by Stephen N. Reed
There is a common tendency to romanticize certain old pianos, particularly old Steinways. This has led many piano buyers down a path of subsequent disappointment, regret, and buyer’s remorse.
Perhaps the best example of this is the so-called “Golden Age of Steinway,” which purports that the best Steinways were built decades in the past.
This has become a serious education problem as some used piano dealers, old piano rebuilders, and private technicians compete with Authorized Steinway Dealers and the new Steinways only they can sell.
Throughout Steinway’s history, such used Steinway sellers have spread the myth of a previous, mythical “Golden Age” of old Steinway years that cover the period of time when Steinways typically become worn out–any age exceeding 75 years. In other words, when a used Steinway needs restoration.
After all, these are the kind of Steinway pianos they can sell. And it can be big business at times. During the first third of the 20th century, Steinway produced a large number of pianos per year, and thus, a large number remains on the used market.
So as you hear about this distant “Golden Age of Steinway,” you need to know if there is any truth to it.
M. Steinert & Sons has been an Authorized Steinway Dealer for over 150 years and has helped tens of thousands of customers determine the right piano for them.
This sometimes includes disabusing some customers of notions like a past “Golden Age of Steinway” so that they can know the truth of a used Steinway’s value.
By the time you have read this article, you will understand some facts about the evolutionary development of the Steinway piano. You will understand that, while some good used Steinways are out there, the most recently produced, new Steinway will always be the best one.
The piano is now 322 years old (c.1700), and over 12,000 brand names have come and gone. Many piano historians and musicians agree that Steinway & Sons pianos have long been the pianos by which all others are judged.
Throughout its 169-year history, Steinway & Sons has consistently included piano engineering and improvement as a key part of its ethos. They have experimented with countless piano ideas, theories, designs, styles, types, and sizes of pianos–some of them abject failures–others quite successful, even to the point of shaping the modern piano across various brands.
Many of these evolving models, through years of experimentation and testing, were rejected as the company’s steadily accumulating knowledge of acoustical, mathematical, chemical, engineering, physical, and musical science consistently increased.
Other designs were retained due to their proven excellence over time, methodically being improved and refined into today’s ultimate Steinway–the historical apex of Steinway technology and musicality.
On average a new engineering patent has been granted to Steinway & Sons every 14 months throughout its history. Today’s 2022 newest designs incorporate a remarkable 139 improvements–13 in the last 10 years alone.
The Steinway ethos is demonstrably one of pursuit–ever-changing, ever-evolving, never content with yesteryear. This constant improvement may be one of the reasons why upwards of 95% of piano performers worldwide prefer Steinway.
To illustrate this Steinway evolutionary process in greater detail, there has been one particular size and design of Steinway home grand–apart from the large Model D concert grand (9′).
This is a Steinway model that has become the favorite of professionals and accomplished amateurs alike in every generation of its continuous development: the Model B.
The “B” has evolved over a period of 149 years with a redesign occurring on average every 15 years–a total of 10 Model B “evolutionary eras.”
The changes to the Model B listed in the following chart are only a few in each generation of Model B, but this chart should prove the steady evolution of this as a representative Steinway model throughout Steinway’s design innovation history:
| Years | Keys | Size | Model B Design Changes |
| 1872 – 1878 | 85 | 6’ 8” | Agraffes throughout entire scale. Sectional case, curved tail square rear corner. The case had round arms, wide double mouldings around the bottom. |
| 1878 – 1884 | 85 | 6’ 8” | Substituting capo d’astro bar in place of agraffes for notes 52-85. Duplex agraffe. Keyframe leveling screw. Action w/Support Spring. |
| 1884 – 1892 | 85 | 6’10.5″ | Substituting double cupola plate for single cupola; adjustable front duplexes for notes 52-85 in place of front-duplex clipped agraffes. Treble Bell. |
| 1891 – 1914 | 88 | 6’10.5″ | Expansion of 85 notes to 88 notes. Capo d’astro bar (notes 52-88) |
| 1914 – 1917 | 88 | 6’11.5″ | 1” increase change in overall scale design. Grand underlever Top Flange w/Flexible Tab. |
| 1917 – 1967 | 88 | 6’11” | ½” reduction change in overall scale design. 1936 Diaphragmatic Soundboard and Accelerated Action patents. 1923 all-maple rims. |
| 1967 – 2005 | 88 | 6’10.5″ | ½’ reduction change in overall scale design. 1963 Hexagrip Pinblock patent. Permafree II bushing cloth w/emrilon. |
| 2005 – 2015 | 88 | 6’11” | ½” increase change in overall scale design. Damper adjustment device. |
| 2015 – 2019 | 88 | 6’11” | Spirio ultra high-resolution re-performance system.
1020 dynamic levels and 256 levels of proportional pedaling of live recordings. |
| 2019 + | 88 | 6’11” | Spirio/r ultra high-resolution re-performance system.
1020 dynamic levels and 256 levels of proportional pedaling of live recordings. Plus capture and playback and editing. |
Only 60 Steinway piano dealerships are in the United States. These are the only piano retail locations officially authorized to sell new Steinways which incorporate all of Steinway’s 139 patents and most recent technological breakthroughs such as the Spirio capturing and re-performance systems.
These new Steinways are also the only pianos that are honored with a new five-year Steinway factory warranty covering major structural components that can only be replaced at the factory with proprietary factory equipment and labor.
A new Steinway with all of the latest innovations, paired with a five-year Steinway factory warranty, has the best claim on any “Golden Age” Steinway.
One reason for this is that, as in the past, Steinway continues to use the best materials and latest technologies in each year’s run of new pianos.
Piano retailers whose survival relies on the restoration of outdated Steinway engineering designs may do an acceptable job restoring old Steinway designs.
However, they overstep and mislead when they falsely claim that the older Steinway designs, materials, and workmanship are superior to today’s models or that their restoration workmanship is “unparalleled.” Such statements are simply a case of exaggeration.
The truth is that the used piano designs these firms are restoring are now in many respects technologically and musically obsolete. In some cases, the technologies, equipment, materials, and expertise necessary to the construction of current Steinway designs are not available to them.
The accuracy, precision, material excellence, manufacturing methodologies, equipment, and advanced designs of the newest Steinways far exceed those of previous generations.
Today’s leading music conservatories and symphonies categorically invest only in new Steinways for their performance halls and faculty studios. Few would disagree that such institutions want only the best Steinways for their uses.
Some good, used Steinways certainly are out there. However, the best Steinways have always been and still are new. The only genuine Steinway Golden Age is today.
To learn more about New and Used Steinways, read the following articles:
Choosing between a new and used Steinway
New vs. Used Steinway: Which is the better value for me?
Pros and Cons of new and rebuilt Steinway
by Stephen N. Reed
A new piano, right out of the factory, has several advantages, one of which is the factory warranty that comes with the piano. This secures your multi-thousand dollar investment should your piano need a major repair, like fixing or replacing a soundboard or pin block.
