Russel Berkley is a master craftsman. He rebuilt a 1910 Steinway, Model B, which is a grand piano that is app. 6'11." I purchased it in October 2025 shortly after he rebuilt it. It already sounded very good. He explained at the time that this piano would eventually sound even better, as its new parts became acclimated over a period of 10 months or so. He might have used different terminology. He was right. It was not an exaggeration or unfounded statement. I have now had the piano for approximately 9 months, and it already sounds extraordinary--just like one of those brilliant Steinways from the golden era of Steinway grand pianos. This piano can roar or purr. It finds the most exquisite pitch for the high notes and a deep profound rumble for the low notes. Played softly, the notes ring true. Played with vigor, they thunder, as only Steinways can do. It is a wonderful, extraordinary Steinway piano from the golden era, brought to life for our times by Mr. Berkley! I understand that he has rebuilt hundreds of Steinways. He is the go-to person in San Diego from whom to purchase rebuilt Steinway pianos. Lastly, I have no connection to Mr. Berkley, except for my above purchase. Nor do I have any financial incentive for leaving this review, which merely recounts my experience. read more

Needed a Dampp-Chaser installed on a 1930's Kurtzmann as well as a tune-up. Immediately heard back from Russell with the estimate, date, time, and appointment confirmation. He was quick, smooth, the tuning sounds fantastic and now the antique piano can live some more years near the beach with the Dampp-Chaser installed. He was also kind enough to replace a missing ivory top at no charge. Aaaaaaand he was a fun hang!! Recommending him and his crew to everyone I know with piano needs. Thanks Russell! read more

I unfortunately cannot recommend Sabra. She gave my piano the quickest tuning I have ever experienced. I own multiple high end, handmade pianos and have used the best RPTs in Los Angeles and San Diego prior and this experience was abysmal. There is a difference between tuning each string and ending up with a well-tuned, stable piano. I got the former, by far. No restitution was offered when I brought issues to her attention 48 hours after and it was blamed on climate change, which is complete b.s. when there were no humidity changes and the piano has a well-installed DamppChaser system on it. No tuning should go out as badly as hers did so quickly. Her tuning was cursory at worst and I was working and didn't give it a good enough listen but should one have to? I have perfect pitch and know the difference and should have checked for more than 30 seconds including all octaves. Any responsible tuner would stop by to do a quick touch up having charged $200 for 45 minutes of sub par work. STEER CLEAR. Waste of money. It needs complete retuning. read more

Sabra did a fabulous job on my Schimmel today. I was embarrassed it was so far OUT (can I blame covid?), but she brought it back into a fully tuned life. Highly recommend her! read more

I was recommended to Russ Berkley by the piano movers. I hadn't hired a piano tuner in 20 years so I had no idea to call. Russ was on time and ready to go. I have never met anyone which his depth of knowledge and skill set on pianos. He was friendly and polite. He also adjusted the piano action and pedals and gave my entire piano the once over. I am definitely going to call him next year for another tuning. read more

Berkley Piano - Piano Services Near Me - San Diego, California

I have an all-original, 1907 Steinway piano that's been in my family all 111 years of its life. This review is simply to share that Russell, who I had had no contact with whatsoever, heard from MY piano tech that we were struggling to find a solution for the verdigris fungus on my original hammers (forever sticky and slow keys). Russell had just come across a full set of salvaged, perfect condition Steinway hammers and he basically just GAVE them to me for my tech to install. Saved me thousands of dollars and the piano sounds and plays unbelievably beautifully. Obviously, this is a person who truly loves what he does and cares about music and I would encourage anyone in need of piano work to give him a chance. THANKS RUSSELL read more

I had the opportunity to apprentice and work for Russell for about 4 years. First things first: he is the San Diego guru of anything and everything to do with those 88 keys. I witnessed first hand his ability to take any piano and not only beautify it but also make it play and sound like it was just delivered from the showroom floor. His workspace is clean with all the bells and whistles. When customers visit they feel welcomed and relaxed. No pushy selling. He is professional and gives the customer facts about their piano. He can talk the talk with professional piano players just as easily as he can make beginners feel comfortable. He has an unbelievable ear and unlike some piano technicians who don't necessarily know how to play the piano he can tear up the ivories ! More than a top notch piano technician he is a great mentor and friend who truly enjoys his profession. Knowledgeable, friendly, technical and passionate....what more could you want from a piano technician ! read more

Berkley Piano is the Best Piano Tuner, Repair and Piano Restoration Company in all of San Diego County! We have used Berkley Piano for over 20 years, and will only use Russell Berkley to touch, clean, repair or tune our Kawai Grand Piano! You will never be disappointed if you use Russell Berkley at Berkley Piano! My husband and I Highly Recommend this company! read more

