Council ABPT

Did You Know Piano Facts

Common Piano Tuning Tools

Common tools for tuning pianos include the tuning hammer or lever, a variety of mutes, and a tuning fork or electronic tuning fork. The tuning hammer is used to turn the tuning pins, increasing or decreasing the tension of the string. Mutes are used to mute strings that are not being tuned. Most tuners in the UK use a Papps wedge for tuning upright pianos because it slides easily between hammer shanks. . Wedge-shaped felt or rubber mutes are used on grandís they are inserted between two strings not being tuned to mute them. While tuning the temperament octave, a felt strip can be placed over the scale section of the piano, and inserted between each note, muting the outer two strings of each note, but leaving the middle string free to vibrate. After the centre strings are all tuned, the felt strip can be removed note by note, tuning the outer strings to the centre strings what mutes are used is down to the personal preference of the piano tuner and the tuner may use a combination of mutes