Used pianos can be another story. Depending on their brand, age, or condition, a major repair is not as rare. With the exception of a piano store’s limited warranty, such major repairs come out of your pocket.
As a result, hiring your own piano technician to examine a used piano you are considering is a good idea. What could be worse than paying for a used piano, taking it home, and soon after facing the reality that your piano needs a major repair, costing thousands of dollars?
At M. Steinert & Sons, our motto for 160 years has been to help our customers find the best piano for them. Clearly, a piano that needs a major repair before you play it much is not the best piano for you. We have assisted many customers to learn about the cost of piano repairs and have helped them avoid major ones.
For example, M. Steinert & Sons has a Certified Piano Program to give used piano buyers peace of mind that their piano passes muster from an expert piano technician.
By the end of this article, you will better understand why soundboards and pinblocks are so important to a piano. Next, you’ll learn what is involved with major repairs to these and other key areas, particularly in Steinways, and the skilled work involved to fix them.
The Number One question to ask before embarking on a major piano repair is to determine WHO will do the work. There is no shortage of piano technicians who will eagerly take on a Steinway repair, charge considerably less than the numbers in the chart below, and potentially ruin or ‘delegitimize’ an otherwise fine piano.
References, credentials, and samples of past work are the best guides as to whether a technician can perform adequate restoration or repairs.
Please keep in mind that only Steinway & Sons can replace a Steinway soundboard or Hexagrip Pinblock. These are not installed by rebuilders or dealers. Dealers have the ability to send pianos to the factory for these installations but beware of rebuilders offering like-kind replacements.
| Item | Cost Range for Steinway |
| Steinway Soundboard Repair | $1,000 – $8,000 |
| Steinway Soundboard/Pinblock replacement | $11,000 – $22,000 |
| Steinway Replaced Pinblock, Soundboard, Bridge and Plate Refinish | $18,000 – $28,000 |
| New Steinway hammers | $7,000 – $8,800 |
| New Steinway wippens/& hammers | $12,000 – $14,000 |
| Steinway Restring | $1,500 – $3,000 |
| Steinway Refinish – black | $16,000 – $30,000 |
| Steinway Refinishing– wood tone | $19,000 – $32,000 |
Helping you understand the costs of major repairs is all part of our job at M. Steinert & Sons. We want to be as transparent as possible as we openly address a subject that deserves attention.
Using Steinway’s patented “Diaphragmatic Soundboard” as an example, let’s understand how important a soundboard is to a grand piano.
Steinway & Sons engineers understood early on how the right kind of soundboard could make all the difference in a piano’s tone. The Steinway grand soundboard achieves optimum performance in dynamic range and maximum sustain.
Steinway uses Sitka Spruce for their soundboards, which is sourced entirely from an island in Alaska, the only location that meets Steinway’s stringent specifications.
This unique micro-climate provides this spruce with the highest quality grain density, direction, and color, thereby improving the transmission of tonal string vibrations.
The Steinway-designed soundboard is gradually tapered from the center to the edge, permitting freedom of movement and creating a sound of unparalleled richness, sonority, and sustain.
Steinway’s piano-rim machining center achieves a perfect fit between the soundboard and the rim. This provides the piano with a rich resonance, tonal color, and purity of sound.
Soundboard repairs can be quite involved and costly. According to M. Steinert & Sons piano technician Jonathan Kotulski, soundboard replacement is more common these days and a superior fix.
“Soundboards crack, so they are shimmed,” notes Jonathan. “This involves removing the plate and strings, digging out a groove in the soundboard, gluing and clamping a shim, and then planing/chiseling the shim down precisely flush with the soundboard.” (See above chart for cost estimate.)
Steinway introduced the Hexagrip Pinblock in 1963, a breakthrough that enabled pianos to hold their tuning longer and with great precision. This exclusive design provides the tuning pin with smoother movement under torque, a more uniform retaining action, and a piano that holds its tuning longer.
Steinway constructs its soundboard bridges from vertically laminated Hardrock Maple, and then caps it with a horizontal grain, solid maple. Each Steinway bridge is notched by hand for precise, individual string-bearing, another advantage to a handcrafted piano.
Steinway’s popular Model D and Model B have a single-piece bridge, a long, continuous bridge from the highest treble to the deepest bass. This design ensures optimal sound transmission from the strings to the soundboard.
Additionally, this design allows for the instantaneous transfer of the vibrations of the 233 strings throughout the bridge and the soundboard, adding more colors to the Steinway palette.
This wide range of colors to the piano’s tone is one of the main reasons professional pianists prefer playing a Steinway: they simply have more ways to express their experience of the music.
Pinblocks can loosen and need to be repaired or replaced. Minor repairs involve going up a pin size on problem pins, pin tapping, CA gluing or epoxying in the tuning pin to create higher torque.
Going up a tuning pin size on the entire piano and restringing the piano is becoming less common as a solution for pinblock problems.
“More often now, if you restring, it is recommended to replace the pinblock so you can start out with high torque on a 2/0 pin, the standard tuning pin size,” notes Jonathan. (See above chart for cost estimate.)
Veteran Steinway sales consultant Phil Schoonmaker maintains that one of the first questions buyers on the used piano market should ask themselves is, “Am I willing to give up a factory warranty?” Such warranties come with new pianos.
This is not to say that a partial warranty given by the seller for a used piano isn’t helpful for repairs. But a factory warranty on a new piano is more comprehensive. So if you can buy new, the factory warranty is a big advantage if a major repair comes.
For pianos in the Steinway Family, replacement parts and piano technicians who undergo regular Steinway training can only be found at an Authorized Steinway Dealer.
To learn more about Used vs. New pianos, read the following article:
New vs. Used Steinway: Which is the better value for me?
by Stephen N. Reed
Buying a piano is a significant investment. Seeking solid information and asking questions of a seasoned, trustworthy piano consultant is simply prudent anytime one buys an instrument costing several thousand dollars.
But how do you prepare for a piano appointment? If the “piano world” is completely new to you, going into the process essentially blind can be a recipe for confusion.
It’s a jungle out there, filled with a variety of brands, price points, and varying degrees of musical quality in each piano you sample. Without a guide, you could easily get lost and quite possibly make a poor choice for your piano, which would be a lasting regret.
In contrast, discovering a guide in the form of a knowledgeable, honest piano store consultant can be a relief. Now you have a professional who can start answering your questions and who will begin to learn your priorities for your upcoming piano.
M. Steinert & Sons has always taken this relational approach to its customers and prospective customers. Our piano sales consultants take the time to understand your piano needs and then work to find the kind of models that may hit the target for you.
By the end of this article, you will understand how to reflect and prepare yourself to make this kind of process work best for you. Additionally, you will learn about the piano buying fundamentals of understanding pianos’ sizes, colors, touches, tones, and budgets.
