Grand Piano Tuning
For exceptional sound
Our Services
Brisbane Grand Piano Tuning Services
Grand pianos and Baby Grand Pianos are not “just another instrument”. They are living works of art whose personality combines with the musician to create magnificent music.
Tuning grand pianos take skill and experience to create the perfect blend of an artist’s touch and style while adjusting the potential and capability of the piano.
Each grand piano, due to differences in manufacturing, is unique in its tonality, dynamic range and action. Some grand pianos are sublime straight from the factory. Others need adjustment to bring out their potential.
If the piano touch is too light, then the piano is hard to master. If the touch is too heavy, the keys react slowly and create a risk of injury to the pianist.
Finding the perfect balance of volume, tonality and action for the musician is a piano tuning art that few piano tuners have mastered.
It is much more than just cranking a few strings to get the right note. It takes finesse, deep listening to both the instrument and the musician and elegant adjustments.
This difference is where Brian Wilson steps in and is why he is such demand for tuning grand pianos – from smaller Petit Grand pianos through to Concert Grand pianos.
Brian is one of a handful of Australian piano tuners accredited in Precision Touch Design for Grand and Concert pianos, which is the gold standard for creating pianos with responsive touch and ideal tone.
Our Grand Piano Tuning Services
Our Grand Piano Tuning Service includes the following tuning and overview services:
Inspection
If we have not serviced your instrument before, we check pitch and give you a verbal report of the condition. We also ask about your music tastes and discuss the response of the action (heavy or light, slow repetition, sluggish notes) as well as the overall tone of the instrument. With this information, we can customise the tuning service so that the piano will be more enjoyable to play and sound better.
Piano Tuning
This is the art of adjusting the strings to maintain the musical scales of the piano. We recommend tuning be performed to concert pitch for all pianos – which is A440Hz. By setting your piano to concert pitch, you provide the correct aural training for pianists as well as the ability to play along with other instruments or a recording.
Piano Regulation and Pedal Adjustment
We carry out minor regulation and pedal adjustment as part of the tuning service.
Regulation is the skill of adjusting the piano action to ensure the piano plays correctly – and that all keys operate smoothly and with uniform touch. Pianos are made up of approximately 4500 moving parts. Parts wear and change due to climatic changes or movement.
Regulation sets hammers at the correct distance from the strings, sets keys to the correct depth and aligns the action to ensure the best performance from the piano. Pedals are also adjusted if needed.
Correct regulation allows smooth technique, and also allows the musician to play at extreme softness yet retain maximum control.
Piano Voicing & Dynamics
Maintenance voicing is carried out as part of the tuning service.
A significant portion of the tone, volume and overall sound balance is controlled by piano voicing, which is the art of adjusting the hardness and resilience of the piano hammer heads. Most voicing adjustments are made to even out the tone of the piano. Hardening the felt makes the tone brighter, and softening the hammers makes the tone softer. Changes can also be made to change the sound from robust to delicate, from bright to mellow.
Voicing also includes the proper alignment of the hammers to the strings and the reshaping of the hammer to remover string cuts caused by wear. Correct reshaping of the hammers also ensures maximum lifespan for the hammers.
Piano Cleaning
Keeping your piano clean inside and out helps reduce wear and extend the life of your piano. We clean the cabinet and action of your piano with every piano service.
We also offer:
Minor Piano Repairs
Many minor repairs can be tackled during a regular piano tuning, for example: sticking keys, uneven tone or volume, uneven key height, noisy or squeaky pedals.
Major Piano Repairs
We can carry out all repairs and restoration using genuine parts or custom parts to suit the instrument. We do not perform case refinishing.
Testimonials
What People are Saying
“Master Technician”
The relationship between the professional pianist and the piano technician is, in my opinion, one of the most important elements in realising the highest level of performance.
Few people understand how a piano works beyond getting a tuning from time to time. A master technician, however, can make an extraordinary number of changes that will immediately improve the capacity for the performer on both an amateur and professional level to attain much greater control, expressive range and of course enjoyment.
Over many years Brian Wilson has been an inspiring colleague with whom I have had the pleasure of discussing and deepening my own understanding of the inner workings of the piano. It is a relationship of great mutual respect that I value deeply, and I could not recommend Brian highly enough for any piano maintenance.”
Timothy Young, Head of Piano and Resident Artist at the Australian National Academy of Music Pianist and Director Ensemble Liaison
“Utter Dedication to the Instrument”
“Thank you Brian. Your re-stringing and general renovation of my Steinway has reconnected me to my instrument in a way that I sometimes no longer thought was possible. Since you brought my Steinway back, my playing has already reached new levels of depth and joy. I’m lifting my game, aiming for ever better performance, because I now have an instrument that SO deserves that.
Your love and care for people’s ability to play beautiful music, as well as your professionalism and utter dedication to the instrument and your customers, shines through everything you do, Brian. Again, I can’t thank you enough.”
Professor Sidney Dekker, Brisbane, Australia