New Pianos

Surely, buying a new piano should to be straightforward enough, shouldn't it? As there are not so many piano shops around, if you wish to compare prices or try pianos in more than one shop, your hunt for a new piano will mean a good deal of travelling.

A piano can seem perfect in the shop, but at home in your music room, the sound hardens into a strident, in-your-face tone which is difficult to control and hard on the ears. Second thoughts, regret and disappointment are not easy to overcome when you have bought an expensive piano. Surely a piano costing so much should be satisfactory from Day One!  

It is not uncommon, as a technician, to be called in to deal with a brand new, expensive and newly-delivered piano that is terribly out of tune and/or the action is very heavy and difficult to play. Promises that the action would loosen up or the tone would mellow after being played for a while, prove to be disappointingly empty. The owner is very unhappy - and understandibly cross that there is a problem at all!

These issues can all be sorted but not in about 10 minutes. It is not rare to find a brand new piano which is so heavy to play the action needs re-centring. Frequently one finds keys that are sluggish, hammer-felts that are as hard as nails, notes going wildly out of tune or pedals that squeak every time they are pressed down. 

I have a great deal of sympathy for New-Piano-Buyers who feel so let down by their new piano. Piano brochures - without exception, make bold claims about the quality and care of manufacture. But sadly, too often, modern pianos never quite live up to expectations. 

In an ideal world, all pianos would be ready and 'match fit' long before it is delivered to the home of an excited pianist who has invested their hard-earned money in their dream piano. 

Perhaps 50 - 60% of new piano owners would say they are totally satisfied with their purchase. Possibly, the tuner/technician's satisfaction rate would be rather less, but the reality is that if brochures were written by the purchaser there would be less use of extravagant superlatives to describe the piano. 

Buyers should insist on standards that match the price they pay for a piano. One expects the quality of a cheap piano to match its low price. Equally, the quality of an expensive piano ought to be at least as high as the price - certainly, no lower!

Tuner's Journal

© Steve Burden
Pianology

Piano Brochures

Brochures about New Pianos are littered with adjectives that imply a superiority of tone, craftsmanship, build quality, choice of materials, the range of models... on and on!

The unfortunate would-be buyer, has to learn a sort of code before coming close to making a decision. Then, when the piano is delivered, the tuner often has to 'iron out' the niggles and tweak the odd misbehaving notes before the customer feels he has made the right choice.

The most difficult part about using words and pictures to describe a piano, is that every piano is so different. Tastes are different. The process of choosing a particular piano is a deeply personal thing. Any attempt to narrow the decision down to a particular piano by simply reading a brochure, is doomed to meet with disappointment.

In a glossy brochure, references made to the piano maker's art, is little more than part of the overall intention to impress the reader. What does it really mean? Great skill and patience are essential to build a piano but building a piano is also an art. Craft, experience and a profound love of the work are the special ingredients needed to produce that spark of inspiration for the piano buyer. 

What buyers really need to know is that their choice will match their expectations.

As a tuner, I come across many new pianos. Sadly only a few of them get my 'thumbs-up' vote. This is not because I do not like new pianos, but because I am often disappointed myself with the condition of the piano when I get to tune it in the customer's house.

If I were spending serious money on a piano, I would feel justified in having high expectations - Isn't that what the brochures are trying inspire in the buyer? 

A while ago, a customer who bought a top name 'silent' piano, to replace a piano that was rather old and definitely inferior, said she regretted ever buying the new one! Why? Because it was not what she led to believe it was. This is not a customer who will go about saying she was 'completely satisfied' with the piano. 

Another customer bought a high-end and expensive piano. After the free tuning, she was less than overwhelmed with it - only to be told by the tuner/technician that she was being too fussy! 

Piano makers seem not to care about their pianos once in the hands of the retailer. Pianists are the buyers and users of pianos - if the goods supplied are poor, the demand will soon drain away. In the Piano Trade, we have a lot of work to do!  

The Piano World

© Steve Burden

Buying a Used Piano

Buying a good used piano should not be difficult, so long as you do not get carried away with what a piano looks like or by the fact that it is cheap. It is very easy to pay a lot of money for a piano that is simply not worth buying. Pianos, when they are 80 years old or more will almost certainly need some repair work, so it is essential to consider the cost of any work before you agree to buy it. 

Piano repairs are extremely time-consuming and therefore expensive. You do not want to buy a piano and have it delivered only to find that it is beyond any viable repair. Pianos are for playing music - not for stressing you out! Keep the following points in mind when you are looking to buy a piano:

• Never get sentimental over a piano.
• Never buy a piano just because it looks nice.
• Buy as young a piano as your budget allows.
• If you can, get professional help.  

Any piano may be better than no piano but if you go to the trouble of looking for a useable piano, it helps if it actually works and is tuneable. These basics cannot be assumed if you are looking for the cheapest piano available. The pianist who has to play it, might play it once and never again if he feels it is too much of a challenge. 

Generally speaking, for most piano-owners, the average time between tunings is getting longer all the time: months turn into years and all that time the pitch will be gradually sinking. Claims that a piano for sale was tuned 6 months ago, though not meant to deceive, might be a little exaggerated. A vague "recently tuned" is probably more truthful, but could mean 2 or 3 years ago!

There can be any number of mechanical problems hidden from view, inside a pretty case. If notes do not repeat; play a couple of times and then stop working; if there are clicks and knocks every time you play a note; if the key sticks down when played... there are serious problems within! Walk away.

Of course, if you want to spend £50 and no more, then you will need a lot of luck. I hope you manage to find something, but you are very unlikely to get a reliable piano.

What makes should you look for? Don't even think of it! There were thousands of makers producing pianos that were nothing special when they were new. These are the sorts of piano that are now being sold very cheaply or even given away. To start looking for specific makers, you are at the very least, considering pianos a couple of price brackets up the scale.

You will save yourself much worry, pain and regret if you seek the advice of a trusted professional - at least to steer you away from a disastrous choice. Happy hunting!

The Piano World

© Steve Burden