You’ll come away from this article with the information you need to make the first meeting with your piano consultant a productive one.
Before launching into your piano search, take some time to reflect on what has brought you to this point. Why do you want a piano? Is it simply for you or a family member to learn how to play? Is it something you’ve always wanted that you are now in a position to afford? A little bit of both?
Jonathan Yourtee is a piano consultant with M. Steinert & Sons, with a background in playing the piano. Jonathan encourages each customer to do some thinking on their own before they come to the showroom.
“I ask my customers to sit down for 5-10 minutes or more and just refresh their memory as to their goal in purchasing a piano,” says Jonathan.
Every customer is different. Some people may have wanted to learn to play since childhood and never had the time or money before to pursue it. Others played before but life got in the way. So now they want to get back into it.
“The individual customer’s reasons for purchasing a piano informs the five areas I ask them to think about next before buying a piano,” says Jonathan. “Size, color, touch, tone, and their budget.”
People who can afford a Steinway Model D concert grand may be swept away by its epic size and volume. But unless they have a space that can accommodate a nearly 9’ concert grand, it may well be more piano than they can use.
“A piano shouldn’t take up more than half of a room,” says Jonathan. “That’s a good rule to keep in mind not only in terms of whether a given piano will fit well in the room but also in terms of the size of the sound.”
The piano industry has accommodated all manner of sizes and sounds for individual buyers over the years. Not only are there a wide range of grand piano sizes, from concert grands to baby grands, but upright pianos have long had a favored place in smaller spaces.
Jonathan uses piano templates to determine what kinds of pianos can fit a given space at a customer’s home. Such templates can be extraordinarily helpful early on to narrow down the field of piano models for a given space.
Many are surprised to see how a grand piano can often fit in the space allotted to an upright.
Whether it’s an ebony polished look or a black satin matte, black has emerged over the years as the color that goes with anything and has top re-sale value. A walnut or mahogany finish might be popular one year but not another; meanwhile black is always “in.”
Having said that, many buyers like having the option of individualizing their purchase. They enjoy reading information about different colors and designs for a piano’s case online before their visit with their piano consultant.
For example, Steinway’s Crown Jewel Collection of pianos features a wide variety of cases with exotic woods from around the world. These are the same exact Steinway model otherwise–just a jazzy exterior to add something special to a room.
One new trend that offers the buyer even more solid colors to choose from involves wrapping. Wrapping is becoming more popular and is offered at M. Steinert & Sons.
How do you want the keys to feel? Unless you’re a professional pianist, you may not have thought about this before. But brands differ in feel and weighting of touch, which involves the piano’s action, the hammers hitting the strings. Is the feel stiff, easy, or something in between?
A piano’s touch is one of the most practical of considerations because if you take home a piano whose touch is one the player doesn’t like or is not able to express their musical intentions, there goes the ballgame! This is especially true with young piano students.
“I always tell customers to bring their children with them, too, if they will be playing the piano,” says Jonathan. “Bring them to the first visit with the piano consultant. Have the kids involved from the beginning.”
While some jazz pianists like the way a brighter sounding piano punches through the sound of the other instruments in the band, more classically-associated brands like Steinway have their jazz pianist fans, as well.
After all, the same various colors stemming from a Steinway’s soundboard and rim can be used to express emotions in a wide range of music.
Steinway’s tone is characterized by its warm, well-rounded, bell-like tone. Elements of that Steinway sound is found in the designs of its sister brands, Boston and Essex.
Reading about how others describe the tone of various piano brands will give you a better understanding of what you hear when you sample different pianos later with your piano consultant.
As with any significant purchase, calculating your budget is naturally a key factor for the piano you purchase. Would a better model be worth stretching one’s budget?
Like anything else, the more expensive piano models have advantages, like a more nuanced touch and tone, resulting in greater musical expression.
Moreover, if they are made of better woods, they will usually last longer and will definitely have greater resale value if you want to buy another piano later.
The higher-priced pianos like Steinway, which are handcrafted rather than manufactured, have prices that reflect U.S. and German labor costs at their factories.
However, the piano industry has met the need for more affordable pianos, so if your budget is something lower than a new Steinway price, look into Steinway-designed Boston and Essex lines, as well as Yamaha and Kawai.
Jonathan says that as you begin to get familiarized with these five subject areas for pianos, you’ll be able to hit the ground running with your first piano consultant visit. You’ll have a lot to talk about, so try to carve out adequate time for your visit to the showroom.
“I ask customers to try for a 60 or 90 minutes initial meeting, just so we can get acquainted better and so that I can begin to get a feel for their particular piano needs,” noted Jonathan.
Choosing a piano deserves a bit of time to do it right. If you were in the market for a luxury automobile like a Lamborghini or a Porsche, wouldn’t you want to know about their features? What makes them special. How are they made?
An experienced piano consultant can save you time and money by spending a little more time upfront to really understand why you’re buying a piano and what your expectations are.
We hope to see you in one of our two showrooms in Boston and Newton, where one of our highly-experienced piano consultants will show you hospitality and start understanding your piano needs.
In the meantime, keep reading in preparation for your first meeting with the piano consultant of your choice. If you want to learn how a piano maker like Steinway makes their piano, you’ll enjoy the following piece. Steinway craftspeople create the company’s pianos touch and tone daily:
What is a Steinway factory tour like?
By Stephen N. Reed
updated 10/18/22
The Boston Piano Company, a subsidiary of Steinway, was established in 1991 as a response to the growing market of piano buyers who wanted more classical tonality from their instrument but couldn’t afford the cost of Steinway and Sons piano.
Steinway wanted to capture the mid-level piano market that was growing internationally without having to compromise Steinway & Sons approach to materials and craftsmanship.
So Steinway designed the Boston and created a manufacturing OEM relationship (like Apple does with iPhones) to develop a top-quality manufactured piano at a price lower than handcrafted Steinways.
Designed by Steinway, the Boston uses a recipe with many Steinway-designed features developed from Steinway’s more than 160 years of premier piano-building and a commitment to continuous improvement.
Through its adherence to Steinway-design principles, Boston markets its models as the best piano available in the mid-level priced market.
So at about half the price of the least expensive Steinway model, Boston’s price is certainly more affordable. But how good are they? And if a Steinway-designed piano isn’t handcrafted like Steinway models are, can it really provide the Steinway sound?
For over 150 years, we at M. Steinert & Sons have had a front-row seat at the many piano innovations Steinway & Sons has introduced to the public. As an Authorized Steinway Dealer, we watched with curiosity when Steinway decided to challenge other leading piano companies for the large mid-market of the piano industry.
Over the past three decades, we have studied the new Boston models as they were released and seen how versatile an instrument they are.
By the end of this review, you’ll become better acquainted with the Boston line and how their pianos appropriate much of the Steinway design to create one of the most popular new lines of pianos in the last 30 years. We believe in our Steinway-designed pianos, including Bostons, but we still strive for objectivity when describing them to readers.
