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Get Hands-On With Your Passion: Piano Technician Academy's Online Piano Tuning School April 10, 2023 07:00

Hello fellow musicians! Ever thought about getting closer to the instrument you love? You know, really feeling its heartbeat, understanding its soul? Well, why not consider learning how to tune and maintain it yourself? If you're into pianos, then the Piano Technician Academy's online piano tuning school might just be the perfect opportunity for you.

Now, before we dive into the details, let's talk about why it's so rewarding to work with your hands on the instrument you love. You see, being a musician isn't only about playing tunes; it's also about connecting with your instrument, understanding its intricacies, and appreciating the craftsmanship that goes into its creation. And what better way to deepen that connection than by learning to tune and maintain your own piano or starting your own piano tuning business?

That's where the Piano Technician Academy's online piano tuning course comes in. With our comprehensive, easy-to-follow course, you'll learn all the ins and outs of piano tuning and maintenance. From the basics of pitch and temperament to the art of string leveling and voicing, you'll develop a well-rounded understanding of the skills required to keep your piano sounding its best.

The  benefits of enrolling in an online piano tuning school don't stop there. As a piano technician you have the opportunity to turn your passion into a career- a rewarding one at that! According to the Piano Technicians Guild, a Registered Piano Technician (RPT) in the USA can earn an average of $70,000 to $100,000 per year, depending on their level of expertise and location. And the best part? You get to set your own hours and decide how much you want to work. Whether you want to take on piano tuning full-time or just as a side gig, the Piano Technician Academy helps you get there!

Now, let's talk about flexibility. The Piano Technician Academy's online piano tuning school offers you the chance to learn at your own pace. No need to squeeze classes into your already busy schedule – you can study whenever it suits you best. Plus, you'll have access to a supportive online community of fellow students and instructors who share your passion for pianos and music.

As you progress through the online piano tuning school, you'll not only develop a deeper appreciation for your instrument but also gain valuable skills that can lead to new opportunities. Perhaps you'll start a piano tuning business or work for a music school, concert hall, or recording studio. Whatever your aspirations, the knowledge and experience you gain from the Piano Technician Academy's course will help you achieve your goals.

And let's not forget that, as a piano tuner, you'll be providing an essential service to your local music community. From schools and churches to private homes and performance venues, your expertise will keep pianos sounding their best and ensure that the music keeps playing.

So, what are you waiting for? If you're a pianist (or a musician of any sort) who loves pianos and wants to work with your passion, it's time to check out the Piano Technician Academy's online piano tuning school. Learn the art of piano tuning and maintenance, set your own work hours, and potentially earn a great income while doing something you love. It's a win-win situation that's just a few clicks away.

To sum it up, the Piano Technician Academy's online piano tuning school offers a unique opportunity for musicians to get hands-on with their passion and potentially turn it into a fulfilling career. With flexible learning options, the potential for a rewarding income, and the satisfaction of providing an essential service to your local music community, there's no better

 


Can You Learn To Tune Pianos Online? April 3, 2023 15:57

Can You Learn To Tune Pianos Online?

With the invention of the internet, countless people have turned to the world wide web to acquire new skills and knowledge. One thing people never thought would be taught online is Piano Tuning and Repair. This article will explore the feasibility of learning piano tuning online and provide insights into some common questions regarding the subject.

Learning Piano Tuning Online

I am here to tell you it is possible to teach yourself piano tuning through various online resources, such as websites, video tutorials, and online courses. No piecing all of this together and actually walking away with the skills/knowledge it takes to tune a piano is difficult to say the least. This is why most people choose to study the art with an institution just as the Piano Technician Academy. The time it takes to learn this skill varies, but it typically ranges from a few months to a year or more, depending on your dedication, prior experience with musical instruments, and how well you stay in touch with your instructor.

Piano tuning can be challenging, especially for those without a musical background but if you are the type of person who likes to solve problems, work with your hands and enjoy the fruit of your labor, it could be a perfect fit for you. It requires a decent ear, attention to detail, and patience. However, with dedication and the right resources, most people can learn this skill fairly quickly. The average person can learn to tune a piano with proper training and practice, within a year.

