Steinway’s Model D: The iconic concert grand piano of choiceby Stephen N. Reed
When Steinway & Sons rolled out their very first Model D concert grand piano in 1884, they could not have known how much one piano model would come to define their company. Top Steinway dealers like M. Steinert & Sons proudly offered this exceptionally designed concert grand then and have been doing so ever since.
The 130+ piano patents Steinway has filed over the years, along with the best materials and painstaking design features account for much of the Model D’s success.
So does Steinway’s willingness to listen well to the many Steinway Artists who have weighed in over the years on the reasons the nearly 9’ Model D is their concert grand piano of choice.
Hearing these artists’ perspectives provides a better understanding as to why the Model D is preferred by over 95% of professional pianists playing with orchestras worldwide.
The Steinway Model D is so ubiquitous on the major concert stages worldwide that many critics find it synonymous with the word “piano.”
Indeed, the Model D gets to the heart of Padua’s Bartolomeo Cristofori’s breakthrough when creating the first pianoforte in 1700: the ability to bring out greatly diverse shades of loud and soft tones, along with rich colors in both the treble and bass registers.
The Model D is the official piano of hundreds of musical venues, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Juilliard, and the New England Conservatory.
Over 200 colleges and universities are officially designated as All-Steinway Schools, with the Model D taking center stage on their campus’s performing arts centers and music departments.
Moreover, if you’ve listened to a classical or jazz piano recording lately, chances are that you were listening to a Steinway Model D.
Steinway’s competitors point to the competent marketing department at the New York-based piano maker as the key to the Model D’s dominance as the concert grand piano of choice for most performing pianists.
However, such reasoning ignores the stated professional needs of many performing artists who make their living from the musical instrument they play.
Additionally, would institutions of higher education and symphony orchestras risk turning off talented prospective students or season ticket holders with a concert grand piano that didn’t deliver?
What is it that has made the Model D the standard in the industry for generations?
Early in the history of Steinway & Sons, one can see the gradual emergence of the concert grand piano that would become the Model D. Some point to the Centennial Grand, rolled out by Steinway in 1875, as the direct precursor to the Model D, which made its appearance in 1884.
But even before the Centennial Grand, elements of the Model D were coming into focus. For example, Steinway’s “Plain Grand Style 2” piano, unveiled in 1868, was already getting closer to 9’ in length and was the first piano with 88 keys.
The Plain Grand Style 2 was Steinway’s lead model and featured Steinway’s patented repeating action and resonator. Stylish appointments included serpentine piano legs.
By the time the Plain Grand Style 2 was built, Steinway & Sons had become the top piano manufacturer in America, with great influence in their industry. Steinway’s use of a cast iron frame and overstringing in the Plain Grand Style 2 were picked up by other piano makers.
By 1880, Steinway started to produce their Model A, a smaller grand piano that nevertheless had significant ramifications for the Model D later.
Steinway’s Model A featured a laminated maple cabinet, resulting in their first modern rim case. This case was created by the use of long, thin planks of maple that were bent around a form and pressed together with glue.
The result was a stronger and more stable case for the Model A. Steinway had hit upon an approach to their smaller grand pianos’ rims that worked for larger models like the Model D, as well.
A Model D prototype was used in 1883 as a concert instrument at Steinway Hall in New York City. Steinway then unveiled the 1884 ‘D’, a new concert grand model with a 20-note bass register (instead of 17), a capo bar in both upper treble sections, a multi-laminated case, and a pedal lyre.
The modern Model D measures 8’11¾“ in length, an evolution from its earlier prototype which was 8 ½’ in length.
Making the Model D nearly 9’ in length was a deliberate move by Steinway engineers to provide the pianist more control and a wider range of expression, due to the pianist playing back on these longer keys more easily.
Additionally, the length of the keys gives added power for the piano to hold its own with any orchestra–and to be heard well on the back row of any concert hall.
Except for the Model D lengthening to nearly 9 ‘, few changes occurred in the years that followed, except for a new soundboard.
In 1936, a patented Steinway soundboard was added. This soundboard had a thickened center point that tapers to its edges to yield a quicker response and longevity.
The combination of the stronger rim, a richer bass, and a patented Steinway soundboard has been to create a Model D concert grand piano that now constitutes 5% of all Steinway grands created each year. All of Steinway’s famous piano innovations come together in this one concert-level instrument.
Since 2010, 25,000 of the 600,000 pianos built by Steinway have been Model Ds. Of the 424 Centennial Grand predecessor pianos, about 30 still exist.
Steinway’s commitment to establishing a strong bass register back in 1884 has paid big dividends over the years. Over the years, the Model D and other Steinway grands have possessed a strong bass to go along with their broad tone and a timbre some have called “spine-tingling.”
The sheer power in a Model D allows it to project to the back of any concert hall.
The Model D’s action is exceptionally responsive, allowing the pianist to channel a range of subtle emotions directly into the keyboard. Again, the length of the keys in the Model D is responsible. The pianist utilizes their gentler feel when playing towards the back of the keys.
This sophisticated action is the reason so many professional pianists prefer the Model D: they feel at one with the instrument and believe that its range of tone and color brings out their musical best.
The Model D is the ideal piano for some–but not others
While the Model D has typically been associated with concert halls, an increasing number of Model Ds now find their way into homes.
In addition to the Model D being the overwhelming choice of professional concert pianists and universities worldwide, this 9’ grand piano is also appropriate for the home of both the professional pianist and the serious amateur.
However, the Model D is not the piano for the budget-minded or those with a modest living space. 11 feet of floor space in the home, including the bench, is needed to accommodate the Model D.
In essence, the Model D is for those who insist on the best possible piano–and who can afford its $198,400 price tag.
For five generations, Steinway & Sons’ Model D has stood out as the standard of the industry, the concert grand to which all others are compared. Today, over 95% of pianists performing with an orchestra request the Steinway Model D as their piano of choice.
Each generation of Steinway Artists has had champions for the Model D, pianists for whom the D was the piano that they had long sought as a performing artist. Several of these were at the very top of their profession. Some examples include:
The materials and design Steinway & Sons have invested in the Model D is a testimony to company founder Henry Steinway’s famous philosophy to simply build the best piano possible.
Many believe Steinway has achieved that musical quest in developing and refining the Model D concert grand over five generations.
The combination of using the highest quality materials, creating the best possible design, and seeking input from the world’s greatest performing pianists have resulted in an exceptional 9’ grand piano.
The Model D is seen as the pinnacle of pianos for concert halls as well as the homes of all those who share Henry Steinway’s search for the perfect piano.
If you’re in the Greater Boston area, come into one of our showrooms and see for yourself the concert grand the musical world has been buzzing about for over 130 years: Steinway and Sons’ Model D.
Meantime, read further about what places Steinways in a class of their own:
by Stephen N. Reed
Keeping one’s piano in tune is a major responsibility of owning a piano. Much is at stake when you don’t keep your piano well-tuned. Later maintenance brought on by neglect can be a more expensive proposition than regular tuning.
In this article, we will illustrate how the different elements involved in keeping your piano well-tuned are a fraction of the cost involved in neglecting its tune.
Since 1860, M. Steinert & Sons has been supporting its customers by advising regular tuning of their pianos for optimum performance, whether in the home or the concert hall.
Keeping one’s piano well-tuned simply goes with the territory of owning a fine musical instrument. The good news is that, once you find a competent piano technician, a solid, regular tuning can be given at a rather reasonable cost.
If needed, piano technicians can oftentimes provide other services like regulation that are important for the mechanical upkeep of your piano. This keeps your piano in top shape, both mechanically and in terms of its overall tone.
Traditionally, a piano technician would tune aurally, that is, by ear. First, they take some strip mutes made of red felt to mute the outside of the strings to allow them to listen to just one string at a time.
Each string is wound around an individual tuning pin, which is what keeps the string tight. Some piano technicians use only a tuning hammer and a tuning fork. The technician hits the tuning fork, then places it on one of the strings. The technician then plays the key, attempting to match the two sounds.
At this point, the tuning hammer is placed on one of the tuning pins. The piano technician will turn the pin with a tuning hammer to the right to make the key sharper and to the left to make it sound flatter. The technician literally “plays it by ear” until they have the key tuned correctly.
But this isn’t an average person’s ear. A well-regarded piano technician has an ear that recognizes correct pitch from a combination of musical giftedness with increasing experience working on pianos.
