For over 40 years Dr Paul Tunzi AM has maintained the keyboard instruments for most of the musical institutions and venues throughout Perth, building an international reputation as a highly skilled keyboard technician-artisan.

Paul specialises in preparing historical and modern keyboard instruments for concerts and recordings. Additionally, Paul has facilitated, selected, and installed concert pianos throughout many of Perth’s performance and educational venues.

Paul has travelled extensively as a technician, consultant, and researcher and has achieved Master Piano Technician qualification from the Yamaha technical academy (Japan) and factory accreditations from Kawai (Japan) and Fazioli (Italy). His experience extends to working in traditional keyboard ateliers, including Harpsichord with Bruce Kennedy (Italy), Fortepiano with Paul McNulty (Czech Republic) and Square pianos with Lucy Coad (UK).

In 2017, Paul was awarded a Churchill Fellowship to investigate historical keyboard instrument collections throughout the UK and Europe.

In 2021, Paul was nominated for Australian of the Year and was a finalist or the City of Perth Community Citizen of the Year.

In 2023 Paul was awarded the Order of Australia (AM) for services to music as a pianoforte tuner/technician.

Paul completed his PhD at ECU in 2023— Doctor of Philosophy (Creative Arts).

Square Piano by Arnold Frederick Beck (London, 1780): Restorative Conservation, What May Be Inferred, and a Resultant Teaching Program—having commenced my higher degree research as the Vice Chancellor’s Founding Pianos Masters Scholar researching the restoration of Australia’s ‘First Fleet' piano by Frederick Beck, (London 1780).

The Piano Tuner/Technician Artisan

James Boyk states in his article, The Endangered Piano Technician (Scientific American, December 1995) “As a pianist, I have a recurring nightmare that the piano will disappear as a concert instrument, not because people won’t want to hear it or play it, nor because fine pianos won’t be built, but because good concert piano technicians are vanishing.”

The Heritage Crafts Association UK states: “Crafts classified as critically endangered are those at serious risk of no longer being practiced in the UK. They may include crafts with a shrinking base of craftspeople, crafts with limited training opportunities, crafts with low financial viability, or crafts where there is no mechanism to pass on the skills and knowledge.”

The elite piano tuner is one such critically endangered craft.

It is clear that within the next decade, there will be a critical loss of skilled, experienced concert tuner/technicians to maintain acoustic keyboard instruments in performance venues throughout Australia. This will have dire consequences for Australia’s music and performing arts industry and music education. Along with the scarcity of elite, experienced concert tuner/technicians in Australia, the number of available experts with the experience, skills and facility to teach the next generation is very small and diminishing with time.

My experience of over 40 years as an internationally renowned piano technician-artisan, as well as my research into the preservation of historical keyboard instruments throughout the UK and Europe in 2018––thanks to a Churchill Fellowship––has provided me with an understanding of the state of this diminishing craft.

Member of the Order of Australia & Masters Scholarship

Churchill Fellow

Acoustic Keyboard Services

The Well Maintained Piano

A wholistic approach to realise the potential of your piano

Paul’s deep knowledge of historical keyboard instruments, temperaments, and keyboard tuning – both academic and practical – is peerless in Australia and we have been privileged to have him share that with our students at UWA.

Assoc/Prof Suzanne Wijsman, UWA Conservatorium of Music

As a renowned piano technician in great demand by the finest professional players from Australia and around the world, Government House feel extremely lucky to also avail itself of Paul Tunzi’s professional skills and high standards.

THE HONOURABLE KERRY SANDERSON AC

The support of the Sydney International Piano Competition from Paul is one that I hope will continue for many years to come and I hope that many more instruments and artists are able to experience the commitment, generosity and passion of Paul – a master of his craft.

Marcus Barker

Paul Tunzi is an outstanding keyboard technician, educator and artist. His professional skills have led to his premier status in the field of general repair and upkeep, while his understanding of tunings and temperament (historical and modern) has meant that Paul Tunzi is in great demand by the finest professional players.

Emeritus Professor David Tunley AM

Paul Tunzi is without a doubt one of Australia’s finest piano technicians. The standard of work on a range of keyboard instruments is second to none. He is certainly the most in demand piano technician in Perth, and is often flown around the country to prepare pianos for some of the finest pianists in the world.

Associate Professor Graham Wood

Paul Tunzi is a special kind of piano technician. His understanding of the piano (in all of its many historical incarnations) is subtle and sophisticated; this is evidenced by his richly informed and consummate tuning skills, and by his formidable, insightful and faultless capacities as a piano technician.

Professor Geoffrey Lancaster AM

In his review of the album “Haydn: Arianna a Naxos” by Edwards and Lancaster, Roger Covell makes reference to Paul Tunzi’s work by saying: “The instrument Lancaster uses has been beautifully tuned and prepared”.

Roger Covell, Sydney Morning Herald

Personally, I always feel a sense of relief knowing I’m about to perform on a piano that Paul Tunzi has prepared. I have only the utmost respect for someone who has so enriched our community over so many years. May there be many more!

Caroline Badnall

Paul Tunzi’s wealth of knowledge and experience, training in the great piano ateliers of the world, and his gentle diplomacy when seeking professional advice guarantees instruments in his care are maintained to the highest international standards.

Faith Maydwell & Anthony Maydwell

It’s rare to find a technician who understands the subtleties of voicing an instrument to match a hall’s acoustic, to match a player’s requirements and to bring out the best a piano has to offer. Perth offers both great venues and great pianos, beautifully prepared for performance thank to technicians like Paul Tunzi.

Piers Lane AO

Paul Tunzi’s technical skill, empathy for musicians and their music and relentless curiosity and desire to constantly learn have earned him the highest professional respect from his peers and musicians from across the globe. He has a deep love of music and great respect for all those who participate in it.

Evan Kennea

My instrument was perfectly prepared by Paul Tunzi who was able to listen to my wishes and requests and accomplished all of them even better than expected, if possible. I would love to always find excellent technicians such as Mr Tunzi during my tours.

Maurizio Baglini

I cannot speak too highly of Paul Tunzi as piano technician.
To a significant extent, his skill, experience and pleasant manner have for years contributed to the success of innumerable recitals and concerto performances at venues around the city.

Neville Cohn

It is a delight to find a Fazioli when I come to perform in Perth, and the instruments are always very well looked after by Paul Tunzi. I hope many more pianists in the future will discover the joy of playing a Fazioli, and that it will transform their interpretations.

Angela Hewitt

I went straight to Paul Tunzi for help and advice in sourcing a suitable piano when planning the Crank Recording facility. Paul sourced and restored the Yamaha CFIII concert grand to impeccable playing order. Artists often remark on the piano’s ease of playability, evenness of touch and depth of tone.