Steinway engineers Susan Kenagy and John Patton designed the Boston from the ground up at Steinway & Sons’ Astoria, New York factory. Low-tension scaling resulted in a longer sustaining tone than other leading manufactured pianos. Other Steinway-design features in Boston include:
Everything Steinway knows about pianos from their long experience is considered in the design of the Boston—musicality, longevity, durability, and future residual value.
By 2009, Boston rolled out its first Performance Edition, which included the aforementioned maple inner rim. This provided less vibration. The first edition also featured 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 and had several upgrades. For example, a rescaled bass and treble wire lower string tension provides increased sustain, better tone clarity generally, and deeper, clearer bass.
The Performance Edition II also includes a 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. All of these improvements are consistent with Steinway’s effort to constantly improve their piano models.
Statistically, it is well-documented that over 95% of concert pianists worldwide performing with major symphony orchestras prefer Steinway pianos. They are not remunerated by Steinway for their preference. The Steinway touch and tone have largely defined what many concertgoers come to expect from a piano performance.
If Boston’s design did not closely approximate the Steinway touch found in handcrafted Steinway & Sons pianos, it would still be a high-quality piano.
However, the subtlety present in the wide range of colors in Boston’s tone is what clinches the deal for many buyers. Steinway-designed pianos like Boston have a subtlety to their touch and tone that allows the pianist to achieve color changes and new dynamics in exactly the way the artist wants to express.
The piano literally becomes an extension of the performer’s musical expression. Overarching this subtle, dynamic range of color in the Boston is an even and well-rounded tone akin to the Steinway sound.
Classical Steinway Immortals like Sergei Rachmaninoff to jazz great George Gershwin preferred the Steinway sound. Boston’s warm and even tone has a direct design link to the Steinway sound and is played by modern-day Steinway Artists like Lang Lang. To the degree possible in the manufacturing process, Boston yields piano models that have inherited the Steinway design and sound.
Thanks to this Steinway pedigree, the Boston sounds better, plays better, and lasts longer than any other piano in its price range. So how good are Boston pianos?
For both high quality and affordability, they can make the argument that they are the best-manufactured piano on the market.
The best way to experience Boston is to try a few yourself. Compare it to the Steinways in one of our two showrooms in Boston and Newton. You’ll find that Boston is up to the challenge.
For more information about the Boston line of pianos, click here.
by Stephen N. Reed
A piano’s wooden cabinet, or case, is one of the most important parts of a grand piano. The case, which includes the rim in a grand piano, is key in protecting the other 12,000 parts of the piano, and it is responsible for critical parts of the piano’s sound, securing its musical quality.
Additionally, taking good care of the piano’s case is essential to maintain strong resale value–both for the protection of the interior of the grand piano as well as its external appearance. After all, the case is what most people visualize when they imagine a grand piano–a large, impressive, wooden structure.
It’s probably what you see in your mind’s eye, too, when the words “grand piano” comes to mind. What could be worse than buying what looks like an attractive grand piano, only to discover later that the case was made with shoddy materials?
M. Steinert & Sons has been helping our customers avoid such pitfalls for over 160 years. We understand how pianos are made and which parts deserve your particular attention.
By the end of this article, you will understand better the three reasons that a grand piano’s case is important: cabinet construction, the rim and its impact on the piano’s musical quality, and how the case allows you to express your personal style. You’ll also learn of some different styles of modern grand piano cases.
We tend to forget that some of the world’s great, early piano makers–Henry Steinway, Morris Steinert, and Ignaz Bosendorfer among them–had cabinet making in their backgrounds. They are known today for the beautiful pianos they created.
However, one can definitely say that the piano’s cabinet, or case, was there from the beginning of some of the great grand piano designs we take for granted today.
Approximately 85% of every acoustic piano is wood. The style of cabinetry and wood finish is an important consideration for many piano buyers.
Solid core construction: Solid lumber core with two outer layers of veneer on each side. This is the least economical approach to piano building. There are significant variations between manufacturers between types of wood selected and their strength, durability, and grain characteristics.
Plywood: approx. 1⁄2 to 3⁄4 inch plywood panels with face veneers on each side.
Fiberboard: panels made of compressed wood fiber, with face veneers applied to each side. (Most economical approach–often heavier due to presence of glue used to fabricate these materials)
Historically, piano cabinets have used solid core construction. However, plywood and fiberboard are now more prevalent in manufactured pianos. Legs, moulding, and various trim pieces are usually solid wood. On good quality pianos, they are of the same wood species as the rest of the piano’s cabinet.
Each part of a piano’s case has a specific function. A higher-quality build will result in less failure of case components and a longer lifespan overall.
Because of Henry Steinway’s commitment to making the best possible piano, Steinway’s handcrafted process has always used solid core construction.
Other piano makers have fine case designs. However, no piano maker has done more to develop an effective rim than Steinway. By 1880, Steinway started to produce their Model A, a smaller grand piano that nevertheless had significant ramifications for their larger grand piano models 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 patented, single-piece, continuous bent-rim that made 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.
The two rims–inner and outer–are essentially the foundation of the piano, along with the back-posts that are attached to the inner rim. Placed on top and attached to the top of the inner rim is the soundboard, which vibrates freely within the perimeter of the outer rim.
The vibrations of the strings after being struck by the hammers are transferred through the maple bridges into the spruce of the soundboard and then instantaneously conducted toward the rims.
Steinway has proven that the rim’s job is to absorb as little of that energy as the particular design of a given piano permits, reflecting the acoustic vibrations back into the soundboard and then releasing them outward as sound waves to the ear.
The species and density of the rim wood will determine the degree of efficiency of reflection of sound vibrations toward the ear. Many manufacturers use relatively soft inexpensive hardwoods for rim construction, such as Philippine mahogany (lauan). Steinway uses only more costly North American hard rock maple, known for its unexcelled density, durability, flexibility, and reflective efficiency as well as tonality.
Steinway is the only manufacturer that bends the inner and outer rims together at the same time into one homogeneous unit, thereby eliminating the possibility of rim separation between the inner and outer rims as the piano ages. A separated rim will compromise the tuning stability of the piano as well as have a detrimental effect on tone.
When it comes to the matter of a grand piano’s musical quality, evaluating the role of the case gets a little complicated. How one actually defines the “case” becomes all-important.
On one hand, many in the piano industry consider the rim, so integral to producing the piano’s sound, as a separate part altogether. What’s left are the other exterior parts of the case–like the lyre, the legs, the music desk, or the fallboard–which do not significantly affect the musical quality of the piano.
On the other hand, others in the piano industry believe the rim should be considered part of the “case,” as the outer rim of the grand is part of the visible cabinetry.
