Piano tuning basics: what to expect after you buy and how often to tune in Melbourne

Buying a piano is exciting, but the first few tunings aren’t the final polish you might expect. A lot of shops treat those early tunings as a foundation rather than a finishing touch, and that mindset shows up in the timelines and prices you’ll encounter. One practical takeaway: don’t expect perfect pitch right out of the box. New pianos are technically unstable. The strings are newly tensioned and the soundboard is settling under the bridge. This means your piano will drift a bit after shipping and in the first months of use. It’s normal to need multiple tunings in the first year as the instrument stabilises. So how often should you tune? In general, plan for a couple of checks in the first year if you’re buying new—think every 6–8 weeks at first, then settling into 1–2 tunings per year once it’s stable. If you’re not playing daily or you don’t have a drafty room, a steady biannual tune is a sensible baseline for most upright pianos. Grand pianos can be a touch more temperamental, especially in rooms with big humidity swings. A helpful real-world detail: in Melbourne, seasonal humidity shifts can cause noticeable pitch drift between summer and winter. A rough rule of thumb is to expect a small drift month-to-month during extremes, which means your tuner may fine-tune more accurately if you book a tune in a season with stable humidity (often autumn or spring). This is a practical reason to schedule regular maintenance rather than waiting for a big problem. Costs vary, but a typical piano tuning in Melbourne sits around AUD 140–180 for a standard service. If the technician needs to do a pitch raise or adjust multiple notes due to settling, you might see a small extra charge. If you’ve inherited a piano or it’s a complex instrument, expect a more detailed check: action regulation or voicing can add to the bill, but it’s worth the extra care to keep your touch even and your tone rich. Bottom line: treat the first year as a settling period, plan for 2–4 tunings in that initial year, then aim for 1–2 tunes per year after that. A consistent schedule helps your piano stay in tune and feel right to play. If you’re in Melbourne and want an honest plan for your instrument, I can help tailor a tuning schedule to your space and climate.