Grand pianos are generally better than upright pianos. However, there are 2 reasons to consider an upright piano:

• Limited space
• Limited budget

Although an upright piano may be considered because of space restrictions, because of its design, a baby grand may be easier to place. The back of an upright piano is ugly. This is why it is almost always placed on a wall. So you need about 5-feet of wall space to accommodate an upright piano (even a short one).

However, a baby grand piano looks good however you place it. The flexibility allows for placement in a corner or even the middle of a room. So in some instances where space is at a premium, a baby grand may be easier to place than an upright piano.

It is true that you will have to invest more money to get a baby grand piano compared to an upright. However, there are several distinct advantage in regards to sound and touch:

• The sound of an upright comes out the back. As a result the sound goes into the wall. A baby grand or grand piano opens up into the room projecting the sound where you want it.

• The keys of an upright are shorter than a baby grand (and much shorter than a grand piano). Not the part you see, but behind the fall board. As a result, it is harder to press black keys and between black keys on an upright than on a baby grand. Just like being near the center of a see saw, it is difficult to get leverage on an upright piano because the shorter keys don’t allow for the leverage you get on a grand piano.

• The hammers travel sideways on an upright action instead of up and down as in a grand action. So even the best uprights have sluggish actions because they don’t have the benefit of gravity helping the repetition of the hammers.

• Last, the pedals on an upright don’t do what they are supposed to do (except the sustain pedal on the right). The soft pedal (une corde) on a grand piano shifts the action so that the hammers hit only 2 strings instead of 3. This gives a change of tonal color which is one of the most magnificent expressive devices of a piano. In an upright, the soft pedal changes the touch by making the hammers closer to the strings which makes it harder to play loud but doesn’t change the tone at all. Also the middle pedal (sustento) rarely provides the proper function on an upright.

So if you can afford it, get a grand piano or a baby grand. You will appreciate the difference.

The country of origin is often the best indicator of the quality of pianos. Since piano production began in Germany and the United States, these represent the very best, pianos.

The United States only has 3 manufacturers left although there used to be hundreds of piano companies building in America. Today we have only:

• Steinway, which makes about 2500 pianos a year
• Mason & Hamlin which builds only 250 pianos per year
• Charles Walter, a relative newcomer which builds only about 65 pianos each year

The best European pianos come primarily from Germany:

• Bechstein
• Bluthner
• Bosendorfer (from Austria)
• Fazioli (from Italy)

The Eastern European pianos are not as refined but offer excellent value:

• Petrof/Weinbach (The same company produces both pianos.)
• Estonia

Japan makes the best Asian production pianos. There are 2 companies which are the largest and second largest manufacturers of pianos in the world:

• Yamaha
• Kawai

Both companies have factories throughout Asia (not just in Japan) and the best pianos they build are made in Japan. They offer everything from budget instruments to hand-made pianos rivaling the best German and American pianos.

Korea has been making pianos for quite some time. While not as refined as the Japanese pianos, they continually improve. There are 2 Korean piano manufactures both of which have factories in other countries:

• Samick
• Young Chang

Samick sells pianos under many different brand names including Kohler and Campbell, Knabe, Sohmer, Pramberger, Remington and many more. These are referred to as “stencil pianos” since the original manufacturer is either out of business or it is a made up name. Young Chang sells pianos under the Weber name.

2. Steinway pianos that have Teflon bushings in the action should always be avoided:
There are some pianos from the period that Steinway was owned by CBS in which Teflon was used in place of the felt bushings in the action. Some of these pianos exhibit problems. However, the issues are not nearly as severe as the problems of Steinways from decades earlier suffering from verdigris (a condition of gumming up of action parts as a result of having them dipped in paraffin oil when manufactured). One of the biggest problems with Teflon action parts is that few technicians know how to deal with them properly. Usually they can work fine unless there is a major change in climate.

3. Steinway upright pianos aren’t very good:
Here Steinway is getting a bum rap! While one could argue that Mason & Hamlin upright pianos and some of the extinct American companies from years ago produced superior upright pianos, Steinway uprights are by no means sub-par pianos. The fact that they don’t measure up to their grand pianos is the nature of uprights compared to grands.

4. Boston and Essex pianos are as close as you can get to a Steinway in a lower price range:
This is a beautiful myth created by Steinway to sell more than the 2,500 or so pianos that Steinway produces. These stencil brands are rebadged Kawais made in Japan, and Pearl Rivers made in China. No company ever OEM’s higher quality instruments to competitors! And the buyer must pay a premium since 2 companies have to make money on the sale. You are better off buying a Kawai or Pearl River directly from the manufacturer. Or better yet, search out a high quality, used American piano other than Steinway since the Steinway name has a price premium attached to it.