“The outer rim not only defines the primary curved furniture of a grand piano but is integral to its sound,” says Phil Schoonmaker, a veteran piano consultant at M. Steinert & Sons. “So the case, in my view, includes the outer, visible rim which provides architectural design and beauty as well as structural construction essential to tone production.”
According to this view, the case, with rim included, becomes an essential part of the musical quality of a grand piano.
Steinway’s patented one-piece continuous bent rim generates its strength by bending single laminations of premium, straight-grained rock maple in an unbroken curve to form the rim of the piano.
The process of bending our rims completely by hand has taken place in Steinway’s factories for over 140 years, and recent developments in that process have produced a vastly improved piano rim.
Today’s Steinway rim has improved stability, durability, and strength, which together create the distinctive Steinway sound. Never before has Steinway’s rim emboldened the company’s patented Diaphragmatic Soundboard to vibrate so freely and generate a golden tone.
Thus, this patented rim not only helps to strengthen the case but contributes mightily to Steinway’s signature sound.
The outer veneer of the piano’s case does not affect musical properties. A designer Steinway Model B has no more or less musical quality than a standard ebony Model B.
However, the outer veneer of a grand piano’s case can be an expression of the owner’s individuality or decorative style. While the classic ebony Steinway grands are the ones that spring to mind automatically from their ubiquitous presence on concert hall stages around the globe, Steinway has always made available a range of case styles for its customers.
Perhaps best known is the Crown Jewel Collection, with fine veneers like high-quality mahogany, walnut, and East Indian Rosewood, among others.
Steinway also produces limited edition grand pianos, partnering with famous performers like Lang Lang and Lenny Kravitz.
Wrapping a piano’s case in the best color for one’s interior design is another option available at piano stores like M. Steinert & Sons.
As with standard ebony grands, the care and maintenance of more individualized, limited edition grands make a huge difference in any future re-sale.
For musical quality, resale value, and aesthetics, the piano’s case matters a great deal. It is the first part of the piano that the owner or audience sees. Plus, it is what protects the other 12,000 parts within the piano.
Combined with the unique Steinway bent-rim, the case plays a major role in creating the Steinway sound.
The best way to appreciate these contributions of the case to a Steinway grand is to come into one of our two showrooms in Boston and Newton to allow your senses to take in several different Steinway grands.
In the meantime, learn more about the way Steinway cases are made by reading this article:
What is a Steinway factory tour like?
by Stephen N. Reed
Is there ever an occasion where buying a used Steinway is preferable to a new one, other than for a lower price? While many used Steinways are in good condition, the simple truth is that every piano has a slow but steady process of deterioration.
So if two Steinways have the same model style, but one is younger than the other, the younger one will most often be the smart purchase–and brand new is the best. The only exceptions to this would be if a younger piano had considerably greater usage and/or a less conducive environment.
These issues could make a younger piano have poor quality than a well-maintained, somewhat older piano
A piano company like Steinway is constantly innovating and improving its models. In fact, Steinway applies for a new piano patent once every 14 months on average. The truth is that only the latest Steinway is outfitted with the latest innovations and improvements, along with the security of Steinway’s five-year manufacturer warranty.
By the end of this article, you will understand more about why a brand new Steinway is consistently better than a used one.
Concert pianists know something many don’t, namely that even a well-made, handcrafted piano starts the gradual process of deterioration as soon as they leave the factory. That’s why they prefer to play as close to a new Steinway piano as possible.
Indeed, upwards of 95% of today’s piano performers prefer to play Steinways. Performance halls usually rotate new Steinways in after a few years. Why is this? Because older Steinways–even restored ones–cannot compete with the new Steinway.
Since 1853, consistent with their mission to build the best piano possible, Steinway has been making constant advancements to their instruments — as mentioned previously, every 14 months, on average.
Only the newest Steinways contain all 139 patents as well as the multitude of factory improvements brought about by modern engineering, process control, and computer technology.
As superstar classical pianist and Steinway Artist Lang Lang puts it, “If I am to play my best, there is no way but Steinway.” When Lang Lang wanted to partner with a piano company to design his own “Black Diamond” piano model, he turned to Steinway.
Among other reasons, classical and contemporary piano greats choose Steinway for its famed “Steinway sound,” a warm, rich, bell-like tone with a wide range of colors not found elsewhere. This wider palette of color allows the pianist to express their emotions more subtly and powerfully.
Classical musicians everywhere are familiar with America’s most elite music schools: Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, Juilliard School of Music in New York, Oberlin College Conservatory in Ohio, Yale School of Music in Connecticut, to name a few.
These top schools are renowned for producing the best pianists, the best string players, the best woodwind and brass players, the best percussionists, the best vocalists, and the best conductors.
Significantly, each of these schools has chosen Steinway pianos, almost exclusively, for their students’ use. Curtis owns 95. Juilliard owns 260. Oberlin owns 240. And Yale owns 150.
Worldwide, the list of “All-Steinway” Schools now exceeds two hundred. Why do the vast majority of leading conservatories and schools of music and symphony orchestras invest only in new Steinways, rotating them out every few years?
Their answer is simple: because of the unparalleled educational experience these pianos provide to their students and the enduring long-term value they provide to institutions. Such top institutions want to be known as having state-of-the-art pianos, i.e. the latest Steinways.
Used Steinway pianos are described in a multitude of ways by technicians and piano dealers: repaired, rebuilt, refurbished, restored.
The best restorations can be done at the new Steinway Restoration Factory in Walker, Iowa factory. The cost of rebuilding an old Steinway can easily approach that of a brand new Steinway.
Sometimes, the theory is floated that a past “Golden Age of Steinway” produced superior instruments which, in good condition, are somehow better than a new Steinway. We debunked this myth in a previous article.
No used Steinway, even one in great condition, has the musical quality and longevity of a brand new Steinway.
Major music schools and over 95% of piano performers worldwide point to the new Steinway as the best choice possible–if an individual or institution can make the investment in one of these well-crafted pianos.
From Steinway & Sons’ latest innovations to the fact that their long life is entirely ahead of them, a new Steinway offers the best musical quality over any used Steinway, no matter how well-restored it may be. A new Steinway has all of its life ahead of it and has the benefit of including any new innovations developed by Steinway engineers.
Plus, only a new Steinway affords the buyer a five-year manufacturer warranty. Steinway factory warranty.
Finally, only a new Steinway and used Steinways back to 2016 offer the Spirio option, making one’s Steinway grand into a high-resolution, 21st century player piano.
Learn more about the difference between new and used Steinways by reading the following articles:
New vs. used Steinway: Which is the better value for me?
Pros and cons of new Steinway vs. rebuilt Steinway
by Stephen N. Reed
Steinway’s Spirio has established itself as the premier 21st century player piano. It has done so through the following five attributes:
For purposes of this article, we will be referring to the latest form of Spirio, the Spirio | r, which provides for the latest technology in recording, editing, and sharing as well as playing.
By the end of this article, you will understand the 5 “must know” facts about Steinway’s Spirio and how each contributes to the overall Spirio experience.