While many aural piano technicians can still be found, most piano tuners use chromatic tuners today. At the beginning of a piano tuning, the technician will use it to set the first string to make sure the piano is on pitch. But the chromatic tuner can’t be used to tune the whole piano, due to the nature of the piano’s strings
A string vibrates between two fixed points by vibrating through sections of its length–whole, half, one-quarter, and so on. These vibrations create overtones along with the overarching frequency. For example, the A below Middle C, which has a frequency of 220Hz, will also produce overtones of 440Hz, 660Hz, 880Hz, and so on.
Because a piano string is somewhat stiff, these resulting overtones sound higher in pitch than they should be, in theory. The piano technician matches the overtones of lower notes to the basic pitch of higher notes. The result is “stretch,” here defined as the octaves coming out wider than they theoretically should be.
“Stretch” is why a chromatic tuner can’t be used to tune a whole piano. While the chromatic tuner would give frequencies that are theoretically correct, it doesn’t take into account the stretch with the overtones. Still, an increasing number of modern software applications are able to factor in a suitable stretch.
The use of electronic technology in a venerable field like piano tuning has taken time to gain acceptance, though again, most piano technicians today use some technology to supplement their aural skills.
One area that set back electronic devices like the chromatic tuner was the now-debunked notion that an unskilled person could become a competent piano technician simply by using a chromatic tuner. Not true.
However, in the hands of a skilled piano technician, a chromatic tuner can be used quite effectively. The technician can double-check their aural results against the chromatic tuner.
Piano tuning is a highly specialized technical field. Whether or not they use aural methods only or draw upon an electronic tuning device, you are paying for a competent piano technician’s skill and experience. This will become clearer when we discuss the price for a good piano tuning below.
Most pianos have 230 strings. When you consider that each string is stretched to between 150-200 lbs of pressure, together with the heavy wooden framing, the total pull is nearly 20 tons.
One of the most common reasons for a piano tuning is to tune and tighten the strings to elevate the pitch up to a vibrating frequency of the international standard of A440. A440 is the standard by which the A above middle C is tightened enough to vibrate to 440 Hz, that is 440 times per second.
Tuning is the task of making the string tension of each of the 230 strings correctly harmonize with one another.
New pianos need tuning up to four times during the first year after purchase since wooden parts settle and new strings stretch.
After the first year, one or two tunings per year keep the strings in proper tension, unless seasonal change requires an additional tuning. The Sitka spruce soundboard can be affected by such seasonal changes.
As the main acoustical part of the piano, the soundboard’s seasonal change is critically important to note.
According to Jonathan Kotulski, M. Steinert & Sons’ piano technician, in more humid seasons, the soundboard can swell with water as humidity rises. This increases its shape and causes the piano’s stretched strings to have a higher pitch.
Jonathan notes that in drier seasons like winter, the soundboard deflates and the strings naturally lower their tension and their pitch. This ebb and flow of humidity throughout the year can sometimes bring on the need for additional tunings.
Read more about Jonathan’s perspective on humidity and pianos in Do I need a piano humidity control system?
So what’s the worst that can happen if you neglect to tune your piano regularly?
Plenty, actually. For example, strings can break from the increasingly flat tension in the strings that have not been tightened regularly.
Moreover, the beautiful instrument you’ve invested in will not sound like the one you bought, It will sound increasingly substandard.
If the strings deteriorate too much, or if the strings are out of tune and not actively used, then the piano may have to be restrung, which can sometimes cost as much as buying a new piano.
It is important for those learning to play the piano to have an instrument that is in tune so they can correctly learn the pitches.
If a piano player learns to play with incorrect pitches, it will hinder his or her ability to play a tuned piano, because the pitch will sound off to them.
A well-tuned piano helps the young student of the piano, giving them greater confidence from playing an instrument that sounds the way it should. Kids are more likely to keep playing a well-tuned piano.
Finally, your piano will be more likely to stay in tune well in its later years because of the good tunings given it in its early years. This is a simple matter of maintaining one’s investment.
Today, the cost for a good piano tuning can range from $140 to $300. A simple pitch correction is sometimes available for under $100.
Tuning one’s piano yields a disproportionate benefit for the cost involved. For a modest outlay of time and money, your piano will sound on pitch. The overtones of the piano’s lower notes are married to the basic pitch of higher notes. Your piano is ready to be played.
Read more about the pianos available at M. Steinert & Sons:
Steinway Model B Review: Is the B the perfect piano?by Stephen N. Reed (updated January 2023)
The Model B is Steinway’s best-selling model and has been acclaimed for having the top Steinway sound and touch outside the concert grand models. The Model B is well-known for its constantly refined tone, touch sensitivity, broader dynamic range, longer sustain, and nuanced color.
How did the Model B achieve these aspects, becoming the standard against which all 7′ foot grand pianos are measured for the past century?
For several hundred years, piano design engineers agreed that, regardless of brand, a grand piano in the vicinity of 7′ in length can be considered ideal from a musical perspective.
This is due to the overall acoustic balance of the bass, tenor, and treble registers and how they complement and enhance each other. The bass is rich, distinct, and prolonged without overwhelming the treble. The sustain of the higher octaves is noticeably longer, and the harmonic content of the notes is more audible and colorful.
Over 165 years, Steinway & Sons has made each piano part involved in creating the famed “Steinway sound” the best it can be, both in terms of materials and design. The following parts are critical to the overall sound of the Model B.
The braces beneath the grand piano establish the piano’s structural foundation, much like a house’s cement foundation and will, in tandem with the cast iron plate above them, perform the primary function of withstanding the 40,000 pounds of string tension within a piano.
Spruce provides tensile strength with less weight. Maple dowels fasten braces to the rim, producing a single homogenous foundation upon which the entire tonal component is built.
To increase the surface square inch volume of the soundboard and thereby increase the overall resonance of the grand piano, Steinway widens the rear or “tail” of its larger grand pianos to accommodate more of a vibrating surface area composed of the resonant spruce wood.
The three largest Steinways (A, B, and D) boast a wide tail design.
All three of Steinway’s larger models feature a cast iron treble bell in the shape of a cone affixed to the rim’s underside.
This bell serves to hold the plate vertically rigid using a steel bolt from the nose of the bell to the cast iron plate, preventing vertical flexing of the plate under the enormous string tensions, thereby assisting significantly in tuning stability, especially in the treble registers.
The one-piece continuous bent rim, 2¾” thick, is one of the most significant technical innovations in piano building. The rim provides the foundation for the stability of each Steinway grand piano.
The Steinway Model B’s rim comprises 16 Hard Rock Maple layers, with the inner and outer rim being pressed together in a single operation. This provides the structural integrity that enables a Steinway piano to endure for generations.
The soundboard lies at the heart of a Steinway piano. Great care is taken in selecting the wood and the soundboard’s design. To meet the highest quality standards, Steinway uses only superior Sitka spruce with a regular grain and a prescribed number of annual growth rings.
The Steinway Diaphragmatic Soundboard is based on a 1936 patent to achieve optimum performance in dynamic range and maximum sustain. Under this patent, the soundboard is gradually tapered from the center to the edge, permitting freedom of movement and creating a sound of unparalleled richness and sustain.
Created like the soundboard of violins to give a free and even response throughout the entire scale, the Model B design permits complete freedom of movement while displacing a greater amount of air, creating a richer and more lasting tonal response.
Close-grained, quarter-sawn Sitka spruce, which has exceptional stability and vibrance under stress and vibration, is used for the Model B soundboard.
Along with the Model D, the Model B features a single-piece bridge. The continuous “shepherd’s crook” bridge is a feature of only Models B and D. It is one long continuous bridge from the highest treble to the deepest bass, enabling the instantaneous transfer of the vibrations of some 233 strings throughout the bridge and the soundboard, creating more color, more resonance, and more sustain.
Steinway constructs its soundboard bridges exclusively from vertically laminated hardwood with a horizontal grain, capped with solid maple. Each bridge is notched by hand for precise, individual string-bearing.
This design ensures optimal sound transmission from the strings to the soundboard, resulting in a sustained, resonant tone—creating the unique Steinway Sound.
In 1963, Steinway introduced the Hexagrip Pinblock, engineered to enable pianos to hold their tuning longer and with great precision. The exclusive design provides the tuning pin with smoother movement under torque, a more uniform retaining action, and a piano that holds its tuning longer.
The Model B is the most aesthetically pleasing, non-concert Steinway. The curved 7′ sweep of the piano’s right side from front to back is more gracious and less stubby than a smaller baby grand.
The shape made a more elegant statement and was in former days often referred to as the “parlor grand,” as it would grace the room reserved for conversation and the entertaining of guests in spacious homes.