Becoming a Piano Tuner

Becoming a piano tuner in the USA starts with learning the skill through online/correspondence resources or attending an in person piano tuning school. After gaining confidence in your abilities, you can seek an apprenticeship or work with an experienced tuner for hands-on experience or do what most people do, and start your business. Pursuing certification through organizations like the Piano Technicians Guild or the Piano Technicians Academy is also a great way to enhance your credibility.

Costs and Earnings

The cost of tuning a piano ranges from $125 to $250, depending on factors like the tuner's experience, the piano's condition, and the region. On average, a piano tuner can tune 3-6 pianos per day, and their income varies based on factors like location, demand, and experience. Most tuners these days will schedule all their customers in a certain area the same day to maximize tuning time. This usually allows them to tune about 4-5 pianos a day with an average tuning fee of $150. This comes out to about $750 a day, $3750 a week, $15,000 a month and $180,000 a year before business expenses such as marketing, gas, maintenance, tools, etc.

Tuning a Piano: Importance and Consequences

Tuning a piano is essential to maintain its quality but not always for the reasons people think… Having your piano tuned regularly insures that a qualified technician will have his/her eyes on the piano incase something starts to go wrong. It is way better to fix a problem when it first happens then to let it fester for years on end.  

Piano tuners don't necessarily need perfect pitch, but having a good ear is crucial. While there is a historical association between piano tuning and blind individuals, not all piano tuners are blind. In fact, I have only met a handful and I go to most of the PTG events!  Modern technology and increased accessibility have made it possible for both sighted and visually impaired individuals to learn and excel in piano tuning.

Conclusion

In conclusion, learning piano tuning online is possible with the right resources and dedication. While it may be challenging, the average person can acquire the skills needed to become a piano tuner. Regular tuning is essential for maintaining a piano's quality and preventing damage, making this skill invaluable for piano owners and enthusiasts alike.

 


Do You Like Your Job? February 2, 2023 16:17

I was born into a piano family and became a piano tuner at the age of 20. To be honest, I had a hard start trying to getting enough business so when a friend offered me a high paying sales job in a different industry, I took it. I lasted about 8 months there before realizing I hated working in an office. I hated being told what to do, what to sell and how to sell it. I hated being stuck in one building all day and I felt trapped. I wanted to work with my hands. I wanted to be my own boss. I wanted to control my schedule and my income. So I quit and went back to piano technology. That was about 15 years ago and it was one of the best decisions of my life.

I like what I do. No, I LOVE what I do. Although my main instrument is guitar, I also play piano a bit and love working with tools, wood, steel, and music. Every day I am sounded by music and musicians. I make my own schedule, I set my own prices and I am in complete control of my future.

I have been either an instructor or a student coordinator here at PTA for about 10 years and I can tell you, switching careers is totally do-able! I have watched hundreds of people quit jobs they hate and start their own piano service business. Some of my closest friends in the piano industry, started with our course. I love going to the PTG conventions and meeting student after student who tell us how successful their businesses are and how much fun they are having working on the instrument they love every day.

If any of this resonates with you and you think you might want to check this career out, we have just the thing for you! One of our instructors/owners, David Hayes (also owns Artisan Piano Services) is doing one on one screen share meetings with people interested in our course. During the 30 minute Zoom meeting, David will show you the course from the inside and answer any questions you may have about becoming a piano technician. And the good thing is, getting business is a lot easier now than it was when I started! In fact, our Piano Tuning & Repair Course has two whole lessons on building a piano service business! If that’s not enough, we also have a very in depth course on building an even larger piano service business like Artisan Piano Services.

If you hate your job or simply want a change, now is your time! We are here to help!


How does a piano's plate affect the tone? March 10, 2020 10:20

When we were developing the latest version of our piano tuning and repair course, we had to decide what pianos we wanted to teach on. Being that we filmed right next door to a Yamaha dealer, it seemed obvious that we would teach on Yamaha pianos but we also needed to show how other brands sounded and functioned. I myself am a Mason & Hamlin fan and love working on these pianos so we pulled one of those in the mix as well as a Yamaha, Pearl River and some random older uprights. 

Do I need Perfect Pitch to be a Piano Tuner? March 6, 2020 12:07

As the student coordinator here at the Piano Technician Academy, I get asked this question a lot. Its an honest enough question but I have found that most people don't really know what perfect pitch means... 

