Tuning and voicing my 1938 Steinway Model L. The service was prompt and professional

I toured the workshop, and was introduced to a Steinway they had put back together. It played so smoothly that a beginner like me sounded great. Hats off to the craftsmen at Callahan. read more

I did not do any business with Callahan piano but was looking for someone else at the building with whom I had an appointment. However, the owner of Callahan piano was very kind to me and though we had no business, he made sure that I was attended to and he let me use his bathroom in the times of Covid. If this level of integrity is an estimation as to how he conducts business, which I'm sure that it is, these here five stars are very warranted! Business skills are not always transactional they are humanistic and this is precisely what was shown to me here! read more

John Callahan has tuned our 1978 Steinway baby grand three times for house concerts here. Our pianist who plays our house concerts is extremely discerning, and she has always been thrilled with how well John makes the old piano "sing." He's fast, efficient, friendly, reasonably-priced, and has decades of experience. You can't go wrong with John Callahan tuning up your piano! read more

Simply the best. I've owned and constantly played my 1904 Steinway O 6' baby grand for over 10 years, and had gotten used to many of the problems that arose from its extremely worn out action, most of which consisted of the original parts. John Callahan was recommended to me as one of the best piano techs in the country, and I initially asked him to do some tuning and regulation work. Shortly after, my partner and I visited his workshop in Alameda, a pianists' candy store where we learned about his team's legendary work rebuilding actions on vintage pianos in particular. It was magical - he had transformed instruments from the brink of unplayability to some of the most outstanding pianos I've encountered in my life. A few months later, we decided to have John completely rebuild our Steinway's action with the Stanwood Touch Design technique. He gave us a clear upfront quote of the cost and timeframe and loaned us a lovely Steinway S for the duration of the work. Our piano came back to us better than new. The formerly threadbare action is now beautifully controlled, even and responsive, and the sound is totally revitalized as a result. We're able to explore the quietest depths of pianissimo where the dynamics of the old action had been jarringly loud and metallic. And everything we had loved when we were able to produce it in the sound before - its clarity and possibilities of color - was nurtured and polished, so that our piano feels like a much truer version of itself than like a totally different instrument. While their work speaks for itself, I'll also add that John and his team are a joy to work with. They are very friendly and professional, and my partner and I always look forward to visiting their shop. John and one of his technicians came to our home to make some final adjustments immediately after the rebuild and I feel completely assured that they'll take loving care of our piano for many years to come. read more

I was referred by Jim Callahan of Piedmont Piano to talk to John Callahan about work that might be done on a vintage Steinway grand piano. John was very gracious with his time, inviting me to visit his workshop to discuss rebuilding details, try out pianos he was in the process of rebuilding, then driving back to Piedmont Piano to consult with me at length about the piano I was interested in. I appreciated his honesty and devotion to the piano rebuilding craft, and he (and his brother Jim) both came across as kind, professional people. I recommend looking up the documentary Miracle in a Box on YouTube that follows the rebuilding journey of a piano at his workshop. I ultimately decided to wait for a newer condition piano but came away with a great impression of both Callahan businesses. read more

I would have to say that I had a not so good experience with this company. They have poor customer service. Despite of their `Family Business`, they are unorganized and not family oriented. When you call them for assistance, first you have to listened to a recorded guidance which tells you to send an email to schedule for a tuning.I received an email back pretty quick to tell me to wait 24hours until somebody else calls me. Well, Nobody called me. At that point, I kind of questioned if this is a right place for me. ( but I hear that they have been in the business for many years, I love my piano and I wanted to have somebody who really knows what he is doing to tune my piano. And they have discounted prices for a returned customer.) Three days later, I finally had a tuning scheduled. The actual tuning of my piano was good. Except for a squeaky pedal and couple other things which I felt needed more work. I contacted the tuner, and again I did not receive a reply. So I emailed main tuning guy (older Callahan member?), and again I was redirected and told to call the tuner. Don't they talk to each other like a family??? Finally I got a hold of the tuner dropped a couple drops of oil on and that seemed to fix the squeaky pedal but still sticky. He also explained that the reason why one of my key tends to stay pressed was basically due to the way it was built that he cant fix and which I don't believe that. He concluded his visit by telling me how I should be playing a Clavinova(electric piano) instead. How insulting is that. Is he really a piano guy? I felt like this company has made too much money, and he was just living off from his family wealth, and tuning is just what he does for easy money. read more