Most Steinway Artists own Model Bs or Model Ds–or both. The Model B is not too large for many living rooms but also large enough to be appropriate for a smaller concert hall or a church sanctuary.
It is the most versatile of the five smaller grands by Steinway and is Steinway’s best-selling model. It is often the choice of serious amateurs or professional pianists who do not have the budget or the room for a 9′ concert grand Model D.
Having sold over 150 million records, Steinway Artist Billy Joel ranks as one of the world’s most respected entertainers and recording artists. In an interview on Steinway’s website, Joel attributes his early curiosity about the piano to Steinway’s Model B.
“The piano teacher that my mom took me to had a Steinway,” Joel explains. “It was a Steinway B, the Model B grand — and it was so much better than the piano that we had in our house. I used to love to go to her house to play her piano, not because I liked taking lessons [laughs], because I just loved the sound of the piano that she had. It was set up in a studio and the acoustics were fairly ambient and that piano…
“I used to try to get her to… ‘Can we lift the lid up on the piano?’ Because I wanted it louder. Sometimes she would and sometimes she wouldn’t, but that was my first exposure to a Steinway. I was about five years old.”
Classical pianist and Steinway Artist Lang Lang was involved in designing the Black Diamond Steinway grands, most of which are Model Bs. That’s not by accident. Steinway trusted the launch of this new line to the Model B, its all-time best-selling grand piano. Every Black Diamond includes Steinway & Sons Spirio – r.
Another superstar, singer Lenny Kravitz, has joined creative forces with Steinway, creating his own Limited Edition Model B series.
The 2023 Model B is one of the least expensive high-end pianos, starting at $134,900.
Compared to the price of other longer Steinway models and comparable models in other high-end brands, the Model B is seen by many as the best investment in the Steinway line.
This grand piano is for customers who want the best and will sacrifice to own it. The Model B is not for those buyers who want to save money by buying a used Steinway, nor for those without a space in their home at least 9′ long for a piano and bench.
The Model B is available as a Steinway Spirio, Steinway & Son’s cutting-edge player piano with a 4,300+ piece musical library of Steinway Artist performances and the Spirio | r – with the ability to record, archive, and edits performances in high resolution.
Many believe that the Model B is Steinway’s best piano, including professional pianists. Again, the Model B may not be ideal for someone who needs to buy a lower-budget piano or doesn’t have the space to accommodate a nearly 7′ grand.
However, the Model B has earned its popularity and acclaim for the professional or the serious amateur who wants a piano to challenge them and bring out their best as a musician. Some piano critics go so far as to say that the Model B is the “perfect piano.”
Larry Fine, a leading piano consultant and author of The Piano Book, writes, “The Model B is my favorite of the…Steinways and the best choice for the serious pianist, recording or teaching studio, or small recital hall.”
See if you agree. Play a Model B and listen for yourself. M. Steinert & Sons has piano consultants who can help you explore the nuances and the power of the Model B, including its Spirio versions. A piano this legendary needs to be fully experienced.
Meanwhile, click on the links below to some of our other articles about Steinway pianos.
How to move a piano: Professional piano movers are bestby Stephen N. Reed
Grand and upright pianos are large and heavy and never more so than when you need to move them to a new location. They can weigh everywhere from 300-800 lbs for an upright and 500-1,400 lbs for a grand.
This is more than your usual move of a heavy piece of furniture, and lifting one with a friend or two could result in a hernia or worse if the piano slips and falls from your hands.
Beyond your own safety, protecting your investment is critical. Hiring a professional mover, one with deep experience in piano moving, will help you to guard against injuring the inside and outside of your piano.
Thus, protecting your investment–and yourself–is paramount when deciding who should move your piano to a new location.
For over 160 years, M. Steinert & Sons has helped thousands of New England piano buyers not only to select the piano that suits their needs but to get them safely and properly installed in their homes, concert halls, and educational institutions.
We always work with the best movers we can find to help our customers to move in a new piano or move out an old one. This article will review the potential costs involved in faulty piano moves.
Additionally, we will illustrate the value of obtaining a professional piano mover, whether via online searches or recommendations from our staff at M. Steinert & Sons.
Moving a grand piano requires a special sequence of disassembly and reassembly. Eventually, all three legs of a grand piano will be removed, along with the lyre (pedal assembly) before the piano is placed on the moving board.
The sequence and timing of removing the legs is part of the critical skill set of a piano mover. Experience teaches just the right moments of interaction to prevent disaster to the piano, movers, and the household! Please do not consider moving a grand piano without experience.
While a good piano is a solidly built instrument, on the other hand, this is a delicately balanced wonder with thousands of parts. One bad slip while moving it could result in hundreds, even thousands of dollars of repairs. That’s much more than the cost of hiring a professional to move it for you.
Hiring professional movers who have negotiated staircases and other obstacles during piano moves gives you the assurance that your piano is in good hands. A professional piano moving company has the experience and the tools needed to help your piano arrive intact to its new home.
For a professional mover, moving a piano has a key variable: distance. A short move across one’s state will naturally cost considerably less ($400-$900 ) than a move to another region of the country ($1,500+).
At M. Steinert, we are glad to give you references to some of the finest piano movers in the greater Boston area that we have worked with over the years. We know these companies are reliable and professional, knowing how to protect pianos in transit.
Additionally, the internet can be a good resource for finding capable piano moving companies, as long as one takes time to read through their website and to read online customer reviews. Or simply ask friends you trust whom they hired for their piano move.
Be sure that the piano mover you choose has current insurance, showing you proof of it. Also, make sure that your homeowner’s insurance covers your piano during its move.
M. Steinert’s President emeritus Paul Murphy has seen some disasters over the years from those who decided to move their piano their own way. Paul recalls one upright piano being moved to Beacon Hill:
I once gave away an old upright that we had replaced with a new piano. I gave the upright (we called them bombers because they were so big and heavy) to a lovely young lady who had just moved to Boston.
The grateful recipient arranged her own move. She lived on Beacon Hill in a studio. Even though she was on the first floor, the piano couldn’t make the turn into her apartment which was a cut-up old brownstone.
So she had to get a crane to put the piano through the front window. Her movers on this job swung the piano through the window and dropped it hard. The sides fell off and the plate with strings and all fell out. The movers quickly picked up their gear and left this pile of piano in the middle of the room.
Because of stories like that one, we strongly encourage the hiring of professional piano movers to move even your upright piano. However, because it’s not as bulky as a grand, you might choose to move a vertical piano by yourself.
After your piano is in place in its new home, be sure to have it rest in an area that has low humidity and few changes in temperature. This can affect the tuning of the piano. Too much sunlight can damage the finish on the piano, as well.
Once in place, you’ll want to have the piano tuned as even a good move can result in some mild changes affecting the piano’s tuning.
Having a professional mover’s help will safeguard against more expenses than just tuning, potentially preventing thousands of dollars in damage to your musical investment.
Steinert & Sons has been serving New England piano buyers and owners since 1860. If you have any further questions about moving your piano, please contact us at our two area showrooms: Boston: (617) 426-1900 Newton: (508) 655-7373 Email: info@msteinert.com
Two Boston-area piano movers that we can recommend are Allston Piano Movers (Now a division of Gentle Giant) and PMI.
For further reading, enjoy these articles from our “Expert Advice” page on our website:
Boston vs. Yamaha: Which is the best piano for me?by Stephen N. Reed
With several good options for buyers looking into new pianos today, making the best possible decision is important for a number of reasons. First, this is a serious investment, perhaps done only once in a lifetime. A well-built piano can easily outlast one generation in a family, becoming an heirloom for the next.
A purchase of this kind of importance and duration needs careful attention. Otherwise, you may purchase a piano that can become less a gift than a burden to give your children someday.
Will they inherit a treasured family instrument or a large piece of furniture nobody plays? Choosing the best instrument, one that brings out the best among those who play it, is key.
Since becoming a Steinway dealer in 1869, M. Steinert and Sons has been helping a range of customers discover the best piano for their needs. Since 1991, this has included offering the Boston line of mid-level grand and upright pianos.
The Boston line was specifically designed to enable more piano buyers to obtain a piano with the Steinway design at a price more affordable than a handcrafted Steinway.
Steinway has built a line of Boston pianos that has proven competitive in a market served by a range of piano brands, including Yamaha.
But which piano brand is better for you between Boston and Yamaha?
In this piece, we will take a look at the origins and strengths of Boston and Yamaha pianos, allowing you to learn more about both brands as you continue your journey towards buying a new piano.
