Piano tuning, maintenance, and cleaning are all essential to the instrument’s longevity. Even if a piano is not played on a consistent basis, the wood, leather, and felt parts under its lid all gradually expand and contract throughout the year. When the weather is overly humid, a piano absorbs moisture and expands. The instrument then loses that moisture during the dryer times of the year, causing the piano to shrink and even crack.
Strings and other natural components also move and change with the seasons. As temperatures and humidity levels fluctuate, your piano then goes out of tune. Because of this constant shrinking and expanding, it’s recommended that you have your piano tuned once every six months.
This constant expansion and contraction also affect the responsiveness of the playing mechanism—also called the piano’s action. Our registered piano technicians can repair the piano’s action through a process called piano regulation. A piano that is well-regulated won’t feel too light or heavy to the touch, avoiding a sound that is uneven or off-key. Piano regulation then ensures that your valuable piano sounds as it should and feels responsive to your touch.
Piano voicing in Bethesda is also important as it will build up or even out the tone, reduce excesses noises and mellow your piano's tone when necessary.
Piano regulation isn’t only for maintaining the right pitch, but will also protect the instrument from wear and tear. If you want to maximize the longevity of your piano and protect its value, you should have it maintained regularly. Remember that the longer a piano remains out of tune, the more time and effort it will take to restore it to the right pitch.