How to Purchase a Piano adapted from a Seminar delivered by Daniel J. Kennedy 11:00-11:30 a.m. September 30, 2000 (revised Jan.

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1 DANIEL J. KENNEDY Piano Studio 1301 S. East St. Amherst, MA (413) How to Purchase a Piano adapted from a Seminar delivered by Daniel J. Kennedy 11:00-11:30 a.m. September 30, 2000 (revised Jan. 13, 2011) I recommend buying a real, wooden piano. A real piano in fair shape is better than a great electronic keyboard. A real piano has the real touch and feel. This is critical for muscle memory, or, how a student will internalize the touch and feel of the piano and remember it for the rest of their lives. An old-fashioned upright from the 1920s or 1930s can be great. They tend to have more craftsmanship in the exterior. They were the concert piano of the 1910s and 1920s the modern grand piano as we know it didn t come into being until the 1930s. Buying a piano is like buying a computer in this way: one should afford the best one they can. A piano, in my opinion, is a better investment than a computer, because a computer will become obsolete, and a piano can be maintained. There are Steinways from the 1880s which are still in perfect working order because they have been maintained over the years. A digital piano is a nice instrument, but is technically a computer. It will go obsolete, too. Consider what you want in that a piano is also a piece of furniture. Go slow -- don't just buy the first thing you find.

2 Look at more than one piano before you purchase. It s like buying a new car or a used car: the sales people know that you re not buying this very often, and they know that people are often nervous. Look in: local newspapers western mass craigslist word of mouth Yellow Pages I tend to favor American, German, and Czech pianos. Two ways to achieve a brighter sound: increasing the tension, or having a more resonant sounding board. Increasing the tension very high, w/ Japanese models, creates a brilliant sound, yet there is so much tension that in years (some people say sooner) the entire sound board itself will begin to buckle. Bright sounding pianos are catchy ear candy. Learn to appreciate a darker, mellower sound. Over time people favor the mellower sounding pianos, while the very bright pianos become tiresome in sound. Bright sounding pianos:wine coolers Dark sounding:an aged Cabernet How much time through hand craftsmanship was spent vs. how much machine time was spent building the instrument? Go with your gut/intangibles Physically play every note If it s a used instrument, inquire, Why are you selling this instrument?.

3 You can finance it. Also you can hire me to look at piano for you. Avoid free pianos which have oodles of hidden repairs mostly someone just wants it physically removed at no cost to them. There are good digital pianos, too. Advantages include that you never have to get it tuned. Disadvantages include: it s not a real sound. Sometimes you can find used digital pianos. Learn to paint:real experience Using an acoustic piano:a real, live instrument Best companies for digital pianos in no particular order : Yamaha, Technics, Kurzweil. A digital piano must have: 1) full-sized keys 2) weighted keys 3) sustain/hold/pedal "jack" 4) keyboard stand (preferably a furniture/console which is stable rather than a Quik-Lok X-shaped stand which is wobbly) 5) 88 keys 6) a bench (usually pretty close to 19" tall) 7) a music rest And ideally could have: 1) a break, or a little breakpoint in the key where touching the key at the midway point feels like it s pushing a hammer over. 2) MIDI in/out capability -- or these days it might be a USB instrument -- (to hook to a computer)

4 * * * SUMMARY Buying a piano can be an exciting, enjoyable experience, if you take your time, be open to learning new things, and go in with a little knowledge. Remember: go with your gut does this feel right. GOOD LUCK, and as always, call me at any time with questions and concerns. Resources PURCHASE M. Steinert & Sons, the Steinway and Boston Piano dealers for Boston. PianoBid.com Falcetti Music in West Springfield SELECTED PIANO MAKERS (in no particular order) note: some makers are not in business anymore Essex Piano designed by Steinway Boston Piano: designed by Steinway. This is what I own and I really love it. HYPERLINK Steinway & Sons, Co.: HYPERLINK Chickering

5 Henry F. Miller Baldwin: HYPERLINK (brands, cont d) Mason & Hamlin: HYPERLINK Steinert Bechstein Bösendorfer: HYPERLINK Boston Piano: HYPERLINK Story & Clark: HYPERLINK On Asian models in general I steer away from uprights, which usually have a string tension that is too high built to break within years. Yamaha: HYPERLINK I recommend Yamaha grands, but not the uprights & baby grands, Kawai: HYPERLINK Young Chang: HYPERLINK