Instrument technicians assist and support musicians before, during and after the performance to ensure the instruments and the connected equipment, the backline, are setup properly. They maintain, check, tune and repair instruments and assist with quick changes.

Tasks

Tasks include -
(a) Fabricating and assembling musical instruments and instrument parts of wood, ebonite, metal, leather and other materials;
(b) Repairing or replacing musical instrument parts and components, such as strings, bridges, felts and keys, using hand and power tools;
(c) Playing and inspecting instruments to evaluate their sound quality and to locate any defects;
(d) Adjusting string tensions to achieve proper tone or pitch of stringed instruments;
(e) Adjusting lips, reeds or toe hole of organ pipes, using hand tools, to regulate airflow and loudness of sound;
(f) Tuning and servicing pipe organs by adjusting pitch of organ a pipes to conform with pitch of tuning fork and adjusting pitch of other pipes with reference to pitch of tuned pipes;
(g) Installing new drumheads in percussion instruments;
(h) Tuning accordions by aurally comparing pitch of reeds with master reeds and filing reeds to obtain standard pitch;
(i) Aligning pads and keys on reed or wind instruments;
(j) Tuning percussion instruments to required pitch by tightening or loosening cords holding leather pieces fixed atop or at both ends of instrument;
(k) Assembling and installing new pipe organs and pianos in buildings.