When somebody asks me if they need perfect pitch to tune a piano, I always ask "what does perfect pitch mean to you?". The reason is most people think perfect pitch means the person can tell if a note is flat or sharp "perfectly" meaning they can tell the difference between a cent or two. 

I can tell you this, as a 3rd generation piano tuner and somebody who has taught piano tuning for years, I have yet to meet anybody who can tell the difference between a couple cents. 

For those of you who dont know, piano tuners use what we call "cents" to measure pitch. A half step has 100 cents and a whole step has 200. When tuning a piano that was just tuned a year ago, the tuner is usually only required to adjust the pitch 1-4 cents. 

I have tested this theory with people who claim to have perfect pitch and every one has failed. BUT! Thats not what perfect pitch means anyways! Perfect pitch just means a person is able to sing or identify a note with no reference at all. For example, somebody with perfect pitch would be able to hear a note and tell you what note it is. They may guess if it is sharp or flat (and some may be able to tell depending on how flat/sharp it is) but that is not the definition of perfect pitch. A person with perfect pitch would also be able to sing or produce a specific note with no reference. An example would be if I asked you to sing a C and you did it without hearing a C first. Again, it may be a little flat or sharp, but its a C none the less. This is the definition of Perfect Pitch. 

Anyways, I cover it in this video so take a look and if you have any questions or comment, please feel free to shoot them my way at Michael@PianoTechnicianAcademy.com

Michael Stilwell

Student Coordinator/ CPT


Mathematical Proof That Every Piano Is Out Of Tune September 12, 2018 07:35

 

Today, our guest Neil from sublimelody brings us visual and clear mathematical proof why every piano is out of tune.


First, let’s talk about perfect octave and perfect fifth.

 

What is a Perfect Octave 2:1?

In music, an octave or perfect octave is the interval between one musical pitch and another with half or double its frequency. (wikipedia.org Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octave)

 

The perfect octave spans twelve semitones, correlated with 12 keys (5 black and 7 white keys) of an octave on the piano keyboard:

 

2:1 is the just interval (Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Just_intonation) of a perfect octave, which is the ratio between the frequency of the one musical pitch with its half frequency.

 

For example, the frequency of C4 is 261.63 Hz so C5 will be 523.25 Hz (2 x 261.63 = 523.25) (mtu.edu Link: https://pages.mtu.edu/~suits/notefreqs.html)

 

Now, let count the frequencies of C1 to C8 by octaves on the piano keyboard.

From the frequency of C1 is 32.70 Hz, we will have:

  • C2 = 2.C1
  • C3 = 2.C2 = 22.C1
  • C4 = 2.C3 = 22.C2 = 23.C1
  • C5 = 2.C4 = 22.C3 = 23.C2 = 24.C1
  • C6 = 2.C5 = 22.C4 = 23.C3 = 24.C2 = 25.C1
  • C7 = 2.C6 = 22.C5 = 23.C4 = 24.C3 = 25.C2 = 26.C1
  • C8 = 2.C7 = 22.C6 = 23.C5 = 24.C4 = 25.C3 = 26.C2 = 27.C1

 

What is a Perfect Fifth 3:2?

In music theory, a perfect fifth is a musical interval corresponding to a pair of pitches with a frequency ratio of 3:2, or very nearly so.

 

The perfect fifth spans seven semitones, while the diminished fifth spans six and the augmented fifth spans eight semitones.

 

For example, the interval from C to G is a perfect fifth, as the note G lies seven semitones above C. (wikipedia.org Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfect_fifth)

 

3:2 is the just interval of a perfect fifth.

 

For instance, the frequency of C4 is 261.63 Hz and G4 is 392.00 Hz. The ratio 392.00:261.63 equals to 3:2. (mtu.edu Link: https://pages.mtu.edu/~suits/notefreqs.html)

 

Let count the frequencies of C1 to C8 on the piano keyboard by perfect fifths.