New high-performance audio technology may be fascinating to those who follow the latest breakthroughs. But the average user needs to know that they can use it–easily–or many of them simply won’t use it.
Steinway engineers wanted to make sure that their 21st Century player piano not only produced the highest resolution audio recordings available; they held back the release of the Spirio until they made the new technology easily accessible to the player.
Their answer was a separate interface, one already familiar to many Spirio buyers: an Apple iPad interface. As a result, an average person with little technology experience can access a selection of songs from the Steinway proprietary music catalog, easily entertaining themselves or a gathering of friends after dinner.
With the advent of Spirio | r, that same simple interface allows recording, editing, and saving of piano recordings.
Moreover, thanks to the Apple iPad interface, Spirio only takes one step to access the piano’s technology, while others in the industry can take up to four steps and tend towards multi-layer confusing menus.
By making Spirio’s technology easily accessible, Steinway’s engineers have effectively removed barriers that would have diminished a buyer’s enjoyment of this high-tech self-playing piano.
The following four Spirio facts are favorably impacted by this first and most important fact: a new buyer can learn how to use the Steinway Spirio with little or no training. .
Steinway’s engineers understand the incredible subtlety that goes into the Steinway sound with its palette of wide-ranging color.
One of their priorities in developing the Spirio | r was to emulate performances with a level of detail that would allow recordings to be indistinguishable from a live performance. This is an amazing listening experience.
The sensitivity levels these Steinway engineers built into each key are quite subtle. A single key can be played at 1020 levels, sampled 800 times per second and in excess of the music industry’s 128 level MIDI standard.
This nuance and sensitivity in action dynamics, combined with 256 levels of pedal positioning, form the backbone of the Steinway Spirio performance library.
For on-board recording with Spirio | r, the same principle prevails: the extraordinary capacity to capture over 1,020 levels of dynamic range and 256 pedal movements, sampled 100 times per second. This is the highest of high-definition performance capture quality. This is only available on the Steinway Spirio | r.
At no charge, Steinway gives Spirio buyers a collection of 4,300+ Steinway Artist songs. This Spirio musical catalog contains not only vintage, digitally-remastered classical and jazz recordings by Steinway Immortals like Rachmaninoff, Gershwin, Irving Berlin, and Duke Ellington.
But Steinway keeps current by including in the same catalog many new recordings by contemporary jazz and classical Steinway Artists like Aaron Diehl, Robert, Glasper, Lang Lang, and Yuja Wang. Steinway adds 40-50 new high-resolution recordings to Spirio’s collection every month at no additional charge.
These recordings have such high definition that the effect is that the Steinway Artist is being channeled directly through the moving keys on the keyboard. Imagine experiencing George Gershwin actually performing “Rhapsody in Blue” with the same keystrokes and volume as when he recorded it decades ago.
The highest-definition performance capture possible is what makes the Steinway Artist collection unique.
The Spirio’s live performance, high-performance capture and playback are possible thanks to years of Steinway engineers working to perfect it before releasing it to the public. Spirio | r is a revolution in player piano artistry and technology.
When a piano student can record and edit their own recordings with the same high-resolution quality as a Steinway Artist receives from recording in a professional studio, we are in exciting, uncharted waters.
Think of it: A student can develop his or her recording and editing skills, sharing them with a teacher or friend. This can accelerate their piano playing skills, not only because they can hear where they need to improve but because of the added motivation from sharing their efforts with others.
Spiriocast came into being during the pandemic, a time when many people were looking for new ways to enjoy live music. What if today’s best piano performers could perform live, right in your home, whether for an intimate concert for your family or a group of friends?
And what if they played right on your very own piano?
Spiriocast was launched for the first time on October 25, 2021. That day, Steinway broadcast a performance by Steinway Artist Kris Bowers from a piano in California to pianos in its dealerships across the world, including M. Steinert & Sons.
The Spirio | r captures high-definition performances via the iPad interface. A cutting-edge, high-definition sensor system on the Spirio | r captures the movements of the Spirio | r’s keys and pedals, recreating an authentic acoustic experience for each of the Spirios participating in the cast.
Each performer’s audio and video is captured through each Spirio’s iPad, which broadcasts together with the music. The accompanying video of the Spiriocast performer adds greatly to the experience, but the incredible, live clarity of the music is the main attraction as it comes into your own living room and piano.
Spiriocast allows you to enjoy live performances, a masterclass, or simply the live playing of a friend or family member–from anywhere in the world.
Steinway’s great investment of time and energy into the Spirio line has clearly paid off, as now one-third of all Steinway sales are Spirios. Just like pianos became the fashionable way for Americans to make their parlors the center of their home, their entertainment center, Steinway has provided in the Spirio | r.
Here is a grand piano that is up to the challenge of providing stimulating education and entertainment for the 21st century family.
If ever there were a musical instrument and a piece of cutting-edge technology that you have to experience in person, the Spirio is it. Come to one of M. Steinert & Sons’ two showrooms in Newton and Boston to see, hear, and touch for yourself the evolution of the piano.
In the meantime, learn more about the Spiro by reading these articles:
Could the Steinway Spirio ever become obsolete?
by Stephen N. Reed
The “Steinway sound” draws many individuals and institutions to purchase a piano from one of the Steinway Family of pianos: Steinway, Boston, and Essex. But what is so unique about this sound, this tone? Why do upwards of 95% of performing concert pianists worldwide prefer it to that of other brands like Yamaha and Kawai?
Learning more about the Steinway sound is important, as reading about it and experiencing it in an Authorized Steinway Dealer piano store will help you decide if one of the Steinway Family pianos is for you.
Whether you buy a Steinway-designed piano or not, playing pianos and hearing the sound for yourself are critical parts of the buying process. Steinway pianos have a unique sound and you don’t want to find out after the purchase what that is. At that point, it would be too late to factor into your decision then.
Here at M. Steinert & Sons we’re an Authorized Steinway Dealer and have been introducing people to the Steinway sound for years. Granted, we believe in our product, as any piano store does.
However, that doesn’t mean that we can’t acknowledge the better points of other quality piano brands, like Yamaha and Kawai.
By the end of this article, you will be more familiar with the Steinway sound and how it compares with the sounds of Kawai and Yamaha pianos. You’ll learn about its wide-ranging palette of color and its well-rounded tone which speaks to those piano performers who prefer it to all others.
Among the over 95% of performing pianists who prefer Steinways, the handcrafted Steinway sound comes up repeatedly. Steinway Artist Lang Lang is representative of this kind of testimony.
“As a child, I had the chance to play an old Steinway for the first time at an awards ceremony at the conservatory near my birthplace Shenyang,” explains Lang Lang. “I got goosebumps because this piano was so connected to my heart and soul. Suddenly the same piece sounded so much more beautiful, and I thought, “Wow, this is the energy of a Steinway.”