Our family highly recommends Russell Berkley, and if you are reading this Yelp review, you should know that Russell is a highly capable piano technician. Our daughter plays the piano and Russell is the only piano tuner we have used in the last 9 years. After discovering our two year old daughter liked to sit down on a milk crate to hit the keys on a $15 electronic keyboard, we were fortunate to receive a Wurlitzer upright piano from a great grandmother. Three years later, and after playing piano almost every day, our daughter was ready to practice on a grand piano. We purchased a 1960's era heavily used Baldwin piano. Russell Berkley has been our piano tuner ever since. Over the years he not only tuned the piano but also made periodic replacement to heavily worn out components. All the while, Russell exhibited exemplary customer service, an outstanding ear for music, and domain expertise in tuning our piano. As the years went by, our daughter became more and more proficient in piano, competing in and winning Sonatina competitions throughout San Diego. Over the last several years, as Russell would come by to tune our piano, he would see the music our daughter was practicing, and hear about her piano achievements. He would then casually tell us "____ is going to eventually outgrow this piano, Steve!". Last year our family decided to donate our Baldwin grand piano to a local high school and buy a re-built Steinway from Russell. We did not have the financial resources to pay cash for this unplanned purchase, but because we had known Russell for so many years, he worked out a payment system for us where we could take possession of the Steinway and pay it off over six (6) months. Our daughter has absolutely loved her piano! Russell is an amazing technician, has a tremendous passion for music, and is just a really nice guy. We trust him 100%, and you should too. read more

One night in 1976, I was playing keyboards on tour for Gary Wright. The show was over & the crew was packing up gear to take to the next venue on the tour. As I often was known to do, I searched around the arena for a piano & found two grands hidden in a corner behind the stage. While everyone else went out partying as usual, I'd once again found a way to get some piano practice in. Because actually I'm a classical pianist who was raised in LA by piano teachers. The rock concert gig was just a way to make a living. That's where I met Russ. He was but a teen, selling t-shirts at rock concert venues. We struck up a convo & Russ showed a great interest in pianos. I could tell he was mechanically inclined, so I suggested applying to become a roadie keyboard tech on a band tour. He didn't seem so much interested in that. He said he also played keys. So I figured he's another aspiring musician. But realizing how tough it is to make it into the music business, I suggested that he learn how to tune pianos. Because I knew that would be a good way to have steady work to fall back on while he works on his playing career. The next time I talked to Russ, a few years later, he'd taken piano tuning lessons from one of the premier tuners in the entire state of California. He'd gone beyond tuning as a profession, to full on piano rebuilding. So I bought one of his rebuilds. But honestly, I wasn't surprised. Because that's the kind of guy Russ is. Plainly stated, Russ is a mechanical genius. Which I suppose he inherited from his Germanic family roots. He's a perfectionist when it comes to all things mechanical. Plus his sense of aesthetic is quite high, in terms of recognizing quality materials and workmanship. Along with being the choice tuner for my pianos, Russ would always be my first choice for a handyman. Problem with that, is how his piano tuning/rebuilding business has had him so busy that he doesn't have time to come over and help me make my house work/look better! ha ha That's okay. I'm very happy for Russ. And I'm glad I made that suggestion for him to learn piano tuning over 40 years ago. I mean, how many times do you make a casual comment that ends up helping a person make the choices which brings them a great life? All I did was notice a fellow keyboardist's mechanical inclinations & then suggested learning how to tune pianos. But Russ's piano business is truly a success story that I will always cherish. read more

Friendly, knowledgeable and dependable. Russell knows pianos and how to keep them sounding great.

Sabra is extremely knowledgeable, very friendly, and did a great job tuning my piano. I am completely satisfied and will continue to use her wonderful tuning talent. I highly recommend her! read more

We've owned our Weber baby grand piano for almost 20 years and just had Russell upgrade it with a QRS Wi Fi player system. Fantastic service and professionalism. Anything piano he's the best! I can't say enough about how happy we are. John Hine read more

I thought I would get same positive experience like the other 10 reviews posted here on Yelp. Well, 10 is not really that much to warrant a guaranteed positive experience. Never hire this guy to do appraisal for your piano. If you have an old piano, no matter how excellent the condition is, it is an automatic trash piano for this guy. He would only spend less than 5 minutes to look at it. He doesn't even bother to find the serial number even though it is right in front of his face. This guy is a rebuilder of fine pianos such as Steinway, etc. So if your piano is not less than 20 years old, it is a candidate for a rebuilding project. That's what he does. He would not open the and see the action of the piano. He would just stand there look at the obvious, .... a little rust there, some scratch there, brass hinges, etc, etc....Very lazy, unlike other decent, qualified technicians I have hired before....... so BEWARE!!!!! Your piano would appraise to an amount that a piano rebuilder dreams of................ read more

Russell did a fine job tuning our newly acquired base-level Koehler and Campbell. He returned to make adjustments after some extreme weather changes (when our A/C went out causing high heat and humidity in the house) afffected some keys. read more

Russell Berkley made my 20-year-out-of-tune piano sound great in 30 minutes. Terrific service. Very professional.

Russell rebuilt our church's 1958 Mason & Hamlin BB this Spring. He returned our treasured piece in as-new condition. His careful attention to detail and precision has granted a new lease on life to this exquisite instrument. Russell's love for and mastery of his trade made him our first choice for our need. We are very thankful for his skill and dedication. You won't be disappointed in choosing AAA for your piano needs! read more

Russell rocks! We bought a new to us 1949 Baldwin 9' concert grand. He got the old girl spiffed and sounding fabulous, and has been attentive/responsive/professional every time we contact him for tuning and repairs. read more

Russell Berkley recently updated and fine tuned our piano disc player to a new version on our Steinway . We were very pleased with his prompt and outstanding service and we would highly recommend him to anyone in need . read more

Russell has been taking care of my piano for years. On an older Yamaha C3, the piano had a beautiful, sweet tone, but the bass was harsh. He voiced it beautifully. On a new piano that i had found the sound disappointing compared to the previous C3, he made it sweet. I always look forward to Russell coming, knowing how great the piano will sound when he's finished, plus enjoying his enthusiasm for his work. read more