  • C1 to G1: G1 = (3/2).C1
  • G1 to D2: D2 = (3/2).G1 = (3/2)2.C1
  • D2 to A2: A2 = (3/2).D2 = (3/2)2.G1 = (3/2)3.C1
  • A2 to E3: E3 = (3/2).A2 = (3/2)2.D2 = (3/2)3.G1 = (3/2)4.C1
  • E3 to B3: B3 = (3/2).E3 = (3/2)2.A2 = (3/2)3.D2 = (3/2)4.G1 = (3/2)5.C1
  • B3 to F#4: F#4 = (3/2).B3 = (3/2)2.E3 = (3/2)3.A2 = (3/2)4.D2 = (3/2)5.G1 = (3/2)6.C1
  • F#4 to C#5: C#5 = (3/2).F#4 = (3/2)2.B3 = (3/2)3.E2 = (3/2)4.A2 = (3/2)5.D2 = (3/2)6.G1 = (3/2)7.C1
  • C#5 to G#5: G#5 = (3/2).C#4 = (3/2)2.F#4 = (3/2)3.B3 = (3/2)4.E2 = (3/2)5.A2 = (3/2)6.D2 = (3/2)7.G1 = (3/2)8.C1
  • G#5 to D#6: D#6 = (3/2).G#5 = (3/2)2.C#5 = (3/2)3.F#4 = (3/2)4.B3 = (3/2)5.E2 = (3/2)6.A2 = (3/2)7.D2 = (3/2)8.G1 = (3/2)9.C1
  • D#6 to A#6: A#6 = (3/2).D#6 = (3/2)2.G#5 = (3/2)3.C#5 = (3/2)4.F#4 = (3/2)5.B3 = (3/2)6.E2 = (3/2)7.A2 = (3/2)8.D2 = (3/2)9.G1 = (3/2)10.C1
  • A#6 to F7: F7 = (3/2).A#6 = (3/2)2.D#6 = (3/2)3.G#5 = (3/2)4.C#5 = (3/2)5.F#4 = (3/2)6.B3 = (3/2)7.E2 = (3/2)8.A2 = (3/2)9.D2 = (3/2)10.G1 = (3/2)11.C1
  • F7 to C8: C8 = (3/2).F7 = (3/2)2.A#6 = (3/2)3.D#6 = (3/2)4.G#5 = (3/2)5.C#5 = (3/2)6.F#4 = (3/2)7.B3 = (3/2)8.E2 = (3/2)9.A2 = (3/2)10.D2 = (3/2)11.G1 = (3/2)12.C1

 

OKAY, I guess you’are overwhelmed with the calculations above.

 

Let simplify them:

  • C1 to G1: G1 = (3/2).C1
  • G1 to D2: D2 = (3/2)2.C1
  • D2 to A2: A2 = (3/2)3.C1
  • A2 to E3: E3 = (3/2)4.C1
  • E3 to B3: B3 = (3/2)5.C1
  • B3 to F#4: F#4 = (3/2)6.C1
  • F#4 to C#5: C#5 = (3/2)7.C1
  • C#5 to G#5: G#5 = (3/2)8.C1
  • G#5 to D#6: D#6 = (3/2)9.C1
  • D#6 to A#6: A#6 = (3/2)10.C1
  • A#6 to F7: F7 = (3/2)11.C1
  • F7 to C8: C8 = (3/2)12.C1

Combine the two diagram above, we will be able to answer the question:

 

Why is Every Piano Out of Tune?

From the theories of perfect octave, perfect fifth, and our calculations, we have:

 

C8 = 27.C1 and C8 = (3/2)12.C1

 

That means: 27 = (3/2)12. Or: 219 = 312

 

An odd number never equals an even number. So every piano is out of tune!

Furthermore, 219 = 524288 and 312 = 531441. These two numbers are relatively equal. So our ears won’t be able to notice the difference between 2 frequencies.

 

 


How Much Money Do Piano Tuners Make? November 22, 2017 16:53

Hello! Michael Stilwell here (one of the instructors). So how much money do piano tuners make? This is a question we get asked all the time and one we never really know how to answer. I know some techs who make well over six figures and others who struggle every month. Building a solid tuning business can take years and is not usually something that happens overnight. 

The Established Piano Technician Business

Let's start off by doing some basic math. We will assume that the average price of a piano tuning is $115. Most professional piano tuners will do about 3-5 tunings a day if they are working in home. This usually comes out to a 7-8 hour day with driving. Let's assume they spend about $400 a month in advertising and about driving about 50 miles a day with a 5 day work week. Assuming that their car gets about 18 mpg and gas is around $2.50 a gallon, this means they will be spending about $140 in gas a month. 

