Steinway console tuning

[Brian Trout]

Hi Jay,

I see you've discovered the dreaded Steinway vertical.  They're not so easy
to tune well, but they can be tuned.

A couple of things that have helped me...

1) Don't be in a hurry.  It only compounds the frustration levels when you
haven't enough time to do the job to your own satisfaction.  I will
routinely schedule an extra half hour or so when I know I have to tune a
1098.

2)  Psychologically and emotionally prepare yourself for a difficult tuning.
If you know that you'll have a challenging time with the tuning ahead of
time, you can have your head in order to proceed without the emotional
baggage that comes from expecting an easy job and having a hard one placed
before you.

3) ...this one might be controversial...  I have found that using an
electronic tuner can help a bit.  The top two sections of these pianos are
typically the most difficult to get the pins set.  The 'machines' have a
very sensitive ear.  When you have a note tuned to where you think it should
go, a very few test blows and watching whatever indicator your machine has
will very quickly tell you whether or not that pin is set and tension fairly
well equalized.  The machine will hear it much more quickly than your ear if
the pitch is starting to drift.

(Sidenote:  My laptop and the associated tuning programs are a tool.  They
are a wonderful servant, but a horrible master.)

4)  Don't sweat the idea that the customer might see you taking a little
longer to tune their piano than the last guy.  Everybody has their own
tuning style, and some are faster than others.  Different pianos are
different.  Some tune very easily, and some don't.  I don't make any apology
for being a little slow, especially for one of those 1098s.

You've gotten several suggestions about how to use your tuning hammer i.e.
positions and handling techniques. I've seen suggestions to use a bit of
Protec on the upper bearing points as well in other threads.  Some have
found that to be helpful with string rendering.  Hopefully you'll find the
suggestions to be of use.  But hang in there.  Although I never actually
recommend anyone buy one of these pianos, there are those who do end up
owning them.  Many times, they are people who do care about their pianos and
intend to have them serviced.  If you intend to offer your services to these
people, it's up to you to make the best you can out of the situation, and
see if you can actually become a better tuner, maybe even a better person
for meeting the 1098 and experiencing victory in a job well done.  Much of
the way we see our world is in our own attitude and the decisions we make,
in how we react to those things around us, good or bad.

So much for the pep talk.

Have a good one.

Brian Trout
Quarryville, PA
btrout@desupernet.net