The first piano made in Japan was an upright built in 1900 by Torakusu Yamaha, founder of Nippon Gakki Co., Ltd. — later renamed Yamaha Corporation. Just two years later, the Nippon Gakki factory produced its first grand piano.
During this early period, the company focused on manufacturing instruments for the Japanese market. Still, Yamaha had international aspirations. Just as Henry Steinway had done with his pianos a generation before, Torakusu began to win international recognition soon after he founded Yamaha.
For example, Torakusu entered one of his pianos at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair, where it won an Honorary Grand Prize.
By the 1920s, Yamaha sent its craftspeople traveling overseas to understand the latest European piano production techniques. Yamaha’s piano production picked up again after the war years.
In 1950, Yamaha produced the FC concert grand piano. In 1956, the company completed work on Japan’s first computer-controlled artificial drying room. In 1958, Yamaha set up a grand piano assembly line at its headquarters in Hamamatsu.
At the start of the 1960s, Yamaha made a significant investment, creating a new company in the U.S.A. to import and distribute its pianos: Yamaha International Corporation. By 1965, Yamaha was producing more pianos than any other manufacturer. By 1970, Yamaha’s manufacturing facilities had produced one million pianos.
Japanese manufacturing is known for its attention to detail and quality control. Like Steinway, Yamaha models go through a series of stringent quality control tests, from construction methods to wood selection.
Yamaha’s range of production pianos offers a variety of results for the musician, from entry-level to conservatory-worthy. For grand pianos, these series are: GB1K/GC, CX, SX, and CF. Yamaha has even more upright series, which are: U, YUS, b, P22, and Gallery Collection.
Yamaha currently sells a mind-blurring number of grand and upright models: 32 of various kinds and different qualities.
Yamaha’s quality varies across their different series–and even within each series. For example, in the CX grand piano series, the CX7, CX6, CX5, and CX 3 models have spruce wood for their backposts, the CX2 and CX1 have Merkus pine.
Another example is in the composition of the keys across the different series. In the GB1K/GC series, you will find that the white keys are made of Acrypet (methacrylic resin), while the other Yamaha series use Ivorite for their white keys. Ivorite is Yamaha’s attempt to create plastic keys with the feel of ivory keys.
The point is, although each model has the Yamaha name on its fallboard, not all Yamahas are created equal.
An informed piano buyer will want to study the specifications of each of their piano series as differences are not always obvious initially. The importance of materials cannot be overstated.
For example, Many Yamaha pianos, especially their lower-priced offerings, use softer woods and a higher-tension scale design. Consequently, these models are characterized by a considerably brighter tone.
This can be an appealing sound at first, especially for beginning pianists, but some find it limiting as you advance in your musical studies. M. Steinert & Sons often receives Yamaha vertical pianos in trade for Steinway and Boston grands.
Having said that, Yamaha has become the preferred model of some international music festivals as well as several jazz and contemporary pianists.
The Boston Piano Company was founded in 1991, a subsidiary of Steinway & Sons. Steinway wanted to capture the mid-level piano market that was growing internationally without having to compromise the Steinway & Sons approach to materials and craftsmanship.
Steinway designed the Boston and contracted with Kawai to develop a better, top-quality manufactured piano at a price lower than handcrafted Steinways.
Steinway engineers Susan Kenagy and John Patton designed the Boston from the ground up at Steinway & Sons’ New York factory, calling upon 165 years of piano manufacturing. Steinway-designed features used in the Boston include:<
Boston pianos have all parts assembled manually. Boston’s design roots can be traced back to 1836 with the creation of the first Steinway in Germany and subsequently in New York in 1853.
Everything that Steinway knows about pianos from their long experience is considered in the design of the Boston—musicality, longevity, durability, and future residual value.
In 2009, 18 years after the launch of Boston in 1991, Boston’s first Performance Edition model was rolled out.
This first Performance Edition included a maple inner rim and the patented Octagrip pin block, which gives the Boston a smoother pin turn and more consistent pin torque. This allows for more precise tuning.
Boston’s Performance Edition II rolled out in 2016, added several upgrades. The Performance Edition II features a luxurious Pomelle Sapele veneer on the inside rim of Ebony finish grands and a rose-gold colored plate.
Black felts have been added for the plate, under the fallboard, and around the pedals. A rescaled bass and treble wire lower string tension provides increased sustain, better tone clarity generally, and a deeper, clearer bass.
Steinway and Boston’s even tone has been endorsed for pianists across musical genres. Indeed, the company’s rosters of piano greats, Steinway Artists and Steinway Immortals, have always been well-represented by famous jazz and contemporary pianists.
Just 30 years on the market, Boston has become the preferred piano brand of several musical groups. The American Piano Quartet, The Gryphon Trio, and The Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh use Boston pianos.
The Boston line includes five grand pianos and five upright models, along with Steinway’s hybrid Spirio self-playing piano.
Yamaha has learned how to incorporate Western expectations into their pianos and has sold many over the years. Still, the fully-manufactured Yamahas have a bright, clear tone.
While this makes them less preferred among most of the world’s professional concert pianists, that kind of tone has been better received by some jazz pianists like the late Chick Corea.
One area Yamaha and Boston have in common is in their power. Both Yamahas and Boston project well, especially in concert auditoriums.
As detailed above, Boston has inherited much of the Steinway design or DNA. What does it mean for a piano to have Steinway design?
Statistically, it is well-documented that over 95% of concert pianists worldwide performing with major symphony orchestras choose to play on Steinway pianos and are not remunerated by Steinway for their preference.
Steinway-designed pianos like Boston have a subtlety to them that allows the pianist to achieve color changes and new dynamics exactly what the artist asks of it.
In addition to this nuanced range of color and dynamics, Boston, like Steinway, has an even and well-rounded tone.
Boston’s tone has been endorsed for pianists across musical genres. As part of the Steinway family of pianos, Boston takes pride in the rosters of piano greats, Steinway Artists and Steinway Immortals. Both lists have always been well-represented by famous jazz and contemporary pianists from George Gershwin to Aaron Diehl.
| Boston | Yamaha |
| Even, well-rounded tone | Bright, clear tone |
| Low tension scale design | High tension scale design |
| 10 models–a single quality standard | 32 models–varying quality standards |
Larry Fine’s website at pianobuyer.com is a widely used source for piano information. Under Brand Profiles for Yamaha, he distinguishes between what typical Yamaha dealers LIST their pianos at (MSRP) and what they should actually sell for if priced fairly (SMP).
Under the Brand Profile for Boston, the MSRP and the SMP are identical–in other words, Boston piano prices are not inflated by Steinway dealers and then discounted to a fair selling price.
The best way to decide on a new piano is to play some models for yourself. Whether tone, design, or price is most important to you, an informed piano buyer will get a feel for different models and brands.
At M. Steinert & Sons, our seasoned piano consultants will listen well to your priorities for this important purchase. Some of our piano consultants have worked for both Yamaha and Steinway dealers, allowing them to fairly present the better attributes of these two legendary piano makers.
So while we naturally feel that the Boston is the better piano for many people, we acknowledge that Yamaha has produced some good models, as well. What is most important is that you find the best piano for you.
Please consider a visit to one of our showrooms in Boston or Newton. Meantime, continuing reading some additional pieces below:
How the pandemic brought life back to our living rooms
How to choose the right piano for me?
Steinway vs. Bosendorfer: Which is the better piano for me?by Stephen N. Reed
At M. Steinert & Sons, we are frequently asked our opinion of other piano brands. Our salespeople have deep knowledge of the various piano makers building pianos today; indeed, some of our piano consultants have worked for other brands before coming to M. Steinert & Sons.
While we obviously believe strongly in our Steinway & Sons product line, it would be foolhardy to not acknowledge the positives as well as the differences in other piano brands. We want you to find the best possible piano for you.
Purchasing a piano is a sizable investment, both in terms of time and money. At the end of your piano buying journey, we hope you are well-informed about your options and can make a decision that you feel good about for years to come.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at two piano brands often compared to one another, despite some significant differences in tone and price: Bosendorfer vs. Steinway.
As with German-born Henry Steinway, Austrian Ignaz Bosendorfer was an accomplished instrument maker. However, Bosendorfer was founded in 1828, twenty-five years earlier than Steinway & Sons, and soon made its mark as the official piano maker to Austria’s emperor.
By the time Steinway had started to make his first pianos in the 1850s, Bosendorfer’s leadership had passed to the second generation, Ignaz’s son, Ludwig Bosendorfer.