Callahan Piano Service has tuned my piano, and repaired various parts, for 20 years. The company has grown since it was founded by Callahan Sr., and they do piano rebuilding in their Alameda shop if you need that sort of thing - apparently they can make your piano much better using a variety of high-tech internal materials and such...but back to my tuning experience. I have enjoyed perfect on-time, friendly and flexible service - having had to move the appointment at the last minute a few times - no problem for them. They understand things happen. As to the tuning itself, I am terribly picky about this, and because I teach piano at home, the intonation of the instrument is something I have to hear each and every day for several hours, so I expect perfection, and I get it from Callahan Piano Service. These brothers are all experts, interesting and witty, and most of all, PROFESSIONAL. Enjoy! read more

Even worse at this point. String broken and voicing is a mess. Not sure what they did to my magnificent instrument but it is MUCH worse now after wasting $25k and falling for their song and dance of what great things they were Going to do for my piano. AVOID the disappointment I have had with this company. read more

I will never do any business with Callahan Piano Service - ever. I am a professional working Pianist in the Bay Area and have my own teaching studio. I was shot down when I asked them to tune my upright Steinway Piano that I have taken impeccable care of over the years. They flat out refused to even look at it. The person I spoke with was Michael Callahan. Very rude and I will not recommend this company to any of my colleagues. read more

Just got back after a year of house swapping and found my piano had been damaged by the tenants who agreed to keep the piano tuned!!! Some of the keys were sticking and the finish had been damaged by a spill of some kind. I was sure the piano had been ruined!!! Not to worry: Callahan Piano Service to the rescue! Matt Callahan had my beautiful Yamaha Upright back in shape, fixed the sticking keys and tuned up in about an hour! He explained that the damage was mostly cosmetic and had a refinisher on the phone with an appointment time within the same week. My piano, my true love, sounds great! Thank you!!! Thank you!!! read more

I am adding back one star at the request of John Callahan because I did receive a refund from Callahan Piano Service after he read my Yelp review. I do find it extremely disappointing that he denied my requests for a discount or refund until AFTER reading my review. It's obvious that they do not care to actually satisfy the customer, but are more concerned with any loss in new business from a negative public review. I also find it highly suspect that two days after my review was posted, he immediately receives a 5 star review from a new "yelper". Be sure to check the one other "filtered" review, which echoes my sentiment and experience with this company. I am still upset over the whole experience, and the time wasted writing back and forth with the owner, and now on Yelp. read more

Numerous calls and emails go unanswered. When Mat does show up he's late every time. Last time he left and piano was still broken. Sorry but this is horrible customer service. Not using them anymore. read more

I feel so fortunate that Callahan Piano rebuilt my piano. I had wanted a grand piano for years and was finally able to buy one when we moved into a house last year. I got an 1899 Steinway B in terrible condition from Piedmont Piano. Because of the condition, I could afford the piano. This piano had a heavy, unresponsive action, but a beautiful tone if you could manage to make it speak. The Piedmont Piano owner, Jim Callahan, said that his brother John's place in Alameda was the best restorer in the world. To my surprise and gratitude, this turned out to be true. John invited me to the workshop to meet the crew and try out their pianos, and their work is a marvel. Taking such a principled approach to calibrating the action pays off, in the form of easy octave glissandos (what?!), beautifully modulated tone across the whole compass, and reduced fatigue because the mind and body don't have to do the work of keeping track of which notes wolf or stick out. After years of playing pianos that are muddy on the bottom, tinny on top, have no sustain in high ranges, don't support pianissimo or fast repeated notes, it was a pleasure to play John's pianos. Good things take time and care, and so did the rebuild (including a new keyset, new action, new dampers and strings). I couldn't be more pleased, and I feel so, so fortunate to have an instrument that is acoustically and tactilely satisfying to play. Thank you John, Douglas, Rhys, Steve, Thomas, Abby, and everyone else who put so much careful work into my piano! read more