5. New York Steinways can’t compare to Hamburg produced Steinways:
Just as there is a mystique to the Steinway name, there is romance to the Hamburg Steinway name. Perhaps there is more consistency from era to era in the German manufactured Steinways. However, a great Steinway is a great Steinway and there are phenomenal instruments from both factories.

1. Steinway is the best piano in the world.

There are a handful of piano companies which make pianos equal in quality to Steinway. (For example: Bösendorfer, Bechstein, Fazioli, Blüthner and Mason & Hamlin are all top notch pianos with rich histories.) In fact, if you look in the latest supplement to “The Piano Book”, by Larry Fine, New York made Steinway pianos are rated in the 3rd rank of pianos according to manufacturing quality. So why is Steinway recognized as the undisputed leader? In a word: marketing. Just as Microsoft dominates computer software because of aggressive licensing arrangements, John Steinway helped propel Steinway & Sons to its market dominance through exclusive artist contracts and favorable institutional arrangements.

2. When you move a piano it has to be tuned.

This is a half truth. The fact is, a piano that is moved will show up pretty much as it left most of the time. However, after the piano gets acclimated to its new environment, it will require tuning. The piano may not sound bad, but the pitch of the entire instrument may adjust slightly up or down. It is important to keep a piano stable. It is best to wait at least a couple of weeks or even longer after a move before tuning to make sure the piano has settled.

3. Kids banging on a piano may damage the instrument.

While it can grate on your nerves, the force with which kids hit the keys of a piano even with their fists can’t match the power professional pianists inflict upon a piano in concert. Just be sure that the children don’t take sharp or heavy objects to the keyboard since this can damage the instrument.

4. The fall board of a piano must have a slow close feature to avoid injury.

The slow close fall-board feature of a piano is a great marketing tool. The truth is, unless you have some really wild kids, the incidence of being hurt by a falling fall board is quite rare. Most of the best pianos including Steinway do not offer a slow close fall board.

5. You shouldn’t place a piano on an outside wall.

Even in a temperate climate, the insulation of modern homes will keep the temperature fairly stable even on an outside wall. However, it is important to avoid direct sunlight on your piano. This will not only effect tuning stability, but it will fade the finish in a matter of weeks. Also, you should keep your piano closed particularly at night. If you leave your windows open at night, the moist night air will rust the strings. Also, even with the piano closed, the cooler air can make the sound board contract destabilizing the tuning. Use your judgment in balancing the enjoyment of your piano versus its longevity.

I’m interested to hear your opinions and thoughts on these piano myths. Please leave some comments below. Thanks for reading.

While there are numerous studies linking higher verbal and math scores to music education (UC Irvine: Raucher, Shaw “Mozart Effect”), music and arts awareness also has intrinsic value. It is a recurring pattern of cutting funding for essential subjects when budgets are challenged. We must work together to raise awareness and money to help offset these cuts. If you are passionate about this, you can help by offering any small tips on how together we can bring Living Piano: Journey Through Time to schools in support of music and arts programs.

Please respond within this blog or contact me, Robert Estrin at Robert@LivingPiano.com 949-244-3729. You can get more information at www.LivingPiano.com. Thank you for your support.

The harpsichord is a keyboard instrument that creates tone by plucking strings with duck quills. As a result, the force with which the keys are depressed doesn’t affect the volume. Christofori developed a primitive hammer action which allowed for dynamics. However, there were subsequently countless technical innovations that led to the development of the piano as we know it.
It was during Beethoven’s life that the piano experienced dramatic evolution. While Christofori’s keyboard was made entirely out of wood, little by little, metal bracing was added to strengthen the piano. By the late nineteenth century, nearly the entire inside of the piano became reinforced by a cast iron plate which supports enormous string tension. Steinway & Sons was producing a fully modern piano by the late 1800’s.

So, it is a subjective question as to when the first “Piano” was played. It depends upon how you define the piano. In the strictest sense one could argue that Christofori played the first piano at the turn of the 18th century. Or, perhaps the first piano was played by Henry Steinway! However, Franz Liszt was the first to play the piano as we know it. The first person to play solo piano recitals, Liszt transformed the instrument to a modern standard with the help of countless instrument builders. While the instrument he played was not quite a modern piano, his performances solidified the piano as we know it today.