When will you need to retune your Pantam?

We believe every Handpan player should know some basic information about the long-term tuning stability of their instrument. It is sometimes hard to tell if an instrument has gone out of tune without checking with a qualified tuner, but by using our ears we can detect if something is wrong.

In this post, we hope to give you some information that would serve you well about this unclear topic.

The first thing you can do for your own check is to record your instrument from the first moment you got it.

Record each note slowly. After that, using your ears, you can tell if any of the notes have changed after 1-2 years (trust your ears even if you don’t think you are musically gifted).

Each Handpan in the world goes through a hand-hammered tuning process in which the tuner places each note under certain stress and shape which holds the steel in its place to produce the wanted tone.

Tonefields can be tuned in an infinite number of ways. We can not say that one is better than another, but there are certain measurements a player should take into consideration.

As a rule of thumb, we believe that a Handpan should remain in tune for 3 years when played properly and does not suffer any major damage (such as being dropped on the floor or being thrown around a lot).

But what does it mean to play correctly?

You should not bang your handpan as if it were a Djembe or drum set. As long as your touch is gentle and respectful (you do not need to be afraid of playing your Handpan of course), then the tuning should last for at least 3 years.rs.

You can watch videos of many artists such as Kabecao, Alexandre Lora, Adrian J Portia, David kuckhermann from Handpan Dojo, and many more.

Take the time to look at how these artists are able to produce a full sound from a soft strike on the instrument and try to reproduce that same touch.

A Handpan whose tuning was not done professionally by the tuner is more likely to lose its tuning sooner.

Yishama’s tone fields are put through many stress tests to ensure that our instruments will remain in tune for many years to come.

Yishama’s first re-tuning is free of charge

We will provide your Yishama with the first re-tuning free of charge, provided that the instrument has not been damaged.

Today we have 3 tuning centers in Israel, Hungary, and Romania. You can contact us for more information.

It is not possible to tell just by playing your Handpan if the tuning is correct and will hold for many years.
The way to know this is Research makers and their Handpans before choosing one and then reach out to owners of their Handpan to ask them if their Handpan is still in tune after several years. If that maker also offers free tuning services then we think this is an assurance that its standards of tuning are high.

Hopefully you found this article helpful. If you have any questions, please feel free to comment below and we will respond as soon as possible.

Happy playing!