Also, both Steinway and Bosendorfer have since passed out of their company’s original families. In 1909, Bosendorfer was bought by the Hutterstrasser family. Two generations later, the Jasper Corporation bought Bosendorfer in 1966. Jasper Corporation is the parent company of Kimball Pianos.
Bösendorfer was later sold in 2002 to BAWAG PSK Gruppe. Then all of its stock was sold to Yamaha in 2007. The company remains headquartered in Vienna, a fitting tribute to its history and tone.
After a request for additional keys by composer and pianist Ferrucio Busoni, Bosendorfer added extra keys in the bass section to some of its models, such as the Imperial Grand Model 290 (97 keys) and the 225 Model (92 keys). Other Bosendorfer models conform to the standard 88 keys seen in all of Steinway’s models.
Beyond the novelty of these extra keys, the addition of these extra, thicker strings adds resonance while other strings are played. As a result, the piano’s bass section is considered by many to have a rich, even dark sound. We’ll touch on Bosendorfer’s treble section later in this piece.
Bösendorfer’s Imperial Grand 290 is one of the largest pianos made. In all, Bosendorfer makes seven grand piano models and two upright pianos.
After immigrating to America in 1850, German-born Henry Steinway founded Steinway and Sons in New York City in 1853, His self-stated goal was to build the best piano possible through tonal excellence.
In addition to pursuing excellence in musical craftsmanship, Steinway & Sons sought to establish itself as a truly American company. The Steinways pursued popular acclaim by creating Steinway Hall, a top concert venue in New York City for piano performers.
Moreover, Steinway celebrated those top piano performers by creating the designation of “Steinway Artists” and “Steinway Immortals.” These were pianists who, despite no compensation, stated that Steinway pianos were their preference.
Interestingly, both Bosendorfer and Steinway lay claim to a share of Franz Liszt and Anton Rubinstein, both of whom had positive comments about Bosendorfer but who ultimately became Steinway Artists.
Steinway’s bell-like tone and even keyboard have propelled it into a dominant position among performing piano artists around the world, 90% of whom say that they prefer to play a Steinway.
Both Bosendorfer and Steinway use spruce wood in the interior of their pianos, though Steinway specifically uses Sitka Spruce for its trademark soundboard. The soundboard, along with the Hard Rock Maple case, helps to produce a rich sound that projects well in concert halls around the globe.
Steinway currently makes seven models of grand pianos and one upright model.
When comparing Steinways and Bosendorfers, a bit of piano history is worth knowing. By the time Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven were experimenting with the piano, the instrument had been around for two to three generations.
Though the differences between these two approaches are subtle today, Steinway follows the American school of design, while Bosendorfer is more aligned with the Viennese school. So what is the difference between the two schools?
To hear piano commentators talk, one could deduce that the difference between these two schools and two brands is in the treble and bass registers.
Steinway is credited with having a “round” and mellow sound in the upper keys, in part due to its lower string tension, exceptional Sitka spruce soundboard, and a bent grand frame made of Hard Rock Maple.
All of this helps produce more audible harmonics for a rich, complex sound with great projection. Many have called Steinway’s upper register tone warm and bell-like.
In contrast, Bosendorfer, following the Viennese school, makes the inner rim of solid Bavarian spruce blocks, using a technique similar to that of a bricklayer building a brick wall. The outer rim is made of solid spruce, shaped by cutting narrow slots are filled with spruce shims.
As a result, the outer rim of a Bosendorfer is thinner than most pianos, and their inner and outer rims interface directly with the soundboard.
Thus, the entire case becomes an extension of the soundboard. The result is a more classical-era, 18th Century sound. It can be reminiscent of a harpsichord.
In the upper registers, fans of Bosendorfer call this a pure, crystalline sound, while detractors find that it sounds tinny or even like “shattered glass.”
However, Bosendorfer gets higher marks for powerful keys on the lower end of Middle C. Also, for those who like a particularly fast action, Bosendorfer has that, too.
Some advocates for Bosendorfer note that a North American professional pianist might have difficulty having exposure to any European brands like Bosendorfer as Steinway dominates the concert market here.
However, that minimizes Steinway’s hardwon reputation as the choice of over 90% of concert pianists. Such pianists, at the top of their musical profession, have likely played several different European brands, including Bosendorfer.
Yet the vast majority of them still prefer Steinway, while acknowledging Bosendorfer’s strengths.
North American piano buyers often associate Steinways as the highest-priced pianos on the market. However, that is likely because Steinway is the best-known premium piano to them.
However, compared to some European brands, including Bosendorfer, Steinway is far from being the most expensive premium piano brand.
For example, the least expensive Steinway, Model S, with a length of 5’ 1” costs $80,100.
Compare that with the smallest Bosendorfer, Model 155, also 5’ 1” with a cost of $137,000.
Similarly, on the upper end, Steinway’s longest grand at 8’11 and 3/4”, the Model D, ranges from $146,700–170,000. Bosendorfer’s longest grand, a bit longer at 9’ 6”, costs $263,500.
For a brand that was once owned by Kimball, Bosendorfer has certainly come of age. Meanwhile, Steinway can enjoy the fact that their pianos, considered the standard in the industry, are not the most costly at all.
Specifically, the Bosendorfer has a jointed rim comprised of vertical slats of spruce–the same softwood used in other piano soundboards, including Steinway-designed brands like Boston. The theory here is that the entire piano should resonate like a violin.
However, violins are not made only of spruce–they have a hard maple back and a soft spruce top, which is similar to Steinway-designed pianos like Boston with a hard rock maple inner rim bent to make a much stronger rim as compared to the Bosendorfer’s softer rim.
The sound in the Steinway-designed spruce soundboard bounces off the dense Hard Rock Maple rims to the ear with greater power, clarity, sustain, minimal dynamic distortion, and more overtones.
Conversely, the sound in the Bosendorfer spruce soundboard is absorbed by the soft spruce rim of the Bosendorfer and, under pressure (as in a fortissimo or forte/fortissimo or sforzando), will distort and become unpleasantly percussive, particularly in the upper treble registers of the piano.
Another factor resulting from these structural differences is tuning. The Bosendorfer spruce rim expands and contracts like the soundboard and moves far more than the hard maple rims of the Steinway. This also affects the holding of concert pitch, especially in an orchestral setting.
The philosophical frameworks of Bosendorfer and Steinway & Sons make for intriguing reading. Few other piano makers have experimented with the keyboard as much as Bosendorfer has. Yet Steinway has managed to contribute over 135 patents to make today’s piano what it is.
Steinway’s tone has an evenness throughout that blends well with its complex harmonics. One could say that Steinway’s even, bell-sounding tone is the glue that holds all of Steinway’s complexity together.
This makes Steinway a quite versatile instrument, good for classical music but also jazz, hip hop, and other contemporary genres.
Contrast that with the Viennese tone found in the Bosendorfer. Yes, Bosendorfer has a deep bass section. However, many find the treble section to be a bit too treble and uneven.
For Mozart and other classical composers, this more sharply clear section north of Middle C might seem just right. However, for other pieces, it can be jarring.
While both piano makers should be applauded for their commitment to creating pianos that double as a work of art, Steinway has become the preferred instrument of over 90 percent of professional pianists the world over for a reason.
While each Steinway is handcrafted and therefore unique on certain levels, they are also consistent, allowing the performer to release their passion on the keys without having to worry about the tone of the instrument.
Finally, the price differential is significant. A new Bosendorfer is significantly more expensive than a new Steinway, with part of that added expense coming from shipping them here from Vienna.
While Steinway also has a European base of operations in Hamburg, Germany, their Astoria, NY facility services the North American market.
As a result, for overall quality, versatility, and price, Steinway is the best choice for most people and their preferred musical genres.
Come in and see for yourself which Steinway models you would like to try. In the meantime, you can continue to read more from our Expert Advice section through the links listed below:
Do I need a Steinway if I’m not into classical music?
Can you finance a Steinway piano?
Are any of these Steinway piano myths true?
Digital vs. acoustic pianos: Which is the best for me?by Stephen N. Reed
The difference between digital and acoustic pianos is one of the first questions you will face in your quest for a piano.
You may already have strong feelings about which piano you would ideally purchase. Maybe you don’t.
Either way, this article will outline the differences between digital and acoustic pianos to help you decide which one is best for you.
The most important thing to bear in mind is that acoustic and digital pianos offer vastly different playing experiences. As a result, depending on how you intend to use your piano, choosing the right instrument–digital or acoustic–has serious implications.
What could be worse than buying an expensive piece of musical equipment, only to discover later that it doesn’t do what you had hoped?
