How to become a Musical Instrument Repairer or Tuner
Official title: Musical Instrument Repairers and Tuners
Also called: Brass Instrument Repair Technician (Brass Instrument Repair Tech), Fretted String Instrument Repairer, Guitar Repairer, Instrument Repair Technician (Instrument Repair Tech), Luthier, Musical Instrument Repair Technician (Musical Instrument Repair Tech), Piano Technician (Piano Tech), Piano Tuner, Stringed Instrument Repairer, Woodwind Instrument Technician (Woodwind Instrument Tech)
Repair percussion, stringed, reed, or wind instruments. May specialize in one area, such as piano tuning.
Main tasks
- Adjust string tensions to tune instruments, using hand tools and electronic tuning devices.
- Compare instrument pitches with tuning tool pitches to tune instruments.
- Play instruments to evaluate their sound quality and to locate any defects.
- Disassemble instruments and parts for repair and adjustment.
- Repair or replace musical instrument parts and components, such as strings, bridges, felts, and keys, using hand and power tools.
- Reassemble instruments following repair, using hand tools and power tools and glue, hair, yarn, resin, or clamps, and lubricate instruments as necessary.
- Inspect instruments to locate defects, and to determine their value or the level of restoration required.
- Shape old parts and replacement parts to improve tone or intonation, using hand tools, lathes, or soldering irons.
How to become one
Typical education to start: High school diploma or equivalent
Ways in
- Apprenticeship: Fretted Instrument Repairer. BLS lists an apprenticeship as the typical training for this occupation.
- Apprenticeship: Piano Tuner. BLS lists an apprenticeship as the typical training for this occupation.
- Apprenticeship: Wind Instrument Repairer. BLS lists an apprenticeship as the typical training for this occupation.
Pay · Outlook · AI and this job
- Median pay: $46,420 a year The middle half earn $37,670 to $58,430.
- About 6,000 people work in this job now, and about 6,100 are projected by 2035. (+1.9%)
- People use generative AI for relatively little of this work so far. Microsoft Research rates its AI applicability as low.
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Questions people ask
How do I become a Musical Instrument Repairer or Tuner?
Ways in include: Fretted Instrument Repairer.
How much does a Musical Instrument Repairer or Tuner earn in the US?
Median full-time pay is $46,420 a year (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). The middle half earn $37,670 to $58,430.
Is a Musical Instrument Repairer or Tuner a growing career in the US?
Employment is projected to stay about the same by 2035: about 6,000 people now and 6,100 later (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics).
Do you need a degree to become a Musical Instrument Repairer or Tuner?
Not always. 28% of people in this job hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Ways in include: Fretted Instrument Repairer.
Will AI change the work of a Musical Instrument Repairer or Tuner?
People use generative AI for relatively little of this work so far. Microsoft Research rates its AI applicability as low.
Sources
- Microsoft Research: Working with AI: AI applicability by occupation (2025-12-22 (built on O*NET 29.0)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Employment Projections (2025-35 (released 2026-08-27)), Public domain (BLS), retrieved 2026-10-03
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025), Public domain (BLS), retrieved 2026-10-03
Updated 2026-10-03
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.