Piano Tech Radio Hour

The owner of A440 Pino Services, and a second-time guest at the PTRH, Bill Manore joins us today and gives us a tour of his shop and talks about his business. He is a one-man show and tells us how he manages the different tasks of the business. “Just say yes and figure it out later” has been a mantra that has worked well for him. 

He also shares his process of how to go about acquiring pianos. He says, “I do not do a lot of...

Ken Eschete, is a piano technician who has worked with the conservation of historic pianos and teaches an online course on replacing and building sound boards and bridge gapping. He has discovered some big things from some little tiny things and he joins us at the Radio Hour to share them. 

The first is consolidation - here Ken talks about resins and the science behind them which is used in key tops and voicing. The sec...

On today’s episode, we have Alex Kostakis join us whose family has been involved in Steinway for many years, and later they started their own rebuilding practice. Alex shares his journey of working on Steinway pianos, the details of the pianos, and the relationship with customers. 

Alex details what goes into his best restored Steinways - a virgin piano that has not been tampered with by anyone, matches all the specific...

Nick Gravagne, who joined us for the PTM 2020 convention is back on Radio Hour to share some of his insights on building sound boards. Nick has made over 470 soundboards on Steinway and he shares his journey of building a pulse to tell soundboards apart. 

“The more mass there is on the soundboard, the more sound as there is more impetus,” says Nick and shares how to build a balance between the string and the soundboard....

In this episode, David and Eathan talk about pricing in the piano industry, especially during the pandemic and post-pandemic. Raising prices may seem counter-intuitive, but keeping up with your standard of living may be necessary. One participant adds “Now is the time to raise prices, not just to keep up, but to get ahead of the curve”. 

“Historically we do not charge enough as piano technicians, when I raise prices, I ...

In this episode, David and Eathan unpack what it means to do things that you are afraid of within the piano business. The pair focus on conquering fear as an essential ingredient in professional development. In his typical generous fashion, David gets vulnerable with his peers in the name of inspiring us all. He shares stories of how he has encountered fear time and again during his time in the industry and why it’s made h...

Bernard has been in the piano business for over four decades and runs a classic, timeless piano artisan’s workshop. Piano rebuilding is his forte, and he has a wealth of knowledge to share about it. 

Bernard began his fascinating foray into the piano world as the son of a NASA rocket scientist. He shares about the partnerships he made and how he created a thriving business in the piano industry. He also shares the impor...

Ricki Kloss is a certified tuning examiner and has been in the piano business since 1995. She shares her story of accidentally wandering onto her career path, encountering one opportunity after another, and eventually opening her own business in 1995. 

Ever feel like you know only a tiny bit about what it means to be a piano technician? Ricki shares her thoughts on what it means to be a lifelong apprentice in this field...

Thomas Strange–a fascinating, multi-talented individual and the owner of the musical instrument museum–makes an appearance on this program. In 2008, Thomas was asked to build a Museum to preserve his collection of keyboards. In a decade his vision materialized and gained significant community support. A private collection to a world-class collection of musical instruments, Thomas tells the story of how he was able to set u...

Join us in this episode as we sit down with Rick, the esteemed president and founder of Baldassin Pianos. Rick's remarkable journey includes recognition as a PTG member of note and receiving the prestigious 2014 Golden Hammer award, along with his induction into the exclusive PTG Hall of Fame.

Moreover, Rick's influence extends to the realm of literature, with his authorship of pivotal books on piano tuning that stand a...

In this podcast episode, the hosts delve into the pandemic's impact on the piano tuning industry and explore the concept of a "master piano technician." Eathan and David share their perspectives.

Eathan, the founder of the Floating Piano Factory, recounts how his business adapted during the pandemic. Initially suspending operations for safety, they later resumed tuning despite reduced demand. David discusses the gradual...

Discover the captivating world of Klavins Pianos in this episode as we delve into the history and innovative vision of piano designer and builder, David Klavins.

Originally specializing in restoring vintage pianos, David Klavins embarked on a profound exploration of the intricate acoustic principles that shape piano tonality. This pursuit led him to create his own avant-garde grand pianos, each bearing a distinct Klavin...

Paul McNulty, a North Bennet Street School graduate, is an iconoclast in the industry. He was the first in modern times to build an 1830 model Playel, an 1846 Boisselot op. 2800, and an 1868 Streicher. His current efforts are restoring vintage French pianos. 

The "period pianos" domain can be tricky, and not everyone likes the sound of these unique instruments. But the pianos Paul restores are loved by many. He is at the to...

Nick is a piano engineer with over 40 years of experience in the field. He has made significant contributions to the piano trade through his technical seminars across America and numerous articles he has authored.

During our session, Nick shared his unique approach to understanding pianos. According to him, there are three primary elements of a piano that demand attention: its body or 'box', its action (playability), and so...

Meet Fred Sturm. He's renowned and world-class as both a pianist and a piano tech. In this session, he discusses the connections between his two careers. We learn about his journey down these two intersecting paths, and Fred shows us how one informs the other. 

Pianists depend on piano technicians. As Fred says, "If we do not give the pianists what they need, they are going to be handicapped." Through personal anecdotes...

Sometimes a problem is just a path to unique new creations.

We all have problems. We all have some that even make us want to give up and crawl into a fetal position.

For Mark Purney, string repairs are a dreaded necessity that he wishes didn't exist.

As he put it, "I hate doing string repairs. I always have. I probably always will."

The most frustrating part for him was storing all the potential gauges of wire he might nee...

In this session we have with us Dan Levitan, the piano technician turned author who has a lot to offer all the way from taunting lever and tuning theory to the piano tuner’s hand and ear. He talks about his most significant contribution to the field, harmonicity, and the physics of turning tuning pins with a hammer. 

Dan talks about what it means to be a born craftsman. “Everybody cares about something but you cannot te...

In this session, we meet with Wayne Ferguson, a piano tech who has worked around the globe and visited all the major factories in Europe. He talks about how he makes the key travel in the aftertouch on a piano that is going to be played on short notice. Sometimes the hammer is too far right and sometimes it's too close 

Wayne follows a structured process where he makes the hammer blow a little further away, does a coupl...

In this session, David, our resident expert talks about the power of presence and gratitude. These can drastically change your life and have an impact on your profession as a piano technician. 

David also calls on Wayne Ferguson to come on and share his experiences with the piano industry and larger lessons from life. Wayne alk about starting young and figuring it out with finances at the forefront. He also gives us a l...