Monthly Income- $6900-$11,500

Monthly Marketing- $400

Gas- $140

Total Monthly Income $6360-$10,960

Now these numbers assume you are a professional charging full price with a full workload. This is obviously not going to be the case when you are just starting off. We also did not take into account insurance and other smaller business expenses. 

The Beginner Piano Technicians Business

Again, let's make some assumptions (and keep in mind, these are just assumptions, not actual numbers). Let's assume you charge $70 for a tuning and do about 6 a week. Assuming you drive about 60 miles a week to do this and spend $400 a month on marketing, the price breakdown would be as follows;

Monthly Income - $1680

Monthly Marketing $400

Gas $35 

Total Monthly Income- $1245

Again, these are just rough estimates but if you can get your tunings done in about 2.5 hours and assume each house is 20 minutes away you will only be working about 18-19 hours a week and earning $1245. That comes out to about $69.16 an hour. Not bad for a beginner! 

Keep in Mind...

Assuming you will be doing 6 tunings a week is fairly ambitious when you are first getting started and will certainly require that $400 marketing budget unless you are in an area with very few other tuners. I have had students struggle to get 4 tunings a week while others don't even finish the course because word got out in their area that they were for hire and they get so booked, they don't have time to study. Obviously we don't recommend this but I say it to over emphasizes, every market is different. If you want to get a more solid understanding of what you may be able to make in your local market, try calling a few other technicians and ask what they charge and how busy they are. Maybe even attend a Piano Technicians Guild meeting in your local chapter (click here to find your local chapter). 

I hope this helps some of you in your decision of whether or not to get into this trade. As always, if you have any questions or comments, please email me directly at Michael@PianoTechnicianAcademy.com.

 


New Piano Tuning Film Studio June 17, 2017 13:57

Hey everybody! We at PTA just wanted to update you on everything happening here and what is in the pipeline for 2017. As many of you know, we moved to a new location about 2 years ago and we FINALLY just finished building a state of the art film studio to film our piano tuning and repair videos. The space turned out great and the plan is to start filming some videos for the piano tuning and repair course as well as two other courses we have cooking this summer. 

Also, we have hired on another piano technician who will be helping develop a course on concert piano prep. This tech has a very impressive resume and has a lot of knowledge to share. We will be announcing all of this in future blog posts. 

Again we are hoping to launch two new courses in 2017. As mentioned above, one will be on piano concert prep and the other will be on polyester/finish repair. These are great classes for piano tuners who are already working built would like to expand their list of services or brush up on skills they have had for years. We will be sending you all emails as well as writing a blog and posting on facebook when these courses are available (hopefully around November 2017)! 


Thanks for reading guys! As always, please contact us if you have any questions about our piano tuning course or anything else! 


How to Market after Piano Tuning School March 22, 2015 00:07

After piano tuning school, you need to market your services

A while back I had a student tell me that they were havingtrouble getting piano tunings.They had not finished the course yet but wanted to get a few piano tunings under their belt (at a very discounted) price but nobody was calling them after they put a few flyers up at a local Starbucks. Like I said in my previous post, owning a piano tuning business requires a lot more than knowing how to tune a piano. We as piano tuners need to know how to market our services in an effective way if we expect to get any piano tuning clients. This means knowing our target audience – the piano owners in our city. Before we go on, please be aware that lesson ten in our piano tuning course covers this topic in more detail and provides links and resources to help you get started.
Target Audience- The Piano Owners in Our City

Most piano owners these days are families with children taking lessons, or life long piano players. They typically are “computer savvy” and search for service professionals online. Over the last 4 years, Yellow Pages has gone from printing 13 billion directories a year to 8 billion a year and one of their main “partners” filed for Chapter 11 just a couple years ago… This change is very important for us to note. While Yellow Pages does have an online directory (and a pretty good one), most people use


Piano Tuning Training May 23, 2013 14:22

The Online Piano Tuner As a piano tuner and a professor at The Piano Technician Academy, I get asked “is it really possible to learn how to tune a piano in an online piano tuning training course?” about once a … Continue reading


