[HN Gopher] My First Piano
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My First Piano
Author : jbd
Score : 42 points
Date : 2022-11-01 20:16 UTC (2 hours ago)
(HTM) web link (www.jeromeleroy.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (www.jeromeleroy.com)
| bombolo wrote:
| > my parents displayed a bunch of trinkets, including a 19th-
| century clock made entirely out of metal which vibrated
|
| I bet it was the mother...
| geff82 wrote:
| Oh dear, that story, except the abuse, could be me. I bought a
| Bechstein upright last year, an R124 with S/N 215798. The R (for
| Residence) and A models differ a bit. R is more refined, and the
| differences between individual pianos are much less than in the A
| series. You can buy an R blind, but should never do so with an A.
| That said, just like the OP, I had great As at the Bechstein
| center. Buying this piano was a deep experience. It's a nerdy
| thing, too. Because you have to deep dive into why some pianos
| cost 4000 and others cost 40000. And it was deep in an emotional
| way. Deciding to sink the cost of a car in something... so
| emotional... not necessary to survive... is an act of love.
|
| Bechstein itself is to be loved, too. While their pianos are
| super premium just as those from Steinway, they also produce the
| Hoffmann-brand on their own, which is much more affordable. In
| contrast, Steinway more or less sells rebranded pianos from Asia
| as their lower brands.
|
| For those not into pianos: Steinway and Bechstein are premium
| manufacturers from Germany, like BMW and Mercedes. (Fazioli would
| be the Rolls Royce then).
| reikonomusha wrote:
| Steinway also makes pianos in the USA, with a slightly
| different design than their Hamburg-built ones.
|
| I personally find them to be over-priced (since they have a
| stage monopoly), and lacking the quality control that Bechstein
| or Fazioli have.
| Cupertino95014 wrote:
| I had a conversation with a prof from University of the
| Pacific (which is in Stockton, go figure) who was in charge
| of their piano program. He strongly contested the "new
| Steinways are shit" trope, after playing a whole lot of them
| and buying them for his students.
|
| There's actually a book I read about the _making_ of one
| particular Steinway concert grand, which is now retired after
| an illustrious career on stage at Carnegie Hall and other big
| places. I think this is it: https://www.amazon.com/88-Keys-
| Making-Steinway-Piano/dp/0517...
|
| (reviews are a little mixed, so read those before you buy
| it.)
| geff82 wrote:
| You are of course 100% right. That said, the New York
| Steinway factory mainly builds for the American continent.
| Where I live, Steinways come from Hamburg, Germany.
| zwieback wrote:
| Nice story, he looks proud and a little scared in the final
| picture, probably some interesting times ahead.
|
| My uncle had a Bechstein concert grand. When he passed away the
| family expected it would fetch a nice sum but were told that it
| was cracked and worth just enough to pay for disposal fee. Sad!
| AlbertCory wrote:
| I took lessons from someone who had TWO grand pianos, a Steinway
| and a Bechstein. They sold their house, and I became the
| custodian of the Bechstein on indefinite consignment. It had a
| cracked sound board, but she was sure that collectors would
| overlook that and be willing to pay at least $20K, given the
| illustrious name.
|
| Finally a technician came and examined it, and offered $2K, which
| he said was mostly charity. Eventually I was getting my floors
| refinished and the piano had to go, and her daughter took it.
|
| The only pianos that definitely fetch a lot are Steinway grands,
| and maybe a few smaller brands like Bosendorfer. Full uprights?
| Maybe a little. Spinets? Forget it.
| reikonomusha wrote:
| Bechstein, Bosendorfer, Bluthner, Fazioli, Steinway, Shigeru
| Kawai, (golden era) Baldwin all fetch good prices for a piano
| that's in good musical condition.
| kawera wrote:
| Pleyel too.
| zwieback wrote:
| Wow, 4 comments on this post and two are about cracked
| Bechstein soundboards!
| geff82 wrote:
| This can happen on all pianos. Do not forget that having ,,a
| Steinway" or a ,,Bechstein" for many people means that the
| piano is 100 years old (I think of my neighbor's 100 year old
| Steinway with a cracked soundboard, too). In so many years, a
| lot can happen. And in 100 years, the piano will sure not
| have been kept in perfect environmental conditions (which is
| a difficult topic for piano owners).
| reikonomusha wrote:
| This is rarely a defect of the piano as built, and more that
| people don't realize that pianos NEED an environment with a
| stable humidity of about 45% year-round. If humidity changes
| drastically, the wood will crack and the piano action will
| suffer.
|
| You can either install a humidity control system (known as
| "Dampp-Chaser systems") onto the piano itself, or invest in
| whole-home humidity control. The latter is always preferable
| when possible.
|
| If you don't do either of these, the piano--even the $250,000
| ones--will fall apart over the course of a decade or two.
| Almost all used pianos held onto by people who don't play
| (e.g., the piano is furniture) almost always are busted.
| bluGill wrote:
| A grand piano can be rebuilt, for $20000 investment that
| bechstien could have been like new again. This is a great deal
| if you have room for a large grand as most places (not people)
| buying grand pianos want new even though a rebuilt used is just
| as good.
| reikonomusha wrote:
| Rebuilding can be a great option, but you really don't know
| what you're going to get on the other end. Pianos definitely
| have "personalities", that is, quirks, unique
| characteristics, etc. You may get a "like new" piano, but it
| also may not be all that nice sounding.
|
| Even 5 brand new pianos, same size, same manufacturer, same
| production year will sound different to a pianist's ears.
| Some will be warmer, others brighter; some sensitive, some
| temperamental; some duller, others sparklier; etc. Many of
| these qualities can be adjusted a bit through a process
| called "voicing" and "regulation", but general wisdom among
| piano technicians is to _not_ try to push a piano too far
| away from its "natural" timbre.
|
| Rebuilding with a new soundboard would be a huge job.
| Depending on where OP lives and just how much work the
| rebuild entails, it could be closer to $40k.
| Cupertino95014 wrote:
| Yeah, I don't think most people are up for that, as
| evidenced by the lack of interest I got. I had a piano tech
| from San Francisco, and he was not encouraging about it.
| barkingcat wrote:
| Great journey.
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