I'm a pianist, so I've never had to tune my instrument myself, but why does everyone else have to tune their instrument?
Why aren't instruments created like the piano? It has something to do with its shape, doesn't it?
I've never been good at other instruments, so apologise if I'm asking stupid questions.
I do have some friends who play other instuments, but they never give me a proper answer, just something vague like, 'because the instrument was made tuned to this note or that note' which makes no sense to me as when I get a piano tuner to tune my piano, they just make it sound 'right'.
Thanks.

Things like violins can be knocked easily out of tune, and not all string instruments are tuned exactly the same. Especially when the strungs break and you have to tune it again when you replace it.

Things like strings and w/w and brass are affected by temperature, so they will play differently depending on how hot or cold it is. Temperature also affects the tuning by making it go sharp or flat. Like yesterday, I hadn't played my clarinet, but it was really sharp when I played a tuning note because it was so hot outside. It doesn't really affect the piano, but it can have a huge affect on other instruments.

Woodwind and brass instruments are constantly changing in pitch, because if you tune it without having blown down it, it'll change in pitch as soon as it's warmed up properly, and go sharper than everyone else! The same if you don't play it for a while, say in rests or if there's something else happening in a concert. You really have to listen to see if you're in tune still.

Piano's also don't move, but other instrumnets get put in cases and carried about, and bashed which all knocks it out of tune. The fact that you have to collapse some instruments in order to put it in a case means that you couldn't build every single instrument like a piano.

Finally, how do you know what's a real A. Just coz your piano plays A, doesn't necessarily mean it'll beexactly the same A on another piano. Although you won't have to tune your piano, a tuner will at some stage (unless it's digital!)

lol, I don't actually know if my piano is in tune, but me experience piano teacher does . She even went with me and my mum to buy a piano! She played through so many in the shop then selected one.
Anyway, all string are the same, right?
Also, when someone says their instrument is flat or sharp, in the case of sharp, are they saying their instrument was previously tuned to a B flat (I'm using an example) but ahs now gone to a B natural?
Lastly, aren't there many notes on an instrument, how is it possible for them to be tuned to one particular note?

Right if someone says their instrument is flat, it means that it's tuned a little bit lower than the note they were tuning to. It doesn't mean they were a whole note out, unless it's really badly out of tune, and that doesn't happen very often!

So if they say their instrument is sharp, it's the other way round, it's tuned a little bit higher than the note they were tuning to.

On a string instrument you only have four strings, so you tune those four notes. Then providing you've got your fingers on the right place on the violin, the rest of the notes should be in tune.

For woodwind and brass instruments, you choose a note you want to tune to. So a flute in an orchestra might tune to an A. The player than adjusts the tuning for that note, and the rest of the notes should be ok after that. Unless the player is doing something wrong!!

Some instruments have to transpose though. So they have to adjust their tuning note so that it sounds the same as the one that they're tuning to, otherwise it would be a whole note out of tune! So a trumpet coz it's in Bb will tune to a Bb on the piano but play a C.

I get the transposing bit, sort of. I get the flatting thing to. Wait, when you say its a little higher or lower, do you mean in intervals smaller then semi-tones?

But, aren't violin strings similar to piano strings? You can only play one note on any one string on the piano, I don't see how you can tune one note in the violin and play so many others.

BTW, what instrument do you play? It'll help me understand your reasoning, I think.

I play clarinet and piano.

If somethings flat or sharp, it is an interval smaller than a semtione (usually), but you wouldn't really call it an interval. Coz you can't really say "my instrument's such a such an interval out of tune"

Piano strings work slightly differently to violin strings. Like you said, you can get so many notes out of one string on a violin. They're still in tune, because there are certain places on the violin where you put your fingers to make another note. If it sounds out of tune, you adjust where your fingers are. It's sort of like a guitar. There's frets on the guitar telling you where to put your fingers to make it in tune, on the violin there aren't any frets, but you learn where to put your fingers to make it in tune.

Geez, you know a lot about instruments for someone thats only doing two different ones.
So on each string on the violin, are you tuning to one of the notes on the string?

BTW, I do appreciate this and realsie I'm probably annoying you.

Flutes are made and tuned to a different frequency. Might be wrong but i think its to 442 HZ whereas a normal A would sound at 440Hz therefore it is alway slightly sharp. different instruments are made of different materials and therefore are always going to be a bit different. its complicated but thats why theres always so much tuning going on at the beginning of concerts and recitals. once you've had your instrument for a while its a lot easier to tune i find.
sarah x

On string instruments each srting is tuned to one note.. all other notes are produced by stopping the strings with the fingers, a shorter length of string sounds a higher note.
Woodwinds and brass tune to one note (usually A). Once this is right then all the others should be if you blow properly as the way the holes are stopped or valves work keeps the relationship between note the same.

Pianos do not stay in tune.. strings under tension don't keep that same tension indefinately. Usually your piano will need tuning about twice a year if you are playing everyday.

Wind instruments are very temperamental and can change tuning depending on how warm it is, or other extraneous factors. When puting an instrument together you may find it should not go fully in, like the barrel on the clarinet or the head joint on the flute. You have to test this with your collegues and adjust depending on how your instrument sounds compared to this. Similarly string instruments often slide out of tune by strings loosing tension, so have to be retuned.

Flutes are designed to be in tune when they are pulled out a bit (otherwise you'd never be able to tune to a piano or keyboard that was slightly sharp). The flute is designed to be in tune at either A = 440 or A= 442, depending on where it was made. Orchestras in different parts of the world tune to slightly different frequencies.

