Playing the Piano in Your Apartment: 7 Soundproofing Tips

Playing piano is beautiful and calming. However, if you life in an apartment, the noise may be disturbing to your neighbors. As such, it is important to soundproof your apartment as much as possible to reduce the amount of noise your playing will create. Below are 6 tips on soundproofing your apartment.

1. Fill Your Apartment with Fabric

While you may appreciate metal or wood, or even desire a modern look in your apartment, these materials amplify sound. Fabrics, or fabric items absorb wood and therefore act as soundproofing materials, despite not being designed as such. Carpets are another great fabric that will muffle the noise of your piano playing. If your apartment has wood floors, particularly under the piano, add a thick rug with a thick rug pad underneath it to absorb the sound of your playing. Fabrics can be used on windows and floors to absorb noise.

2. Don’t Overlook the Walls

The walls in the room in which a piano is located are often not treated to assist in soundproofing. Typical paintings, posters or other framed objects do not absorb sound waves. Therefore, hang items on your walls that will assist in absorbing sound. Wall hangings, such as decorative carpets, fabric wall art, such as swaths of fabric stretched over canvas, or thick artwork will help soundproof your home.

3. Use the Ceiling

Noise travels through the walls, including the ceiling. When soundproofing your apartment, do not forget that sound waves travel in every direction, including upwards. While it may seem ridiculous and may require some investigation into how to do so, consider hanging fabrics on your ceiling. Thick fabrics can create an eye-catching piece and permit you to leave the remainder of the room relatively undecorated.

4. Rely on the Piano Itself

While you may not particularly want to dampen the noise from the piano, you might be willing to consider dampening its loudness. Putting heavy rugs on the top or back of the piano will still permit the beautiful music to be heard, but at a much lower volume. Many piano companies offer piano coverings that look beautiful, will fit your piano type and assist in making a piano less noisy.

5. Seal off Vents When Playing

Much noise in apartment buildings travels between apartments through air vents or other connecting ventilation holes. While you probably do not want to block these vents all the time, placing a thick fabric item over them while you are playing can significantly reduce the amount of noise other apartment dwellers hear.

6. Open it Up

If it is not winter, one of the best ways to soundproof your home is to play the piano with as many windows and doors open as possible. With an escape route to the outside, fewer sound waves will travel to the other apartment. Essentially, by opening doors and windows you are providing the sound with a means to escape the confines of your apartment.