From that point on, he tried unsuccessfully to replicate the Steinway “golden, delicate and sweet” sound on his own piano. When he later attended a Peking conservatory, he went out of his way to practice on a Steinway every chance he got.
Today, Lang Lang is an international piano superstar, one that was sought out by Steinway to help design the limited edition Black Diamond Model D. For Lang Lang, it all comes back to that same Steinway sound he fell in love with as a child.
“This instrument not only has the beauty but the sound, the emotions, the whole feeling,” says Lang Lang. “No matter how you play, you always have these wonderful qualities.”
Russian pianist Kirill Gerstein says that the Steinway sound has had a hand in shaping what many concert-goers believe a piano should sound like.
“I think generations of pianists’ muscular-nervous systems have been shaped by how the action feels and how the action and the sound merge into this playing experience,” says Gerstein. “And for the listeners, it’s this experience of listening to the Steinway sound that has really cultivated what we think the piano sound is.”
Gerstein believes that the Steinway sound is found in the way Steinways have been made for generations.
“I think it’s this combination of technical ingenuity and handcraftsmanship because a large percentage of work is still done by hand and by people that have been selecting wood for the soundboards their entire lives,” Gerstein says. “And this results in this unique half-machine, half-living musical instrument.”
When talk turns to Steinway-designed pianos, you’re going to hear a good bit about their soundboards. Steinway & Sons engineers saw early on how the right kind of soundboard could make all the difference in a piano’s tone. In fact, they prioritized their “Diaphragmatic Soundboard” so much that they patented it.
This unique soundboard is based on an innovative patent to achieve optimum performance in dynamic range and maximum sustain.
The Steinway-designed soundboard is gradually tapered from the center to the edge, permitting freedom of movement and creating a sound of unparalleled richness, sonority, and sustain.
The fact that the tapered soundboard goes right to the edge of the piano case keeps the sound from escaping easily, giving Steinway-designed pianos a certain fullness.
Today, this soundboard’s wood, Sitka Spruce, is sourced entirely from an island in Alaska, the only location that meets Steinway’s stringent specifications. This unique micro-climate provides this spruce with the highest quality grain density, direction, and color, thereby improving the transmission of tonal string vibrations.
Steinway’s piano-rim machining center achieves an unparalleled fit between the soundboard and the rim, ensuring pristine resonance, tonal color and purity of sound.
Steinway introduced the Hexagrip Pinblock in 1963, a breakthrough that enabled 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.
Steinway constructs its soundboard bridges from vertically laminated hardwood with a horizontal grain, capped with solid maple. Each Steinway bridge is notched by hand for precise, individual string-bearing, another advantage to a handcrafted piano.
Steinway’s popular Model D and Model B have a single-piece bridge. It is one long continuous bridge from the highest treble to the deepest bass.
This design ensures optimal sound transmission from the strings to the soundboard. It also allows for the instantaneous transfer of the vibrations of some 233 strings throughout the bridge and the soundboard, creating more colors to the Steinway palette.
This wide range of colors to the piano’s tone is one of the main reasons professional pianists prefer playing a Steinway: they simply have more ways to express their experience of the music. The piano becomes an extension of their inner passion. They channel their emotions into a more complex and subtle expression of music via the Steinway keyboard.
The use of Hard Rock Maple in Steinway-designed pianos produces a key difference in their sound. Boston pianos use the same kind of Hard Rock Maple used in Steinways for their inner rim. The result is more sound projection and less rim sound diffusion compared to the Kawai.
A wide-tail rim shape, cast-iron plate, an all-wood action, low tension scale, and string length all contribute to the purity of the Steinway sound. Brands like Yamaha and Kawai, with their higher tension scale, have a “brighter sound” than Steinway-designed models.
In contrast, Steinway-designed pianos have a tone that is known for its warmth, longer sustaining tone, and greater dynamic range. This tone is distinctive, quite different from Yamaha and Kawai models.
The best way to wrap your musical soul around this famous Steinway sound is to experience it for yourself at an Authorized Steinway Dealer’s showroom, like one of M. Steinert’s two showrooms in Boston and Newton.
Our seasoned piano consultants can answer any questions after you sample several Steinway models, listening for that famous, warm, bell-like Steinway sound. It is a sound that inspires pianists to play at their best.
“Owning a Steinway, and performing on Steinways, constantly inspires me to be a better pianist,” says Sonya Ovrutsky Fensome, concert pianist, Director of the Piano Academy at M. Steinert & Sons, and Founder of the Main Line Music Academy.
“The rich variety of sound and the amount of subtleties that Steinway permits is unmatched by any other instrument I’ve ever played,” notes Sonya. “The level of refinement its sound allows a pianist to achieve makes us strive to perfect and refine our technique.”
Set up an appointment at your next convenience. In the meantime, learn more about the yearlong process that goes into every handcrafted Steinway. This article will help illustrate the highest grade of materials and handcrafted efforts that go into making the Steinway sound.
What is a Steinway factory tour like?
by Stephen N. Reed
Upright pianos have long had a welcome place in many American homes. For those who don’t have the space or the budget for a grand piano, uprights can be a perfect fit. But which among the modern top quality uprights is the best model and why?
Let’s explore the main contenders for “best quality upright” among the models produced today. After all, who would want to select a new upright, only to find out later that a better upright would have only cost a bit more?
Here at M. Steinert & Sons, we’ve sold thousands of upright pianos over the past 160 years, including the period at the turn of the 20th century when they were intensely popular in America. As an Authorized Steinway Dealer, we naturally believe Steinway pianos have a lot to offer. However, so do other high-quality piano brands, some of which we’ll examine in this article.
Then and now, we have helped our customers find the best pianos for them, many of which were upright pianos, whether serving as a beginner’s first piano or a starter piano that could lead eventually to a further investment in a grand piano.
By the end of this article, you will understand the upright piano’s background and will be familiar with the top upright piano models across several top-quality brands. From these top models, we’ll explain which one is the best upright.
The immediately noticed difference in an upright piano is that the strings and soundboard run vertically, perpendicular to the keyboard. Early uprights had strings that started upward from the same level as the keys.
As a result, these earlier instruments were considerably taller, providing ample space on the case for a variety of decorative designs.
The strings in today’s upright pianos run upward from the bottom of the case, that is, near the floor. This design dates back to 1800, created by Sir John Isaac Hawkins, a leading English piano maker living in Philadelphia.
Uprights have come in a variety of heights. The shortest ones are cons0les or spinets. Due to their shorter strings and smaller soundboards, they have less power and quality to their tone. The larger upright pianos (more than 50” tall) took off in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and remain the preferred size for uprights today.
One important difference between the grand and the upright is in the action of both. Grands have a quicker, more responsive action due to the horizontal strings, which allows the hammers to fall naturally back into place thanks to gravity after they strike strings.
