How to Donate a Piano

Pianos are not the smallest pieces of furniture in the house. So  when the family piano is no longer used and taking up valuable space, often the thought is to donate the piano to the school, the church or the village hall. Anywhere it can be played and appreciated.  

While donating a piano to a school or college is a generous gesture, the kind of piano and its condition might throw a different light on the gift.

Institutions need any donated piano to be up to scratch, up to pitch and ready for continual and rigorous use without the school having to spend any new money. Pianos of a certain age will never be fully up to scratch, and pianos that are ripe for being donated are often pianos that are simply unloved and unwanted by the owners. In this age of trying to recycle everything, passing on a surplus piano seems a very 'green' thing to do! But not always the most helpful thing to do.

Being given a 'grand' piano seems like manna from heaven to an institution with limited funds. Surely a grand piano can be used for concerts and recitals - what can possibly go wrong? But alas, most of the pianos I have viewed on behalf of hopeful clients, have been poor examples of mediocre manufacture.

It is better to turn down the offer of a poor piano than to be obliged to take it and be forced into paying good money trying to make good an inherently bad piano.

Occasionally there are happy endings:

One was when a parent of a child at a certain school very generously bought a piano for the school. 

Another, an 'old' parent wanted to donate their 1970s Yamaha to the school and even paid to have safety casters fitted, the piano moved and tuned! 

This is how to donate a piano!

So if you are considering gifting a piano to a school of college, be doubly sure the piano would meet the demands expected and actually be a blessing to the school.
    

Tuner's Journal

© Steve Burden

Pianology

Bechstein Pianos - Pictures

Bechstein is among the very best-known names of piano-makers. Every piano in their range has its own characteristics but, the qualities of good design and solid construction are clearly seen in these pictures of the various models. Only extreme age or excessive wear will defeat these wonderful pianos!

Model V
(older, straight-strung piano)

The Bechstein Model 7

The Bechstein model 8

The Bechstein Model 9

Bechstein Model A

Model S

Kawai

Kawai

The Japanese culture greatly values respect and honour. Kiochi Kawai established the Kawai musical Instrument Research Laboratory in 1927 but for him, manufacturing pianos is not just about business, it is more the pursuit of dreams and destiny. 

By 1935, production reached 85 pianos per month. Due to the War production was suspended from 1937 - 1948. Within ten years of production resuming, Shigeru Kawai, having taken over the business from his father, set about to to be among the first to embrace modern scientific aids and technology to transform the piano making process.

The traditions of philosophy and the joining of mind and spirit, all throw their weight behind the push towards perfection. Kawai pianos have developed their own actions using ABS carbon for some of the action parts. Their painstaking research has been rewarded with a unique result which stands up well to the stiff scrutiny of purists who prefer the more standard and accepted traditionally-made actions.

In 1999, the elite range of Shigeru Kawai Pianos was launched. These extraordinary pianos are built by the best of Master Piano Artisans. These technicians seek to elevate their work - making it more of a mystical quest. The role of Master Piano Artisan is to present the artist with an instrument of inspirational and limitless possibilities.

Having had the privilege of tuning one of these very special pianos, I can only praise the workmanship and acknowledge the pursuit of excellence in piano manufacture. I look forward to tuning many more of them!

Good to know that even the standard range of Kawai Pianos is impressive. They are always well put together and convey the essence of the Kawai philosophy.

Kawai Serial Nos.

Directory of Piano Makers

© Steve Burden