Builds, repairs and restores musical instruments, and modifies and tunes them to owners' specifications.

Designs and makes musical instruments and instrument parts using specially selected materials and techniques similar to those used in cabinetmaking, metal pipe making, silversmithing and wood carving, and tunes and repairing musical instruments.

• Works indoors in private workshops or musical stores, or may work in clients’ homes if a piano tuner.
• Likely to be self-employed.
• Work spaces will usually be adequately heated and ventilated.

• Physical demand is light.
• Standing or sitting on stools is constantly required for long periods at their workbenches, repairing and manufacturing musical instruments.
• Stretching up or across is occasionally required as employees mainly work with small instruments such as flutes, violins, guitars and with the string and keyboard components of pianos and other larger instruments.
• Squatting, crouching or kneeling is occasionally required to work with pianos.
• Twisting of the body or neck is not a significant component of the job.
• Lifting, carrying or moving is occasionally required but unlikely to exceed a light physical demand.
• Repetitive movements are frequently required in relation to the use of hands for precision work and to create tension on strings of instruments.
• Driving is not required, other than for piano tuners who usually travel to clients’ homes in their cars or vans.
• Employees frequently work with hand tools such as clamps, screwdrivers, tensioning spanners, files, chisels, knives, small hammers, planes and scrapers. They may also work with wood and metalwork machines and/or use glue, varnish and paint and a tuning fork depending upon the instrument being made/repaired.
• Mental skills necessary include technical, practical, problem-solving, and musical skills.

A New Zealand Register Level 4 qualification or at least three years of relevant experience (ANZSCO Skill Level 3). In some instances relevant experience and/or on-the-job training may be required in addition to the formal qualification. For entry-level positions on-the-job training may be sufficient.

There are opportunities for flexibility of movement.