Piano Services
Piano Tunings
Click the ‘Book now’ button to book a tuning for your piano
Pianos need tuned every 6-12 months to maintain their pitch…
…Otherwise, they will need careful restorative tuning as to not break strings.
Maintenance Tuning
To Maintain Pitch
Keeps your piano’s pitch and tone in top shape – ideal for routine maintenance
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Likely suitable for a well-maintained piano which is regularly tuned; this service finely adjusts and restores your piano back to its peak playing condition
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For this appointment one should expect:
This can take call over phone, email, or in person on the day. After assessment of the piano’s current pitch, it will be necessary to discuss with you the pitch which your piano may be safely raised to avoid breaking any strings
· Standard tuning
Equally tempered tuning so that your piano may sound precise and pleasant in every key, improving its overall musicality
· Minor Repairs
Remediating sticking notes and squeaking pedals (or other minor repairs within reason) are included in the service, as well as a light cleaning of the keyboard
· Complimentary voicing
To enhance your piano’s tone, a light voicing of the hammers may adequately soften the tone if you deem them “too bright or brittle”. This is down to individual taste.
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The price of this service is £100
An allocation of at least 2 hours is needed to complete the service.
Payment is to be made on the day (after the service is completed) by either: bank transfer, cash, or contactless payment.
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Press the “Book now” button below to be directed to the ‘Contact’ page.
Fill in your details in the Contact Box
Make sure to note the service you require being a “Maintenance Tuning” when booking.
Additional services needed such as extensive repairs, regulation, or cleaning etc. should be contacted about directly as described further below.
If you have any questions about this service or would simply like to know more, then please feel free to get in touch via the contact page.
Restorative Tuning
Has it “been a while”?
A job like this will involve “Pitch-raising” adjustment; we want to tune your piano back to its best pitch - without breaking any strings!
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Pianos are intended to perform optimally at A440 Concert Pitch. This specialized service is to safely and reliably bring your instrument back to its ideal sound
You may need a pitch raise if…
• Your piano hasn’t been tuned in over two years
• It’s recently been moved or restrung
• Your piano is played both aggressively and consistently
• Your piano is exposed to frequent heat and/or humidity fluctuations resulting in dubious pitch stability
• It sounds evidently out of tune with itself!!! -
For the is appointment one should expect:
That multiple adjustments are necessary to stabile a pitch raise (given that a piano’s frame can contain up to 20 tonnes of tension).
· Initial discussion
After assessment of the piano’s current pitch, it will be necessary to discuss with you the pitch which your piano may be safely raised to avoid breaking any strings
· Pitch Raising
Tuning above the target pitch so that the tuning pins ‘fall back’ into the desired concert pitch. This ideal sound is then confirmed and stabilised by a subsequent fine tuning.
· Fine tuning
once the pitch raising adjustment has ‘rested’,
the ideal sound is then confirmed and stabilised by a subsequent fine tuning
· Minor Repairs
Remediating sticking notes and squeaking pedals (or other minor repairs within reason) are included in the service, as well as a light cleaning of the keyboard
· Complimentary voicing
To enhance your piano’s tone, a light voicing of the hammers may adequately soften the tone if you deem them “too bright or brittle”. This is down to individual taste.
(If your piano has undergone VERY extensive pitch raising, a recommended and optional appointment may be scheduled for the client 3-months later at a discounted rate of the standard tuning service).
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The price of this service is £120
An allocation of at least 3 hours is needed to complete the service
The recommended and optional follow-up appointment within 3 months of the first appointment
Payment is to be made on the day (after the service is completed) by either: bank transfer, cash, or contactless payment.
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Press the “Book now” button below to be directed to the ‘Contact’ page.
Fill in your details in the Contact Box
Make sure to note the service you require being a “Restorative Tuning” when booking.
Additional services needed such as extensive repairs, regulation, or cleaning etc. should be contacted about directly as described further below.
If you have any questions about this service or would simply like to know more, then please feel free to get in touch via the contact page.
Concert Tuning
For esteemed performance
Bespoke tuning refined for peak performance and concert-level standards
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This service is intended specifically for pianists, venues, and recording studios who require the highest degree of stability, precision, and customisation in tunings for professional performance and recordings.
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For the is appointment one should expect:
· Bespoke tunings
Tailoring to individual pitch, tuning, and unison taste preferences to best suit your repertoire and environment
· Concert Standards
Tuning and pitch refining to ensure maximised stability for virtuosic performance and heavy playing
· Minor Repairs
Remediating sticking notes and squeaking pedals (or other minor repairs within reason) are included in the service, as well as a light cleaning of the keyboard
· Complimentary voicing
To enhance your piano’s tone, a light voicing of the hammers to appease the pianist and audience
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The price of this service is £130
An allocation of at least 1 hour is needed to complete the service.
Payment is to be made on the day (after the service is completed) by either: bank transfer, cash, or contactless payment.
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If you are interested in this service, you can reach out via email: jmhammondpianoservices@gmail.com or phone: 07421760787 to discuss your requirements and dates.
Appointments can also be scheduled through the booking portal via the “Book now” button below and following the instructions listed.
Press the “Book now” button below to be directed to the ‘Contact’ page.
Fill in your details in the Contact Box
Make sure to note the service you require being a “Maintenance Tuning” when booking.
Additional services needed such as extensive repairs, regulation, or cleaning etc. should be contacted about directly as described further below
If you have any questions about this service or would simply like to know more, then please feel free to get in touch via the contact page.