Taking one’s time, talking to professionals in the industry, and testing different pianos as part of the process is the best way to avoid a poor purchase.
Let’s start by looking at each type of piano.
Acoustic pianos are what most people picture when they think of a piano. Since Cristofori invented the ancestor to today’s acoustic piano, the general principles behind piano design and the mechanisms responsible for producing its sound haven’t changed too much.
However, over the years, there have been subtle evolutions resulting in today’s acoustic pianos having an incredibly nuanced sound.
The piano sound is achieved naturally through vibrating steel strings, resonant woods, and natural damping and friction-absorbing materials such as felt and leather.
It uses a mechanical system that operates by pressing the key. This then engages a lever, which moves a felt hammer to strike the corresponding string which is made of high tempered steel.
It’s a complex mechanical process that digital pianos cannot replicate. A true traditional piano sound and touch can only be achieved with an acoustic instrument.
Did you know:The word “piano” comes from the musical term meaning “soft,” as it was an instrument that you could play at different dynamic (musical speak for “volume”) levels. This was a dramatic shift from other keyboard instruments of the day (e.g. organs and harpsichords) which could produce only one dynamic from their keys. |
There are a number of advancements, many made by Steinway & Sons, that have been made with acoustic pianos to make it more versatile than earlier pianos.
Unlike acoustic pianos, digital pianos have no hammers or strings. The sound is achieved electronically, with each key corresponding to an acoustic piano counterpart using high quality sound replication to mimic the tone produced by the very best acoustic pianos.
Therefore, the quality of sound created by a digital piano depends on the method the instrument uses to generate the acoustic tone. Some use sampling (actual recordings of an acoustic piano) while others, such as Roland, use advanced modeling technology to create their acoustic piano tone.
For decades, digital pianos have failed to achieve popularity as they only approximated a piano-like sound and touch. However, due to advances in technology, today’s digital pianos have gotten closer to an authentic piano sound and feel.
All of our Roland digital pianos have incorporated acoustic modeling technology into their digital pianos. In layman’s terms, the modelling algorithm “calculates” a unique sound every time you press down the key.
The result is a natural and individual sound based on your own playing. It never creates the same sound twice, exactly as would be experienced on an acoustic. This digital effect is still not the same as a traditional acoustic piano, but the experience is much closer than it has been in previous years.
Digital pianos are also capable of realistically producing other musical instruments, from the saxophone to the cello, making it possible to create an orchestra of sound.
The “extras” that digital pianos offer are nearly limitless, making them one of the most versatile home instruments imaginable. Among the most popular additional features are:
Playback & record: Modern playback features allow you to record and hear your own performance which is particularly helpful for students.
Bluetooth connectivity: When you have a Bluetooth-compatible piano, your iPad becomes a controller and the world of apps can be fully explored. Music can be displayed digitally while you play-a-long, and you can enjoy interactive educational software. Plus the speakers of your piano can be your home stereo!
Notation capability: Probably the most valuable feature of all is the ability to capture the notes you play and have them displayed promptly in a musical score format. Perfect for amateur (or professional) composers.
It is worth noting that each of these features can now be added to any acoustic piano.
The bottom line is that, despite technological advances, digital pianos cannot truly replicate the sound or touch of an acoustic piano. They can only simulate it. This is usually apparent in the quality and tone of the piano’s sound.
So, are digital pianos as good as acoustic pianos?
Like so many things, it depends. If the alternative piano is a poor condition or old acoustic, the modern digital is the better alternative. If the budget allows for a better quality or new acoustic vertical or grand, most pianists will choose the acoustic over the digital.
However, the digital’s strengths in mobility, headphone practice and connectivity to the digital world are other reasons why digital pianos are often selected.
To their credit, digital piano makers like Roland are working hard to approximate the acoustic piano’s touch and tone. However, a more helpful way of viewing the difference between digital and acoustic pianos is to accept their differences and to applaud both for what they can do.
Let’s take an example from the world of travel for an analogy:
Consider a person who is unable to afford a two-week vacation to Europe right now. However, they have really been studying European history and culture, particularly the Amalfi coast of Italy.
At this time, they aren’t able to actually get to Italy yet, but they are able to get a kind of feel for it by using a set of virtual tour goggles and exploring the Amalfi coast that way.
Probably they would like to go to Italy in person someday–for the full cultural experience. However, in the meantime, their virtual headset has given them a better understanding of the Amalfi coast than before.
That is what the digital experience can do: it can give you a better understanding of the keyboard arts while leaving you something more to discover when you are able to afford an acoustic upright or grand piano.
Both categories of piano have their advantages and disadvantages, which might make one or the other better for you.
While examining these advantages and disadvantages, take into account your individual circumstances.
Yes, many acoustic pianos respond better to the nuances in touch (particularly grand pianos), and this is reflected in the tone that they produce.
Possibly not.
Such nuances might be necessary for advanced or classical pianists. But digital pianos can often suffice for early stage learning, those with limited space, or a need for quiet play, or when adults are downsizing or need a quieter solution.
The question is about finding the right piano for you.
Ultimately if you do opt for a digital piano, the goal should be to emulate the sound of an acoustic as much as possible. It is important to feel and hear a digital piano before you make your choice.
Our top tip: Take your favorite piece of music into a store. Find the largest, grand piano in the store and play the piece. Really listen. Then compare the sound on a digital. The digital piano that is closest in terms of tone and touch to an acoustic grand piano is usually the best.
So if you live in New England and are curious about a range of digital and acoustic piano options, consider a visit to one of our two showroom locations in Boston and Newton. Our seasoned salespeople have broad experience and deep knowledge of both digital and acoustic pianos. Fill out the form below and we’ll get right back to you.
And for more information about the different kinds of pianos we feature at M. Steinert, & Sons, click on the links below. To set up a time to talk with one of our seasoned sales consultants, please fill out the form below.
by Stephen N. Reed
Much has been written about the Steinway Spirio’s musical and entertainment value in the home. For many thousands of satisfied owners, the Spirio has reclaimed the piano’s historic place in the center of the home. For good reason, nearly half of new Steinway pianos purchased today are Spirios.
The Spirio provides hours of practice on a high-quality piano, as well as the joy of perfecting a piano piece. Now, with the latest high resolution technology, Spirio’s allow their owners to play, record, and soon participate in remote performances and masterclasses.
But what about the use of a Spirio in a school or institution of higher education? In this article, we will examine four reasons they should consider buying a Spirio.
For an institution like a fine arts department in a school or institution of higher education, grand pianos are among the top equipment assets as they are among the very few instruments a student cannot bring with them.
Choosing the right piano becomes a tremendously important decision, as it will be with your institution for many years.
The most critical factor regarding any institution’s consideration of purchasing a Spirio is the fact that it is designed and created by Steinway & Sons engineers and craftspeople. The handcrafted quality of a Steinway piano has made it a legendary brand, with a tone and touch that are unique in the world of music. Plus, they are built to last.
For institutions, a Steinway will be the longest-lasting equipment as well as the one with the lowest cost to maintain over time, as they are designed specifically for the rigors of this use. The approximate lifespan of a well- maintained Steinway piano in an institution is 40-50 years.
One is hard-pressed to find another instrument or piece of equipment at an institution with that kind of durability and cost-effectiveness.
Concert pianos tend to be cycled out of major concert use into a secondary performance or rehearsal role sooner than that.
Unlike other widely-used institutional equipment, pianos must accommodate a diverse range of playing or teaching styles and tastes. Steinway & Sons pianos are strongest in their versatility to fulfill this role in all academic spheres.
For generations, Steinway craftspeople have helped to build the company’s reputation. They are seen as legendary masters at their craft–any institution can feel proud to partner with such skill and passion.
Additionally, Steinway & Sons pianos are a perpetually positive force for recruitment of new faculty and students.
For example, institutions of higher education and private schools with Fine Arts programs may also have primary/secondary piano offerings that stretch far beyond those students whose focus is music.
As a result, a Steinway piano potentially impacts all students interested in taking piano or music lessons at a school.
For those students and faculty already immersed in music, many of them seek out schools with Steinway pianos. They are associated with a benchmark of excellence in education, instruction, and a commitment to providing the best equipment on which to learn.
In short, Steinway’s reputation can easily redound to a school and pay significant dividends in the form of student and faculty recruitment.
Remote learning is now a requirement for institutions in a post COVID-19 era, offering the ability to audition, study, and perform, with the unique SpirioCast technology soon allowing for the reception of live piano content, starting in November 2021.
