Piano Restoration and Rebuilding for Minneapolis
Restoring pianos for Minneapolis, MN
Orchestra Hall and a long tradition of home music-making across the Twin Cities, in a climate that is harder on pianos than almost anywhere we serve.
We rebuild fine pianos for Minneapolis owners, Steinway, Baldwin, Mason & Hamlin and many others, at our own facility: restringing, pinblock and soundboard replacement, complete action rebuilds and hand refinishing.
What we take on for Minneapolis customers
Major repair and full restoration only, at our shop in Buffalo. No tuning, regulation or minor repairs in Minneapolis: those belong to a technician near you, and we would rather say so than sell you a long-distance callout. Getting the piano here is our problem, not yours. See how our service area works.
Working with the Twin Cities
Minnesota winters are the most extreme version of the problem we see every year in Buffalo: months of very dry heated air. A soundboard is a piece of solid spruce under tension, and repeated seasons of that shrink it, loosen the tuning pins and eventually crack it.
Against that, the Twin Cities have kept an unusually strong culture of playing at home as well as in the hall. The Minnesota Orchestra has performed at Orchestra Hall since 1974, and the region's choral and church music tradition keeps a great many accompanying instruments in weekly service.
This is our longest regular haul at roughly 900 miles, so a Minneapolis collection needs real notice. Tell us your dates early and we will plan around them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the same thing just happen again after a rebuild?
Not if the room is managed. A rebuilt piano in a humidity-controlled room holds up for decades; the same piano in a room that swings from 15 per cent to 60 per cent relative humidity will move again. We will advise on what actually helps.
Is 900 miles really sensible?
For a full restoration of a good instrument, the transport is a small share of a job that occupies our bench for months. For anything less than that, no, and we will tell you so rather than take the work.
What does the finish involve?
The old finish is hand stripped and washed, then grain filled, sealed and lacquered. We hand-rub our finishes for durability, and we do not dip, because dipping loosens veneer and glue joints.
Can you work on a piano that is still under warranty elsewhere?
Ask the original party first, because our work may affect their cover. We would rather you kept a valid warranty than had us do work you did not need.