S·LSophie LockleyLockley Piano Services
Essex & Surrey
Currently learning under Martin Stokes, London.A piano technician’s site, in progress.

SophieLockley

a short note

I am a piano technician in training, currently learning under Martin Stokes. I am beginning to take on work with both upright and grand pianos across Essex and Surrey, focusing on tuning, regulation and voicing.

est. 2025 · trainee

A piano technician, in training. Essex & Surrey.

Get in touch→
what I do

In home and onsite work

Three services for now. Prices on enquiry. I’ll send a clear quote within a day.

The interior of an upright piano: strings, hammers and golden plate
  1. cybertuner · 88 keys / play me

    I tune pianos using CyberTuner, bringing pianos to a stable and accurate tuning across all 88 keys, ensuring clean unisons and well-balanced octaves.

    • · Full tuning of all 88 notes using professional electronic tuning software.
    • · Refinement of unisons for stability and consistency.
    • · Pitch raises to bring significantly flat tunings back to concert pitch.

    price on enquiry

  2. Welmar upright with the front panel removed, showing the actionaction & hammers

    I regulate and voice pianos to improve touch, response and tone alongside common fault diagnosis.

    • · Action regulation altering lost motion, set-off and key dip.
    • · Hammer voicing shapes the tone from warmer to brighter per request.
    • · Fix sluggish keys, sticking notes and buzzes.

    price on enquiry

  3. Close-up of an upright piano action: hammers and damperscabinet · action

    Over time, dust accumulates inside the piano and faults develop across the action components. A careful clean inside, common-fault diagnosis and small repairs to get a piano playing well again.

    • · Internal deep clean of the action, soundboard and under the keys.
    • · Sluggish keys, sticking notes and buzzes.
    • · Uneven touch, lost motion and inconsistency in key response across the keys.

    price on enquiry

about the work

Six years old at the keys, nineteen at the bench.

a pianist's hands resting on the keys of a grand piano
hands. the part of the trade that doesn’t get photographed.

I started playing piano at age six, worked through the ABRSM grades, and gradually fell in love with the instrument. At home I had a digital piano, but it always felt a bit clinical, so I began seeking out acoustic pianos wherever I could.

At Trinity Laban, playing Steinways and Faziolis in concert rooms consolidated my love for tone and further sparked my curiosity about how the instrument actually works.

A block of work experience in summer 2025 led me deeper into tuning, regulation and voicing and really set the direction I’m now pursuing.

I’m currently working at Handel Pianos in Sunningdale, alongside a music degree at Royal Holloway, and continuing training with Martin Stokes as I build towards working independently full time.

a portfolio

Some places, and some pianos

2024 — 2026
A grand piano photographed in black and white
Handel Pianos, Sunningdaleplacement · since 2025
Sheet music on a grand piano at Trinity Laban, sunlit window beyond
Trinity LabanA level music · 2023 to 2024
Sligo Jazz Project stage with grand piano under blue and green lighting
Sligo Jazz Projectsummer 2025 · workshops
Royal Hollowaymusic with political studies
The Royal Holloway quad at dusk, columns and lit windows beyond
Royal Holloway, at duskbetween lectures
Stokes of London workshop interior
Stokes of Londoncourse · ongoing
“The instrument has its own voice. Listening is most of the job.
From the notebook2025.07 · stokes of london
training
Course Leader
Martin Stokes, Stokes of London
Technical Training
Tuning, stability, regulation, voicing, diagnosing common faults
Professional Practice
Business for self-employment. Finances, promotion, client work.
After the Course
Tuning under Martin’s name on a profit-share, and independently
music, in the background
ABRSM Piano
Grades 1 to 8 (Grade 8 Merit)
ABRSM Theory
Grade 5
Teachers
Christopher Weston (past); Lliam Patterson, Royal Holloway (current)
Plays
Piano · bass · guitar; percussion ensemble; Key Society
the interior of an upright piano in deep shadow
a few words

What people are saying.

Three placeholders for now. Real ones to follow, from Martin, from Lara, and from a client whose piano I tuned.

    “[placeholder]
    Sophie listens before she touches anything. That is the part of tuning you cannot teach quickly, and she already has it.
    Martin Stokesstokes of london · course leader
    “[placeholder]
    Calm hands, a real ear, and the patience to keep checking her work. Exactly the kind of tuner you want walking into your home.
    Lara Clapppiano tuner · essex
    “[placeholder]
    Sophie tuned our family upright after years of neglect. She explained what she was doing as she went, and the piano sounds like itself again.
write to me

If you'd like your piano tuned, send a line.

Please include the location of the piano, roughly when it was last tuned, and the service you would like. I confirm by email within a day. Usually sooner.

sophielockley40@gmail.com