Regulation and Repair Services
Click the ‘Book now’ button to book a regulation or a repair service for your piano
Pianos should be regulated every 5-10 years in domestic settings…
Involves fine adjustment and realignment of all of your instrument’s inner moving parts for optimal pianistic results
Regulation Service
Return to Factory Settings
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Likely suitable for higher quality pianos every 5-10 years for normal home use
Regulation adjusts the mechanical and moving parts of a piano—quite literally “making it regular”—to compensate for wood wear, felt compaction, and humidity changes
Pianos are regulated when they leave a factory or a shop floor to be delivered to your home
In summary, regulation can be viewed as a “return to factory settings”, so that the touch, feel, and responsiveness of your instrument is fully returned to you
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For this appointment one should expect:
· Initial discussion
This can take call over phone, email, or in person on the day. Discussion may involve: assessment of your piano’s condition, its age or bespoke features and where it has been stored for the majority of its time
· Summary of processes
Some regulation processes may be omitted or added according to the manufacturer or model of a given piano. Thus, here is a summary of the core processes which your regulation service would involve:
Hammer refacing
Key levelling
Blow distance adjustment
Setoff distance adjustment
Checking distance adjustment
Aftertouch adjustment
Repetition spring tension adjustment
Fine checking adjustment
Maintenance tuning
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The price of this service is £400
An allocation of at least 8-10 hours is needed to complete the service
It is difficult to estimate exactly how long a regulation service will take. The length of the final step—tuning— can vary greatly depending on the piano itself (for example, a Blüthner grand with aliquot patent strings will take longer to tune)
Payment is to be made on the day (after the service is completed) by either: bank transfer, cash, or contactless payment
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Press the “Book now” button below to be directed to the ‘Contact’ page.
Fill in your details in the Contact Box
Make sure to note the service you require being a “Regulation” when booking.
If you have any questions about this service or would simply like to know more, then please feel free to get in touch via the contact page.
For removing the bright, tinny tone resulting from hammers with deep ridges formed from excessive use
Hammer refacing
Softening Hammer Tone
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Likely suitable for a piano which has after having been played hard for many years—developed a noticeably bright and tinny—as opposed to a warm and soft tone
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For this appointment one should expect:
This can take call over phone, email, or in person on the day. After assessment of the piano’s current tone, a decision can be made about the degree to which the client would like to soften the instrument’s tone
Refacing
The refacing will evenly shave down the “ridges” developed where the tip of the hammer comes into contact with the strings. This will permanently change the piano’s tone making it softer and warmer
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The price of this service is £90
An allocation of at least 1-2 hours is needed to complete the service on-site
For some pianos, it will be necessary to remove the pianos’s action in order to complete the refacing—Furthermore, the action may need to be removed and transported to my workshop in order to be refaced—if it is not safe to do so on-site
Payment is to be made on the day (after the service is completed) by either: bank transfer, cash, or contactless payment
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Press the “Book now” button below to be directed to the ‘Contact’ page.
Fill in your details in the Contact Box
Make sure to note the service you require being a “Refacing” when booking.
If you have any questions about this service or would simply like to know more, then please feel free to get in touch via the contact page.
String replacement
Amending broken strings
For replacing broken strings in any register with new steel strings of appropriate thickness and tension
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This service is suitable for a piano with a broken string (or strings) whatever the cause may be
Strings may break for a variety of reasons:
heavy playing
metal fatigue from age
rust and corrosion from moisture
sudden tension shifts when the piano has not been tuned for a long time
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For this appointment one should expect:
This can take call over phone, email, or in person on the day. After assessment of the piano strings’ current condition, a decision can be made about which string-strings to replace
Restringing
The restringing will involve removing the piano’s action in an upright piano
A new steel string (of appropriate thickness for the midrange or treble section) will be sized, cut, fitted and tightened until retuned
The process for restringing bass strings takes a slightly different timeline. This is because bass strings—being copper-wound— must be custom ordered and made by a specialist
Furthermore, It is fairly commonly for a follow-up appointment to be required within the next 2 weeks due to the string going flat again—because it has been so recently fitted—as it adjusts to its new tension
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The price of this service is £50 for a single string repair appointment
however for multiple string repairs in 1 appointment, or wherein strings have broken in the process of a tuning appointment; the price of this service is £35 per string repair
An allocation of at least 1-2 hours is needed to complete the service on-site
For some pianos, it will be necessary to remove the pianos’s action in order to complete the restringing
Payment is to be made on the day (after the service is completed) by either: bank transfer, cash, or contactless payment
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Press the “Book now” button below to be directed to the ‘Contact’ page.
Fill in your details in the Contact Box
Make sure to note the service you require being a “Restringing” when booking.
If you have any questions about this service or would simply like to know more, then please feel free to get in touch via the contact page.
General Repair Services
If you require an extensive repair job (I.e., problems related to the piano’s function which go beyond a sticking note or a squeaking pedal), you should reach out directly via email; jmhammondpianoservices@gmail.com or by phone 07421760787 to discuss your requirements.
These may include but are not limited to:
· Broken hammer shanks
· Moth damage to hammers
· Displeasure with the ‘weight’ or ‘lightness’ of the keys
· Notes not sounding when played
· Extensive cleaning inside the piano needed
· A complete regulation service needed for a grand or upright piano (necessary after more than 5 years or more of continuous playing)