I have known and worked with the Callahan brothers who together constitute Piedmont Piano and Callahan Piano Service for nearly 40 years. I bought a 1910 Steinway upright from Jim Callahan at Piedmont Piano in 1981 and a Yamaha C-5 in 1990. John Callahan and his amazing crew at Callahan Piano Services rebuilt a Baldwin Baby Grand I inherited in 2004 and installed a Stanwood TouchDesign Action in my beloved Steinway D in 2015. I would never let anyone but Michael Callahan tune and service my pianos, which now include that Steinway D and a Steinway L (for what it is worth, I am a Steinway Artist). Over the years, I have sent perhaps 50 customers to Piedmont Piano and unstintingly recommend John Callahan as a rebuilder and Michael Callahan as a tuner/technician to anyone who asks. I am well aware - as are the Callahans - that pianos are not just instruments; they become members of one's family. Our emotional investment in our pianos - to say nothing for our financial investment - makes their care a very personal thing, which is why I sympathize with the discomfiture of some of the comments contained here in some of the negative reviews (although I am honor bound to observe that rebuilding a piano is an art, not a science; and no one should expect a rebuilt piano to be the same instrument it was prior to the rebuild). My sympathies notwithstanding, over these many years I have never, ever had anything approaching a negative experience with any of the Callahans, and neither has any one of the many people I have sent their way. On the contrary: the Callahan brothers have been, in all of my dealings with them, a collective paragon of professionalism and craftsmanship, honesty, kindness, and good will. They are, in my estimation, the best, and the Bay Area is lucky to have them. read more

I met John from referral from Piedmont Piano Company (of which his brother runs) where I bought my 7ft Fazioli. I ask him to tune my piano 3-4 times a year. Very fast and accurate tuning. Beyond that, when I feel some keys are (slightly) stronger/weaker than other keys, he can bring them to the level in few minutes (where other "tuning person"may hesitate to work on hammer heads). After 2 years of our relationship, we went deeper, tuning a key weight. It took more than a week, but now I can access to the PPP very easily! read more

Mike Callahan came to our house to tune our baby grand piano. Not only did he do an excellent job tuning the piano, he also helped us re arrange the room so that the piano wasn't positioned in direct sunlight. He was helpful and professional and I recommend him wholeheartedly! read more

I have a 1870s Steinway upright that hadn't been serviced in years and are apparently notoriously hard to work with. Given how old the piano was, I was nervous to have just anyone come and work on it. Brandon was very knowledgeable and I had total confidence in his ability. I was afraid that he would recommend tons of additional work that needed to be done (at great expense) but instead he actually recommended not tuning it and instead just fixed the damper on a couple of the keys and charged much less than the regular service fee. After he left, one of the keys that he worked on started sticking and I wrote the company an email to see if they could come and fix it. They scheduled an appointment to come by the next day and fixed it free of charge. I'm totally happy with my experience. read more

Michael Callahan tunes my baby grand, which is played daily. Michael not only gives the piano an excellent tune, but he voices the piano carefully and performs any maintenance needed on the action. I am a relatively picky customer (just ask past tuners), and I am always satisfied with his work. Over the course of the last couple years, he has come to know and remember my preferences, and I no longer even have to explain to him what I want done. In addition, he is a passionate lover of pianos who is more than willing to explain his work, and he's always on time. I recommend him without reservation. read more