Piano Tuning Course May 15, 2013 12:27

Why Become a Piano Tuner? Nearly every day we get emails or phone calls from piano teachers and music majors who are looking for a way to make some extra money in the industry that they love. They have always … Continue reading


Piano Tuning School March 4, 2013 13:56

It has been a long time since we have updated our blog at our online piano tuning school. We have been so busy teaching our online piano tuning course that we have totally neglected our blog! The Piano Tuning School … Continue reading


Online Piano Tuning School Success Story December 21, 2012 04:18

Meet Daniel Kendrick- One of our recent Piano Tuning School graduates. Daniel is the proud owner of Kendrick Pianos in the Nashville Tennessee area. Thanks to his hard work and dedication, Daniel finished our online piano tuning course in less than 2 months! Kendrick … Continue reading


Why I went to Piano Tuning School December 21, 2012 04:17

I figured its about time to tell you why I personally went to piano tuning school. I am a second generation piano tuner and the owner of a mid sized used piano shop in Arizona. I attended piano tuning school when I was 20 years old in hopes of starting my own piano tuning business. My grandfather was a piano tuner for his entire life and since he was winding down in a nursing home, I decided to pick up the family business and learn to tune pianos. 

Piano Tuning School

I cant tell you what school I went to for legal reasons but I will say they are one of the most popular correspondence based piano tuning schools in the country. It took me just a few months to finish the piano tuning course and begin practicing my new piano tuning trade on my


Learning How to Tune a Piano December 21, 2012 04:16

How to Tune a Piano

Learning how to tune a piano can be a very fun experience if you learn how to tune a piano the right way. Like everything else in life, there is a right way and a wrong way to tune a piano. The wrong way involves taking your piano apart yourself and using some sort of socket wrench to turn the tuning pins. This is not the write way to tune a piano by any means. You may not believe this but most piano tuners attend some sort of piano tuning school before starting their piano tuning business. You also may bot believe how cheap piano tuning school can cost!


Online Piano Tuning School December 21, 2012 04:14

Choosing Online Piano Tuning School

There are many choices when looking for a piano tuning school. Unfortunately there are not too many piano tuning schools that offer online classes. In fact there were none until a year ago! The Piano Technician Academy is currently the only completely online piano tuning school in the country. As far as we know, we are the only online piano tuning school in the world as well!

How do you Learn Piano Tuning?

Choosing what piano tuning school you are going to attend is not an easy task. First you need to know how you work best. Since most piano tuning schools are correspondence, you need to figure out whether you would rather learn from a work book or an online class room. At The Piano Technician Academy we use a unique online learning environment that allows you to go through each lesson as a slide show, a online webpage reading or print it out as a PDF. This gives our piano tuning students freedom to study in any way they like.


How to Pay for Piano Tuning School December 21, 2012 04:12

Welcome to the first blog post for The Piano Technician Academy, the first and only online piano tuning school in the country!

About Me

First off, I would like to introduce myself. My name is Michael Stilwell and I am one of the professors here at the www.ThePianoTechnicianAcademy.com. I am a second generation piano technician and the owner of Stilwell Pianos located in Tempe Arizona. Stilwell Pianos has been in business since 1956 and was started by my grandfather Ralph Stilwell. I took over the tuning and repair business about 6 years ago and have since turned it into a “brick and mortar” used piano shop in Arizona.

As a professor at The Piano Technician Academy, I believe learning how to become a piano tuner can not be done by simply taking a course at our piano tuning school. That may shock some of you but becoming a piano tuner has to involve hands on practice in the field. Our course is designed to prepare you to enter the field. OUr students are encouraged to practice on as many pianos as possible while taking the course AND after taking the course. It is also advisable to contact other tuners in your area and ask if you can “shadow” one of their work days.


Why do Pianos Need to be Tuned? December 21, 2012 01:58

In piano tuning school you will obviously learn how to tune a piano but it is very important to understand why pianos need to be tuned. At the Piano Technician Academy we feel that knowing how a piano falls out of tune is the first step in learning how to tune a piano.

The average piano has around 230 strings, each pulled to around 50 -100 pounds of pressure. This pressure totals around 18 – 20 tons and is placed on the Iron Plate and the Wood Frame.  This alone is enough to make a piano go out of tune but the atmosphere also plays a role as far as tuning is concerned.