Instrument Tuning
Musical instruments are not all tuned in the same way. Some, for example, need to be tuned by tuning specialists. So, you would generally have your piano tuned by an expert piano tuner. Other instruments, however, can be tuned by their players. So, a violinist, for example, would be expected to keep their own instrument in tune.
The way that you tune an instrument depends on the type of instrument that you play. For example:
- String instruments -- string instruments are tuned by turning the pegs at the end of the strings. This alters the actual tension of the string which affects the notes that can be played on it.
- Keyboard instruments -- keyboard instruments tend to be tuned by expert tuners. Again, this is generally about changing the tension of the strings that produce the notes when keys are played on the keyboard.
- Drums -- drums come with taps or pegs which, when turned, change the tension of the drum head itself.
- Wind instruments -- wind instruments are tuned in various ways usually by adjusting the position of one or more joints on the instrument.
If you are playing an instrument in an ensemble or orchestra then it is important that all instruments are tuned to the same pitch. Tuning here may be based on a note played by a tuning fork, a soloist, a piano, a violin or a specific type of wind instrument. The note normally used for this purpose will be an A.