This places Spirio in a perfect position to support higher education and musical institutions in offering more variety in its courses as well as offering recruitment to expand to previously inaccessible markets.
For example, Texas A&M University’s Commerce Department recently announced it has become an All-Steinway Spirio school and looks forward to utilizing Spirio’s remote learning capacities.
Spirio is a Steinway & Sons piano built with durability, ease of use, and lifetime updates in mind for the institutional market. Any institution investing in a Spirio is offering its constituents the finest equipment for the study of music and the performing arts. Other benefits include:
In order to meet the continuously evolving standards and career opportunities in the competitive workspace, institutions need musical equipment that meet modern, rigorous standards.
This same equipment must provide students with the most current methods of education and professional development–if those same students are going to compete later in their chosen career areas.
In a college or university music department, the pianos are a primary asset in attaining these goals, with Steinway’s Spirio being the only instrument to offer students the capability to record, edit, and playback captured piano playing, all in the highest resolution available today.
Spirio features the world’s highest resolution curated library of 4,300+ performances by classical, jazz, and contemporary Steinway Artists, free and updated monthly at no extra charge to students and faculty users.
Moreover, these students and faculty utilizing a Spirio at their school or a nearby musical institution will have access to the world’s highest resolution curated library of 4,300+ classical, jazz, and contemporary Steinway Artists, free and updated monthly at no extra charge for students’ access through their institutions.
Spirio also features advanced connectivity options, including HDMI output to broadcast to classroom projectors or other screens, as well as MIDI In and Out to connect with applications for notation, interactive learning, recording and more.
Spirio is this conduit to connecting music and the growing world of internet connectivity and technology enhanced learning.
The same self-playing piano that is at work in a morning remote learning or notation session with students in different locations can also be found later that same evening, adding to the entertainment at a fundraising event.
Supporters of your school will be intrigued by the quality and varying functions of Spirio, making it an easy conversation starter at school functions.
For development functions, a Spirio is fully capable of helping you with the following:
When one considers the different educational and development uses for a Steinway Spirio, a more versatile, harder working instrument would be difficult to imagine.
At M. Steinert & Sons, we have been helping schools, colleges, and universities across New England with their piano selections since 1860. Our seasoned salespersons have deep experience in education and music, enabling them to easily understand which options would work best for you.
Read more about Spirio in the articles below and consider a visit to one of M. Steinert’s two showroom locations in Boston and Newton. Or we would be glad to come to your campus first for an assessment of your school’s particular needs. Please fill out the form below so that we can get in touch with you.
Could the Spirio ever become obsolete?
How much does a Steinway Spirio cost?
Spirio vs. Disklavierby Stephen N. Reed
updated September 20, 2022
Player pianos have a long and storied past, going back to the 19th Century. What started as a novelty became a best-selling musical instrument. Just as the smart TV is the home entertainment center today, the player piano was the center of the home at the turn of the 20th Century. This was the golden age of player pianos.
The player piano continued its roll until the phonograph and radio came along in the 1920s. Those two inventions essentially wiped out the player piano.
Two generations later, in the 1980s, player pianos made a comeback, utilizing cassette-based players, followed by floppy disks, CDs, and now wireless self-playing pianos.
Modern player pianos can both record and playback performances. Yamaha’s Disklavier has been doing that for many years. The more recent entrant, Steinway’s Spirio | r, features a high-performance quality playback AND record system.
Plus, both have content libraries that are digitized from early 20th Century recordings of famous composers and pianists. We’ll take a look at this technology, along with other key similarities and differences between the Disklavier and Spirio below.
As Yamaha and Steinway & Sons have emerged as the two piano companies that have put the most significant investments into creating the 21 Century player piano, a closer look at both is helpful to any buyer looking into one.
In 1982, the Yamaha Corporation introduced the first Disklavier self-playing piano in Japan. In 1987, the first Disklavier was sold in the United States, the MX 100A, a studio model upright. Shortly after that, the first Disklavier grand, known as the Wagon Grand ( “Wagon” came from the large rolling cart required to hold the hardware) was rolled out.
A third early model, known as the MX80 series, was created in the early 1990s. Like the prior models, the MX80 series recorded on floppy disks and recorded performances in a Yamaha-proprietary file format.
This was a forerunner of the subsequent industry-standard file format known as Standard MIDI Files. Technical innovations found on these early model instruments included hammer sensors for recording, recording and playback of incremental pedal data on the Wagon Grand, and moving pedals during playback.
Since then, Disklavier has gone through many changes, including those in the chart below.
Spirio was a new direction for Steinway, which had staked its claim on the meticulous, handcrafted quality of its pianos, their unique tone and touch, and their preference among the vast majority of professional concert pianists.
Could a company steeped in high musical performance also develop a self-playing piano designed more for home entertainment?
Since introducing the standard Spirio Play model in 2015, Steinway has risen to the challenge, making sure that each part of Spirio was up to Steinway’s historic standards of quality. For example, a recording option was not originally available in Steinway Spirio pianos.
However, after significant research and development, in 2019 Steinway introduced the Spirio | r, which is capable of both reproducing and recording high performance piano music for later playback.
Similarly, while Disklavier has already implemented Remote Performance Technology, which grew in popularity for distance learning and remote performances during the pandemic, Steinway’s engineers the latest high-resolution Spirio | r recording technology in November 2021.
In the end, whichever one’s preference between the Disklavier and the Spirio, no one can question the financial and philosophical commitment of Steinway in their pursuit of creating the best 21st Century self-playing piano.
| Item | Yamaha Disklavier | Steinway Spirio |
| Approach to Player Piano Design | Yamaha C series | Steinway & Sons historical designs – adapted for the Spirio integration. |
| Year Introduced | 1987 | 2015 |
| High Resolution | PRO models only | Yes |
| User Experience | Many complicated features–not easy | Easy |
| Separation of Core Player System From Rapidly-Changing User Interface | Average | Excellent |
| Soft Play and Repetition | Above average | Excellent |
| Proportional pedaling | Yes | Yes |
| Operates keyshift | Yes | Yes |
| Remote Performance Technology | Yes | SpirioCast – Released in November 2021 |
| Immunity to Line Voltage Variation | Above average | Excellent |
| Supports Recording | Standard, digital recording on all but low-end models | Spirio | r included the highest performance recording possible |
| Included Music | 500 of 11,000+ pieces given at installation. More songs available at additional cost. Also, Disklavier Radio. | Complete 4,482 piece library given at installation. 3-4 hours of new music added free per month. |
| Proprietary Music Catalogue | Disklavier E3 Artists. Live video events available. | Steinway Artists. Spiriocast library growing |
| Quality of underlying instrument | Yamaha–manufactured in a production environment. | Steinway–handcrafted with over 100 craftspeople involved. Steinway tone and touch. |
| Cost | Ranges from $28,899–$225,000 | Ranges from $113,700–$243,400 |
Over the years, Disklavier models have utilized a range of devices that were used to operate the piano. These included a control box mounted on the piano, infrared handheld and Wi-Fi controllers.
A variety of devices have been used to control the instrument, including buttons on a control box mounted on the piano, a Java app running via a personal computer, and other apps that run on IOS-based devices.
All Disklaviers have an option for remote control. In most cases, this has been a line-of-sight remote that uses infrared signals (much like a typical TV remote).
Disklavier PRO models have a detached interface. Disklaviers are equipped with non-contact optical sensors but also incorporate continuous grayscale shutters on the hammers to measure their speed and distance.
The addition of continuous grayscale shutters for each hammer allows the user to natively record and playback high-resolution performances with 1023 levels of key and hammer velocity as well as 256 increments of positional pedaling using Yamaha’s proprietary XP format.
Spirio has 1020 levels of key and hammer velocity, along with 256 increments of positional pedaling. The Spirio system is operated through the Steinway Spirio App, which provides a seamless interface to the piano and is both intuitive and easy to use.
Whereas Yamaha’s Disklavier system relies on MIDI data, low resolution data files, Spirio is recording at the highest resolution possible. Steinway has created a proprietary data file format that captures the nuances and full range of emotion from each artist’s level of performance, resulting in a heightened level of playback.
The Spirio’s nuanced playback comes from a combination of both the proprietary data file format, along with the Spirio’s ability to replicate smaller increments of velocity on both the hammers and proportional pedaling.
This recent technology captures a range of subtlety and nuance that, before now, has not been possible.
The advent of a detachable interface, one everyone can learn to use in an hour on a familiar iPad or equivalent has made the 21st Century self-playing piano extraordinarily popular.
