MaxPiano

01/30/2026

Dear friends, at some point over the last couple months, I've left my copy of this rare book at one of your houses! Even if you just remember me having it at your appointment, any leads are much appreciated!

12/15/2025

Q: Still possible to tune before Christmas?
A: Yes! ❄️🎹

My FAQ page is back up with new entries!

Prince Edward Island's piano specialist.

12/12/2025

The Nutcracker (ft. Ham)

01/17/2025

Spotted in a little 1930 Haines Bros grand.

12/25/2024

Good tidings to all! Here's me stumbling through some Tchaikovsky on my Heintzman piano and the celesta I built from recycled materials. 🎄🎅🎁 Photos of the celesta build in the comments!

10/28/2024

We're still ahead of Halloween, Remembrance Day, and American Thanksgiving, but the cool/dry weather is already here and the pianos are going out of tune! The sooner you book, the better your odds of getting a tuning before the holiday rush. :) http://maxpiano.ca/contact/

Prince Edward Island's piano specialist.

08/27/2024

Please stay safe from scams! These pop up on FB Marketplace every single day, advertising a free grand piano ("a gift coming from my relative.") These deals seem too good to be true because they are! The piano does not exist; they will claim it is on a moving truck, and you just need to pay a fee to have it "redirected" to you.

If you are looking at a secondhand piano, please contact me so I can also help you avoid the real-but-unrecommendable ones. :)

02/11/2018

Even nice-sounding pianos turn gnarly pretty quickly when they're not tuned! Here's a before/after video that switches back and forth throughout the piece.

This video was taken after two passes of tuning in the same 1.5 hr session: pitch raise, then fine tune. A follow-up tuning should be scheduled soon after the piano has stabilized.

Here's the same piano, before and after two passes in a pitch raise tuning. The piece played here is my own arrangement of "Pearl of the Harem" by Harry P. G...

12/30/2017

Piano technicians operate in a number of avenues. Some work primarily in private residences; some are College and University technicians; some are high-profile concert tuners; some are in-the-shop rebuilders; and many choose to work in a combination of these disciplines.

I'll tune for whomever I can, but what I love most is working "in the trenches," and taking on less-than-a-week reconditioning projects where the keyboard and action are taken into my workshop.

These services are for clients who cannot take on the cost of rebuilding (restringing, new action components, etc.), or for pianos where a rebuild would not be justified for any number of reasons.

Aside from the musical rewards of these projects, they are something of a historical adventure; you never know what artifacts will have fallen into a 121-y/o piano, or what will have been deliberately written or put inside. The cards pictured here were shims below the keyboard frame. Does anyone know what they are? @ Prince Edward Island

11/09/2017

I have a nifty new page set up where you can self-book your tunings! I'm only available until this Wednesday AM, so book 'em while you still can! :) Tuning it now minimizes your chance of needing a more expensive pitch adjustment.

https://gazellenetwork.com/scheduling/pmcCsZBY41CyxMVqKdX8LjkH

People often ask me when their piano should be tuned. If you're in the Maritimes, your best bet is *right about now.* With the Fall cold set in, your piano will have drifted away from pitch.

11/08/2017

I've had pianists ask why they should have their relatively modern (10-30 y/o) pianos reconditioned. I answer, "among other things, friction."

These are called capstain screws. They are mounted in the back end of each key, and they are the direct link between the pianist's fingers and the rest of the piano's action. When a piano is reconditioned, every effort is made to reduce all points of friction. In this case, buffing these brass screws mitigates a critical point of friction, giving the piano a smoother, more responsive touch.