If the flute is pulled out the correct amount for that instrument, each note should be in tune with each other. The further you are away from the ideal amount, the harder the player has to work to keep each note in tune.

So, if the instruments were tuned to a different pitch, would the other notes sound 'right' according to that note?
When an instrument is tuned to, say a B flat, when the B flat is played, does it sound like a middle C on the piano?

The other way round.. a 'C' played sounds Bb.

If I took up a none temperate (I think taht's how its spelt instrument, is it easier to understand? (the piano is a temperate instruments right?

It's quite strange because I know what the C major contrary scale sounds like on my home piano, but when I played the E major contrary scale on my grandparent's piano, they sounded near-enough exactly the same!

If we don't ask questions, we don't learn! So no you're not annoying me! I had to go to school otherwise I would've replied sooner.

It might help to take up an instrument which needs tuning, but you could just ask people around you who play those sorts of instruments, and watch them tune. I don't play a string instrument, but from listening to my friends talk about their isntruments and watching them, I know a bit more than I did before.

Just to add to the discussion (and maybe confusion)

A stringed instrument is such that you can play the note (except for the lowest ones on the bottom string) in more than one place. Higher up on the lower strings can give the same note as lower on the higher strings. So you have a choice of where to play it.

The decision can be made either by what is easiest for the left hand, or by what tonality you want for the music (each string has a different "voice")

thanks. I'm planning to take up the violin, but first I have to get the piano out of the way.

So there's effectively the two different strings to play the same note?

I've never really thought about that! I know what you mean, the piano is tuned to a tempered scale. We learnt about this a couple of months ago - It's when the piano isn't acually tuned EXACTLY semitones apart isn't it, so you can play in different keys without it sounding out of tune. I have a digital piano at home and I found out how to turn off the tempered scale - It sounded shocking!

Well anyway...what I was really wondering. Surely all instruments are tuned to a tempered scale? Because I can play in any Key on my clarinet without it sounding odd when the music modulates. Are there any instruments that aren't tuned to a tempered scale? I was wondering if anyone knew!

When playing the tuning for strings depends entirely on where the player places their fingers.
Wind players can also blow sharper or flatter.

My theory teacher (a violinist) told me that the way she pitches notes is different according to whether she is playing with a piano accompaniment or with an orchestra/string group. With piano she has to listen to and stay in tune with the piano but apparently with orchestra there IS a difference between e.g. C# and Db.

There is. When you go from a C to a D on a piano, it sound like, you've just gone past the C#/Db. However, on a violin, if you do this, you hear a lot more sound rather then one note i.e. when you do a glissando. If you do a glissando on the piano you just played 50 different pitches, if you do a glissando on a violin, you would have played a lot more, definitely over 100 pitches.
Becasue the piano can't slide like this, it is a temperate instrument, so is the guitar as there are set places where to put your fingers to play a note. Most woodwind and string instruments are non-temperate which means they play a lot of little notes between intervals as small as C# to Db.

Absolutely, and depending on which key you are playing in. Leading note is always v sharp for example. Tuning the harmonies in a quartet is always, shall we say, interesting.

No, the tempered scale is where all the semitones are equal. Equal temperament.

Just temperament is the one where you can't change keys without it sounding funny... in just temperament, the leading note as Janexx pointed out is sharper, and the intervals are tuned to fit in precisely with the scale.

It doesn't make a huge amount of difference learning an instrument whose scale isn't necessarily equal temperament: in fact, the piano is probably if anything easier because of that (you don't ever need to worry about what the difference is between C# and Db for example, because on the piano there IS no difference.)

"thanks. I'm planning to take up the violin, but first I have to get the piano out of the way"

Some violin if you need to get the piano out of the way! ! !
I left the piano where it was and play violin in a different part of the room.

just kidding.

lol, funny.

I've never heard of the tempered scale. Should everyone know what it is?

No.

Just out of interest, when will you have ever 'finished' learning the piano so that you can go on to playing the violin?!

For starters pianos do have to be tuned, it is just that it not normally the player who has to do it, as it takes a very good ear, a great deal of skill, and a very long time.

Basically, intruments need to be tuned because they go out of tune! With many instruments you take them apart and put them back together again each time you play them, so their tuning alters. Also heat, humidity, reeds, knocks, new strings etc can alter how an instrument plays, and so they need to be adjusted to be at the same pitch as ther other instruments you are playing with.

You tune up to a piano/ organ etc. because these are much harder to alter every note rather than to pull out/ push in or tighten strings etc; you use this as a basis for everyone else as this is the easiest.

There are also problems because some instruments play slightly sharp/ flat because they are natural products and also people play naturally slightly sharp/ flat. There used to be problems when instruments came over from the continent becuase our organs were tuned to different pitches to theirs and so their instruments were playing at different 'settings'. This is still slightly the case today where instruments from Japan (I think) aren't set at 440 for an A so need to be altered to be the same as us.

What I meant is that I could learn enough so that I wouldn't have to rely on a teacher.
It's like taking a course at university. You can't take up a course in engineering if you haven't finished your course in medicine, but once you ahev finished your course in medicine and are doing engineering, you are still learning medical concepts without being taught directly.

The problems are still there thanks to early music revialists. Throughout the history of music the A has changed from 425 to around 450 Hz. Which makes alot of difference!

Although I always tune my violin a "twist" above 440 tht my tuner gives me. I prefer the brighter tone adn sharper quality of it.

Also stopping the spaces between notes on a violin are smaller at the top positions becuase of the physics priniciple that if you halve the length of a vibrating string, you increase it by an octave. (I think). This makes the spaces between crisp notes almost nonexistant in some cases!