replace).
Disclaimer: Even if a piano is tuned accurately, it may have a bad tuning pin block, or a few loose pins that simply won't hold a pitch very long.
Images courtesy of bplanet at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
After a quick assessment, I will give you a firm price quote for a basic tuning before I start work. I can also tell you if the piano needs repair work beyond my level, and needs a professional piano technician.
A full tuning costs $80. If only some notes need fixing, or only the middle part wants tuning (such as for a beginning student), my fee is $60. If you want the piano raised to concert pitch (A=440Hz), this can cost substantially more (at least $120). Most home pianos are tuned a little bit low on purpose, to put less stress on everything. If every string needs to be tightened, the whole soundboard flexes a bit making the notes that were first tuned now flat again, so the entire piano needs to be tuned top to bottom at least twice through. Unless you are uploading audio files for mixing with other musicians remotely, or playing with a friend using an un-tunable instrument (like an accordion), there is no compelling reason to raise pitch to concert pitch. Tightening every string also increases the risk of snapping a piano wire (which costs at least $20 to replace).
Disclaimer: Even if a piano is tuned accurately, it may have a bad tuning pin block, or a few loose pins that simply won't hold a pitch very long.
Images courtesy of bplanet at FreeDigitalPhotos.net