Piano upgrade time
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Today I am going piano crawling. To the Bay Area. Looks like 5 stores on the route,
Rkassman piano in Berkely has yamaha, kawai, bosendorfer, schimmel, mason hamlin, estonia, grotian, steingraeber.
San Mateo Piano has Shigeru Kawai
Colton Piano in San Jose has Mason Hamlin Sauter
Music Exchange San Jose has Bosendorfer Yamaha
Southbay Piano in San Jose is affiliate of San Mateo piano and has a hardly used big Sauter I am told I must try
Silicon Valley Piano has C Bechstein.
I think that's enough for one day. Will report back soon. -
I really was hoping to find a Bluthner dealer there but alas only in LA. Have been keen on their sound lately. But to be able to touch finally Mason Hamlin, Estonia, Grotian, Bosendorfer , Shigeru, C Bechstein, and Sautre all in one day could be sensory overload as it is.
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Shigeru SK7 still my top desire to testdrive and was speaking to one of the salesmen yesterday and explained my situation with Sardinia and he suggested that I might do better finding Shigeru's in Europe for cheaper as they have to compete against all the German pianos over there. But no Kawai dealer in Italy, closest is Spain. He said though that the SK7 they have on the floor is pretty much new that was sold and shortly given back and is Shigeru's 3rd generation piano and that I might be amazed at the price they will give me.
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I really was hoping to find a Bluthner dealer there but alas only in LA. Have been keen on their sound lately. But to be able to touch finally Mason Hamlin, Estonia, Grotian, Bosendorfer , Shigeru, C Bechstein, and Sautre all in one day could be sensory overload as it is.
@NobodySock said in Piano upgrade time:
But to be able to touch finally Mason Hamlin, Estonia, Grotian, Bosendorfer , Shigeru, C Bechstein, and Sautre all in one day could be sensory overload as it is.
A fun day, for sure. But I think you are correct in your statement. If you try and do too many in one day, it becomes difficult to separate them. I think you need to take some detailed notes immediately after playing each one.
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I'm enjoying your quest from the safety of my living room. I'm not as excited about the modern Bluthner pianos. I've played all of the pianos you're trying. An exceptional instrument by any one of them could work for me - but generally I'm inclined toward a Hamburg S&S or Bosie. I've not played many Faziolis - so they might win the day as well.
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I'm enjoying your quest from the safety of my living room. I'm not as excited about the modern Bluthner pianos. I've played all of the pianos you're trying. An exceptional instrument by any one of them could work for me - but generally I'm inclined toward a Hamburg S&S or Bosie. I've not played many Faziolis - so they might win the day as well.
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@kluurs said in Piano upgrade time:
Hamburg S&S or Bosie
I think they are so different that one cannot love both. It's either or.
@Klaus said in Piano upgrade time:
@kluurs said in Piano upgrade time:
Hamburg S&S or Bosie
I think they are so different that one cannot love both. It's either or.
Yeah - I understand - which is why I'd like both.
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@Klaus said in Piano upgrade time:
@kluurs said in Piano upgrade time:
Hamburg S&S or Bosie
I think they are so different that one cannot love both. It's either or.
Yeah - I understand - which is why I'd like both.
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Shigeru SK7 still my top desire to testdrive and was speaking to one of the salesmen yesterday and explained my situation with Sardinia and he suggested that I might do better finding Shigeru's in Europe for cheaper as they have to compete against all the German pianos over there. But no Kawai dealer in Italy, closest is Spain. He said though that the SK7 they have on the floor is pretty much new that was sold and shortly given back and is Shigeru's 3rd generation piano and that I might be amazed at the price they will give me.
@NobodySock check Saccuman in Bolzano or Alfonsi pianoforti in Rome.
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You are really going to drive yourself to paralysis by analysis. 1) write down what it is you are looking for from your piano, remembering there is no perfect piano. Have a realistic expectation for what you want… Tonality, sustain, voicing, power/dynamic range….2) then research which of the pianos best fit the characteristics you are looking for. Narrow it down to 3 initial brands. Test the three, write down your impressions, what you liked and what you disliked. Visit the 3 pianos again a few days later and reassess. 3) After that, consider if you want to try 2 different brands that may offer something that the three you tried didn’t offer.
Finally, don’t spend tens of thousands of dollars in actual money or time in fretting over saving $5,000 in actual money.
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I'm enjoying your quest from the safety of my living room. I'm not as excited about the modern Bluthner pianos. I've played all of the pianos you're trying. An exceptional instrument by any one of them could work for me - but generally I'm inclined toward a Hamburg S&S or Bosie. I've not played many Faziolis - so they might win the day as well.
@kluurs said in Piano upgrade time:
I'm enjoying your quest from the safety of my living room. I'm not as excited about the modern Bluthner pianos. I've played all of the pianos you're trying. An exceptional instrument by any one of them could work for me - but generally I'm inclined toward a Hamburg S&S or Bosie. I've not played many Faziolis - so they might win the day as well.
Which Bosie? One of the more traditional 225/200 or one of the new VC series)
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@kluurs said in Piano upgrade time:
I'm enjoying your quest from the safety of my living room. I'm not as excited about the modern Bluthner pianos. I've played all of the pianos you're trying. An exceptional instrument by any one of them could work for me - but generally I'm inclined toward a Hamburg S&S or Bosie. I've not played many Faziolis - so they might win the day as well.
Which Bosie? One of the more traditional 225/200 or one of the new VC series)
@LuFins-Dad said in Piano upgrade time:
@kluurs said in Piano upgrade time:
I'm enjoying your quest from the safety of my living room. I'm not as excited about the modern Bluthner pianos. I've played all of the pianos you're trying. An exceptional instrument by any one of them could work for me - but generally I'm inclined toward a Hamburg S&S or Bosie. I've not played many Faziolis - so they might win the day as well.
Which Bosie? One of the more traditional 225/200 or one of the new VC series)
I'd probably lean toward the VCs - but I'd play the field to see if one hit me right. I'm a piano-slut. I've fallen in love with a couple of nice Yamahas, a Bosendorfer 280VC, and a really nice B at Klavierhaus years ago, and a Baldwin SD10 long ago. I've never particularly been in love with any Bechsteins or new Bluthners - sorry, Kenny. I've liked but not loved M&H and the 3 Faziolis I've played.
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This reminds me of going winery hopping in Virginia. The first wine always tastes the best, until I try the wine at the next place. Eventually I wake up the next morning with a monthly wine subscription and red stained lips. Moral of the story? Start with red but end with white.
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Sorry I haven’t posted any updates on this piano hunt but things have taken priority and lost my 17-year-old girl Bella last week it just gets tougher every time you lose one. Anyways, I have resolved to just wait until I get there and take a trip to Rome and see what they got and start feeling out The European continent for my forever piano which will probably be used.
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I have possible good news in that I’ve taken on a new piano teacher. She’s an Armenian lady about my age. Who’s a former concert pianist and is very good friends with Sergei Babayan who still has played the best recital I have witnessed. When she heard I was selling my pet rod, her eyes grew and she says she wants to buy it for her son. Petrof is a well known brand in Eastern Europe. I asked her last lesson what the predominant brand was on the floor for performances in the countries of East Europe, asking if Steinway was ubiquitous over there as well and she said that the number one brand that appears over there is Bluthner