Someone with very little experience with technology can suddenly entertain dinner guests like a tech pro, simply by accessing a selection of songs from the proprietary music catalogs provided by Yamaha and Steinway.
Having said that, the Spirio may have benefitted from getting in later than the Disklavier, as the Spirio has a reputation for having technology that is easier to use. The Disklavier can take up to four steps to access the piano’s technology, while Spirio often only requires one step.
Today’s piano buyer is still buying for the sound experience; they don’t look forward to complicated, multi-step ordeals. On the question of ease of use, Spirio wins hands down.
The Disklavier has Remote Performance Technology, and Spirio rolled out its version in November 2021. During the pandemic, this technology became better known and quite popular for its distance-learning capacities.
For example, a famous musician, college professor, or high school instructor could offer a masterclass to students located remotely.
The Disklavier features a silent play option, which means that a player can practice silently.
The playback on the Disklavier and the Spirio both have high levels of reproduction. Both also have MIDI-editing software. This allows one to record without rerecording the entire piece.
Spirio | r has an iOS app to edit high-definition recordings. Yamaha does not provide software to edit Disklavier Pro recordings.
Both Yamaha and Steinway offer sweeteners to their piano purchases through their respective Proprietary Music Catalogues. Steinway knew that Yamaha had the jump on them, having unveiled the Disclavier a decade earlier.
Since rolling out Spirio in 2015, Steinway has outpaced Yamaha in the number of high-performance recordings available to their customers. At their current rate, Steinway’s number of recorded songs should overtake Yamaha’s in five years.
Notably, Steinway gives all of their Steinway Artist songs–now over 4,450 tracks–as part of their piano sale at no additional charge.
Yamaha has always taken a different approach to its music catalog. First, they have roughly 11,000 songs in their catalog, and their system can handle vocals and background music, not piano music alone.
However, Yamaha usually provides a number of free songs away at the close of sale; their customers have to purchase any others afterward, at an additional cost per song or album. Also, if Disklavier’s music catalog sounds a bit dated, it is: their prime years for new recordings were in the 1990s and early 2000s, most of which is not recorded in high resolution.
In contrast, the Spirio musical catalog contains not only vintage classical and jazz recordings but many new recordings by contemporary piano artists.
Both Yamaha and Steinway & Sons deserve great credit for developing the self-playing piano as a 21st Century combination of an acoustic piano/home entertainment center.
Both companies have invested millions of dollars in design, cutting-edge technology, and marketing to restore the piano to the center of hundreds of thousands of homes worldwide.
As just one indicator of Spirio’s rise in popularity, over a third of all new Steinways sold today are Spirios.
While there is no question that the evolution of the Disklavier plowed the ground for any self-playing pianos to follow, Steinway & Sons has invigorated the self-playing piano market with a more usable interface, more recent activity on Music Library production, and the highest resolution of playback yet created for this kind of piano.
On the other hand, the Disklavier has earned applause lately for its performance during the pandemic as a Remote Performance Technology, which allows for remote performances, master classes, and other forms of remote learning.
With the addition of Spiriocast in 2021, Steinway & Sons is now pioneering a Steinway-caliber roster of ‘live’ performances.
Competition is good for piano buyers as well as for Yamaha and Steinway. As each company strives to make their self-playing instruments even more sophisticated, both will be kept on their toes and will show prospective buyers their updated versions of the 21st Century player piano.
In the end, despite other technological differences, the choice may simply come down to whether the buyer wants a manufactured Yamaha or a handcrafted Steinway for their 21 Century player piano.
We have taken a deeper look into the differences between the Yamaha Disklavier and Steinway Spirio in this article and hope that it helps you to choose the best 21st Century self-playing piano for you.
But an instrument this technologically advanced needs to be seen and heard up close and personal. Towards that end, we hope you will fill out the form below to make an in-store appointment with our informed and helpful M. Steinert & Sons staff. They are available at either of our two locations in Boston and Newton, MA.
For further reading, please see these additional articles on the Steinway Spirio.
Could the Spirio ever become obsolete?
How much does a Steinway Spirio cost?
Spirio Pianos at M. Steinert & Sons
by Stephen N. Reed
Free pianos have been gifted to many friends and family members over the years, often when the owner of the piano is moving or has passed away.
While the offer of a free piano is often intended to be a generous one, on the other hand, this can be a perfect example of “You get what you pay for.”
So how can one determine whether such a gift is worth accepting?
Phil Schoonmaker, a veteran piano consultant for M. Steinert & Sons has been in the piano business for four decades and has seen plenty of free pianos.
We’ll review the Top Four questions he thinks people should ask before accepting a free, used piano.
Care and maintenance of a piano is like that of a vehicle. More regular use of a car requires more servicing. More occasional use can allow you to spread out the times between servicing. A piano that can’t be tuned, is like a car that won’t drive straight.
Still, if you leave a car sitting in a garage idle for a few months, then it will need to be serviced, too, in order to prevent the internal mechanics from becoming damaged.
So, too, with a piano. A piano that has not been well-maintained over the years is likely to be the piano equivalent of a “lemon”–unable to hold tune.
Many used pianos have not received proper care and maintenance, i.e. tuned at least annually and periodically regulated.
Lack of maintenance can result in structural damage and serious defects such as cracked bridges and soundboards, loose pinblocks, center pin issues, worn hammers and dampers, and rusty strings and tuning pins.
Any of these parts being repaired or replaced can become an expensive proposition.
Only an experienced piano technician can judge the structural and mechanical condition of a piano—even an accomplished pianist may not be aware of important flaws.
As a result, a professional piano technician is needed to evaluate any used piano before accepting it.
Pianos should not be subjected to very dry air for extended periods of time. The relative humidity of the piano environment is best kept above 35%. 40% to 60% is better. Historically the National Piano Technicians Guild has settled on 42% relative humidity as a good standard.
Extreme dryness is not good for a keyboard though some technicians recommend a higher humidity, yet not excessive. Indeed, many pianos can function quite happily over a broad range of ambient relative humidity.
What can kill a piano is frequent and rapid cycling between low and high relative humidity.
Consider the distortion of a wet sponge by the kitchen sink as it dries from the edges toward the center on a winter day. Applied to a piano soundboard, that same rapid drying process is guaranteed to crack first the finish, then the wood itself.
So it when this rapid cycling or extreme dryness occurs that a wooden stringed instrument can suffer damage. Air conditioning is good for a piano when the outside humidity is quite high.
During the cold winter months with central heating, humidification of dry household air is recommended. If your “free” piano needs a humidifier, that will be an additional cost.
Constant exposure to too much heat or cold over time can cause the strings or other piano parts to move from their optimum position. This affects the tension and the tone of the instrument.
Other things like dust and dirt can gather inside the casing which will affect the sound quality, as can large, sustained weather events. Older pianos are more likely to have these issues as the internal parts are simply worn with age.
A given piano may have had several different owners, each placing the piano in different environments. As much as possible, find out as much as you can about the different owners.
In addition to any maintenance record, the brand of the piano can help to identify its original quality, and a serial number of the piano can help to determine its year. . It establishes the year of manufacture according to the Pierce Piano Atlas.
More obscure piano brands are listed in this publication, and there is no other accessible way to determine the age of any brand. The Pierce Piano Atlas serves piano buyers in the same way that an automobile manufacturer atlas serves car buyers.
Of course, certain names have more value than others due to their reputation and, consequently, their desirability. If the brand is not currently being manufactured, it will usually have less significance and value.
Pianos have been manufactured for well over 300 years, and there are over 7,500 piano brand names in the Atlas. Nearly all of these brands are defunct and have no market value.
A quick look at our article “What is my piano worth?” has some specifics on brands and their value and musical potential.
Each of these questions need to be assessed before accepting a free piano. Such a gift may cost more to repair than a new one that has a warranty and no issues.
In short, a “free” piano may be free in name only.
A friend who offers you a free piano no doubt has the best of intentions. However, you are within your rights to ask the above four questions to determine whether the piano in question is worth accepting. Chances are, a new or certified used piano will have far less repairs than any free piano.
M. Steinert & Sons Marketing Manager Chuck Johnson notes another, more serious consideration when considering whether to accept a free piano.
Johnson has seen free pianos being traded around by well-meaning parents, with the best of intentions. But ultimately, the poorer examples of these free pianos can extinguish the musical interest in a child that might have existed otherwise.
Read more about the differences between New and Used pianos, both of which M. Steinert & Sons has sold since 1860.
Plus, read more about M. Steinert’s rental, entry-level acoustic, and digital pianos.
