Piano tuning, repair, and complete restoration including refinishing, restringing and rebuilds. Buying and selling pianos.
I started out in 1973 demonstrating pianos and organs at the Arizona State Fair when I was still in high school. Having played organ professionally since I was 13 years old, it was a quick transition into selling pianos and organs for a local dealership. Each day after school I would drive to a local music store and demonstrate and sell organs and pianos. Mostly, since I was "the kid", I sat in the store until closing time, having the privilege of a late-night customer once in a while.
Every week, the store's piano tuner would come in and tune a few of the pianos. When he was done, he would ask me to sign off on his bill. On one such night, the thought came to me "I could do this." So, I ordered a beginning piano tuning kit, an instruction book and started to practice on every piano in the store that sounded like it needed tuning. It wasn't too long before I was tuning pianos as well as the professional tuner coming into the store. A new-found addition to my music career had been born.
Since then, I have gone on to doing piano technical work for thousands of customers, including the showroom and house pianos for Las Vegas casinos such as The MGM Grand, The Tropicana, Caesars Palace, The Dunes, The Sahara, The Golden Nugget and many more. I have also been privileged to work on pianos for Liberace, Paul Anka, Marty Allen, Crystal Gayle, Julio Iglesias, Pavarotti, Frank Sinatra and other celebrities I don't even remember.
I have also worked directly for Wurlitzer Piano and Organ, Lowrey Piano and Organ, Baldwin Pianos, Bösendorfer Pianos, Korg Keyboards and Roland Keyboards on the wholesale and/or retail industry as well as being a concert artist for Wurlitzer Organs. As a musician I have performed hundreds of gigs throughout the Phoenix area for over 45 years.
In all of this, one of the most satisfying accomplishments is tuning a piano. I don't know if its the combination of technical skills mixed with the ability to hear the harmonics required to properly tune a piano or the serenity of spending that hour or so meditating on life while doing so, but I have always enjoyed the technical side of piano service.
Hopefully I will be able to meet you - and your piano - and I look forward to providing the best in service for you. Thank you.
Dennis Chapin
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