Frequently Asked Questions
How much can I make as a piano technician?
A fully trained, fully established piano technician typically tunes between two and four pianos a day. With rates averaging between $150 and $275 nationwide, one can work five days a week, take two weeks off every year, and make between $75,000 and $275,000 a year. This does not include any repairs, pitch adjustments, additional maintenance, or restorations -- that's just tuning pianos. Those who pass the Registered Piano Technician certification offered by the Piano Technicians Guild (PTG) could make even more.
Depending on your area and situation, it could take up to five years to become full-time if you choose to be self-employed. However, many students start earning income from working on pianos after just two months! Piano technicians are in short supply, and there are many jobs available for those who want to work as an employee.
Is there still a market for piano technicians?
Yes! The piano service industry is in desperate need of new technicians. Many piano technicians are over 65 years old, and many are planning to retire in the next few years. Older technicians are often willing to help a newbie with the hopes that they will have someone to leave their business to when they retire.
There are an estimated 75 million pianos in the world, with about 20 million in the United States alone. If each piano were to be tuned only once a year and never receive any other maintenance, we would need approximately 14,000 piano technicians. There are only about 6,000 piano technicians in the USA today, with that number dropping very quickly.
What are the prerequisites for being a piano technician?
There is no age limit for learning. We know people who started learning when they were in their teens, all the way up to people in their eighties! You will need to be able to carry your tool bag, which could be as light as five pounds. An action can weigh up to fifty pounds, but you could use an action cart to transport it if that's too heavy for you to carry.
There are piano technicians who have physical handicaps who still work on pianos. Being in a wheelchair is not a problem, nor is blindness -- though one will probably need to find a different method of learning more suitable to the visually impaired.
Other requirements include knowing how to read and write, communicate clearly, do basic high school level math, and drive to or otherwise get to appointments. Oh, and you have to know how to smile at people!
Contrary to popular belief, you do not need to know how to play the piano in order to work on pianos, but it does help. Knowing just the basics of how to play the piano will help you connect with and understand musicians. We highly recommend learning to play but do not require that skill to join the school.
Who do piano technicians work for?
The vast majority (approximately 75%) of piano technicians are self-employed, mostly sole-proprietors or single member LLCs. However, there are quite a few staff positions available for piano technicians as well, mostly with other established technicians or universities and music schools.
If you've always had the dream of being your own boss and making a lot of money by running your own successful business, we take you through every step of the process in the Business course and in the book From Zero to Six Figures.
Does the course include the necessary tools?
No. In order to keep the cost of the course down, we do not keep an inventory of tools to sell students. However, we provide you with a list of exactly what you need, as well as industry wholesale suppliers! This will allow you to buy what you need for up to 80% off of retail pricing! This list saves the average student over $3,500 and many hours of trying to figure out exactly what you need to order. This list is exclusively available to our students only.
How much do tools for a new piano technician cost? The cost for high quality tools that will last your entire career can cost anywhere from $450 to $3,000 wholesale, depending on what you buy and what you already have. Don't worry, it is possible to break up this cost some, as you don't need everything at once. This is covered in detail in the Tools and Suppliers course. You should plan on spending between $200 and $600 on basic tuning tools, which are all you need to get started.
We encourage our students to buy good quality tools that will last them the entire length of their career. While it is possible to buy cheap tools, we do not recommend it. Many of the cheap tools are very poor quality and often hinder the learning experience. High quality tools will greatly enhance the learning process and will pay for themselves many times over.
How long does the school take to complete?
Most students take between six and twelve months to fully complete all the courses. This includes watching every lesson, reading any additional material that goes with it, and practicing what you've learned on a real piano. A professional growth plan is provided to help you stay on track.
Most students advance to the point where they can start charging for certain jobs in a matter of two or three months, even if they've never worked on a piano before enrolling in the school. It's not uncommon to find a student making upwards of $1,000 a month doing very part-time work before graduation, and a lot more than that after graduation.
Is there a time limit for completing the curriculum?
No. Once you enroll in Piano Craft Technical School, you have lifetime access to the entire school and technical support. We fully recognize that different people have different life situations. Some can go through the curriculum quickly, while others have to squeeze in a few minutes every other day. We don't believe in bumping you out of the school if life happens and you're not able to finish by a certain deadline.
We're also happy to provide lifetime technical support for all students, even after graduation. We understand how overwhelming it can feel when you come to a situation that you just aren't sure of, and we know the difference some help from a real-life technician can be. This school exists to help its students succeed, both before and after you get your diploma.
Do you provide hands-on training opportunities?
Yes! Several times a year, current students will be given the opportunity to come and train in-person, either in group settings or one-on-one. More details will be given to students as the yearly schedule is established. If you are interested in getting in-person feedback from a real-life piano technician, please contact us and ask to be put on the early access list.
Will the VA pay for me to go through the school?
Most likely. You'll need to contact the VA and make sure that they will reimburse you for the cost of enrollment. Piano Craft Technical School is a trade school that provides training and technical assistance for gainful employment in an industry where competent technicians are desperately needed.
Is piano tuning a safe job?
Yes. There are rarely any accidents that happen when tuning a piano, especially if you follow the safety protocols that are discussed in the curriculum. The only real danger is from strings breaking during the tuning process. 99% of the time, if a string breaks, it will stay in the piano and not even have the opportunity to hit anyone.
The vast majority of the homes you'll go into are good, clean environments. 99.9% of clients are nice, normal people who will be very appreciative of your work. 0.01% of experiences will be weird, but weird doesn't necessarily mean dangerous. Usually, a weird experience is something along the lines of working for someone who's very eccentric or has an off-color sense of humor. The vast majority of the people you'll meet are good, normal people. Piano tuning is one of the safest jobs that's done in other people's homes.
Why is Piano Craft Technical School so affordable?
Compared to other schools of piano technology, Piano Craft Technical School is one of the most affordable options out there. We've chosen to keep our prices as low as possible because the piano service industry is in desperate need of more highly qualified technicians. We understand that price is an important consideration for most people, and we've worked very hard to offer some of the best training in the world at the best price.
We've accomplished this by trying to keep overhead as low as possible. For example, it's significantly cheaper to publish the video curriculum on Blu-Ray rather than host many hours of high-quality video instruction on the website. Our tests are automatically graded, which frees up our instructor's time to answer questions and give students the help they need.
Will the Blu-Rays work on my player?
Yes! The video part of the curriculum is produced on Blu-Rays that are region-free, meaning they will work on any device that's capable of playing a Blu-Ray disc, even devices made for use in other countries. These Blu-Ray discs will not work in DVD players, but they will function just fine in all Blu-Ray players, modern gaming systems, and some other devices that can play Blu-Rays.
Is AI used in this school?
No. While artificial intelligence can help summarize information, piano technology is a complex enough subject that it's best left to a human who actually works on pianos every day. We've made the choice to do everything the long way and ensure that humans are the ones influencing humans, not computers. No AI was used to make the video instructions, edit videos, design the website, write the course notes, or anything else.
What if piano tuning's not for me?
If you decide that piano tuning's not the right path for you, we have a 15 day return policy for the course materials. All returns are subject to a 15% restocking fee if all materials are returned in new, unused condition. We cannot accept returns or issue refunds if the course materials are not in brand new, unused condition.
