The Piano Technicians Guild (PTG) is an International organization for Registered Piano Technicians, headquartered in
Kansas City, Kansas
Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...
. The PTG was formed in 1957 from the merger of the American Society of Piano Technicians and the National Association of Piano Tuners.
[PTG Washington DC Chapter](_blank)
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Membership categories and requirements
The PTG is primarily an American professional association with open membership. It states that anyone with a professional or avocational interest in piano
The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...
technology may join. The title of Registered Piano Technician (RPT) must be earned by passing a series of examinations. There are three examinations: a written multiple choice test consisting of questions covering all areas of piano technology and tuning, a tuning exam, and a technical exam, where the examinee demonstrates competence in common repairs and regulation of grand and upright actions. For the tuning exam, RPTs perform a standardized piano tuning
Piano tuning is the act of adjusting the tension of the strings of an acoustic piano so that the musical intervals between strings are in tune. The meaning of the term 'in tune', in the context of piano tuning, is not simply a particular fixed s ...
on a piano that has been master tuned. A master tuning is one that is performed by a group of technicians until they all agree no improvements on the tuning can be made. The results of this "master tuning" are then stored on an electronic tuning device. The piano is then detuned so the examinee can tune it, and the results are compared to the master tuning for scoring.[PTG - What is a Registered Piano Technician](_blank)
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Education and conventions
Guild members improve their skills through training offered by local chapters and seminars held on the regional and national level.[Occupational Outlook Handbook 1994-1995, Diane Publishing](_blank)
/ref> The Piano Technicians Guild also publishes a monthly technical magazine, the ''Piano Technicians Journal''.
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References
External links
Piano Technicians Guild web site
Official Facebook Page
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String instrument organizations
Organizations established in 1957
1957 establishments in the United States
Organizations based in Kansas City, Kansas