The upright’s action returns to a resting position with the help of springs rather than gravity alone. As a result, the upright has a different touch.
Uprights, therefore, are not made for the concert stage. A practice room, yes. Definitely the home, especially one with a premium of square feet.
Yamaha has put considerable effort into a comprehensive redesign of their U series of upright pianos. These uprights have refined scale designs, as well as wider music desks for the player’s sheet music or music books.
Steve Hauk, Sales Manager for M. Steinert & Sons, says that Yamaha’s U Series of upright pianos are well-regarded. He notes that the U-1 (48” tall) and the U-3 (52” tall) are popular first pianos for many piano students.
“Beginning piano students are often enamored with the brightness of the Yamaha sound,” said Steve. “In a way, it compliments a lot of the early repertoire, like Bach and Handel. But as students progress musically, more tonal complexity is desirable.”
Steve Hauk says that Kawai K-series uprights compete with the Yamaha U-series and have a similar tone.
Kawai calls this series its “Professional Upright Pianos.” Popular with some parents and teachers, these pianos are produced with the Kawai Upright Action with plastic/composite parts rather than wood.
Kawai swears by this composite action, citing its stability. Others maintain that a quality wood action, despite its occasional swelling and shrinking, is still the standard.
Merriam Music has an unbiased take on the wood vs. composite action debate. They state that a composite action might last longer than a low to mid-grade wooden action. However, a top-quality wooden action can last just as long. Additionally, composite actions appear to have no impact on tone. Also, they have no discernible benefit or risk to resale value.
Steve Hauk says that, like the Yamaha U series, Kawai’s K series uprights remain a popular choice for first-time piano students. They come in three sizes: the K-400 (48”), the K-500 (51”), and the K-800 (53”).
Steinway-designed Essex pianos, the least expensive of the three brands in the Steinway Family (Steinway, Boston, and Essex), are considered the gateway to the full Steinway sound.
Steve Hauk cites four popular Essex uprights: the smaller EUP-108 (42”), the EUP-111 (44”), the EUP-116 (45”), and the EUP-123 (48”).
“The Essex uprights are excellent for everyday use in the home,” says Hauk. “And they are quite affordable. They share many features with the more expensive Boston and Steinway uprights, including a tapered solid spruce soundboard for long sustain, lower-tension scale design for a richer tone, and a responsive all-wood action made from high-quality maple.
One benefit to buying an Essex upright is that any payments on a new Essex (or Boston) can be applied to a later Steinway purchase, per Steinway’s Lifetime Trade-Up Policy. This is due to their being a part of the Steinway Family of pianos.
Boston is a step up from its Essex cousin, both in materials and design. Aside from being a production piano in contrast to a handcrafted Steinway, the distinctions between Bostons and Steinways can be hard to discern. Both have the Steinway touch and tone. Both have enormous power in their grands, as well as their uprights.
“When Steinway engineers started to consider their designs for Boston pianos, they decided to get feedback from many music professors,” says Steve Hauk. “To a large extent, what you see in today’s Boston pianos is what the music professors wanted in a piano. They are built with music conservatories in mind, as well as for residential use.”
Steve notes three popular Boston uprights: the UP-118 (46”), the UP-126 (50”), and the UP-132 (52”).
“All of these models have an exceptional sustain and clarity, due to Steinway’s renowned lower-tension scale designs,” notes Steve. “The soundboards are of the highest quality. They each have the Hard Rock Maple you see in classic Steinways, including the patented Hexagrip pin block. All Boston uprights feature the staggered backposts for added structural integrity. In short, Bostons play better and last longer.”
Boston’s launch in the early 1990’s was the most successful in modern piano-making history.
Steinway & Sons is best known for their iconic grand pianos, whether for the stage, practice room or home. However, they are quick to point out on the upright piano page on their website that their famous Model K-52 is handcrafted in the same Astoria, New York factory as their grands.
Steinway’s uprights continue to have the same materials, techniques, conditioning processes and craftspeople. They are simply built in the “vertical department” at the Astoria factory, where the processes are vertically oriented.
Steinway’s 1098 upright is no longer in production, though one can still find several of these models on the used piano market. It was a small upright, 46.5” in height.
Currently, Steinway is putting all of its upright focus on the K-52, a large, powerful instrument. Introduced in 1903, the 52” K-52 uses the highest grade of materials and features a larger soundboard than many grands, giving it an unusually resonant voice for an upright.
Many professional piano players seeking an upright piano buy the K-52, because of that resonance and power. Additionally, they like the structural integrity that the solid wood, staggered backposts provide the K-52.
“Steinway doesn’t want to cede any part of the piano market,” says Steve Hauk. “That’s why they have intentionally chosen to retain and refine the K-52 upright over the last hundred years. What gives it that rich, deep sound is its design.
Hauk believes that the K-52 simply has one of the best-engineered scale designs of any piano, grand or upright.
“Obviously, many people need an upright for its smaller size.,” notes Steve. “But you know what? When a potential buyer sees that they can get this kind of Steinway sound in a much less expensive package, that speaks to them, too.”
For the aforementioned reasons–a well-engineered scale design, the highest grade of materials, a larger soundboard, and a deep, rich Steinway sound–Hauk believes that the K-52 is simply the best upright piano built today.
“The others we’ve mentioned are all respected piano brands and models,” says Steve. “Yamaha and Kawai each have something to offer. For example, some pianists may prefer the quicker composite-based action in the Kawai piano. Similarly, some jazz pianists may prefer the brighter sound in Yamahas.”
But Steve maintains that Steinway’s K-52 is unique, particularly its bell-like Steinway sound.
“It’s handcrafted, and that adds so much to every dimension of a piano, especially an upright, with its super responsive action,” says Steve. “There’s a reason Steinway has been making the K-52 since the turn of the 20th century. Professionals and regular players just like them. They like the power, the resonance, and that warm Steinway sound.”
Any payments made on a new K-52 can be applied to a later Steinway grand, per M. Steinert & Sons lifetime Trade-Up policy.
Learn more about the cost of modern upright pianos by reading the following article:
How much does an upright piano cost?
by Stephen N. Reed
The concert grand piano is considered the pinnacle of piano making and performance. But few know the different elements that come together to create this imposing musical presence, whether on a concert stage or in a home with a room large enough to accommodate it.
The last thing you want, and that we’d want you to do, is to buy a piano of this size and power without understanding all that you’re getting in such an instrument.
Steinert & Sons has been helping individual and institutional buyers with their concert grand purchases for over 160 years.
In fact, we’re an Authorized Steinway Dealer. We keep Model D Steinway concert grands constantly available for any Steinway Artist who comes into the Boston area.
Everything has to be perfect with these reserved concert grand pianos– to ensure they are performance-ready at all times for the visiting concert artist. As a result, we are intimately familiar with the upkeep and maintenance requirements of concert grands.
By the end of this article, you will understand some of the key aspects that make the concert grand special, from its size and cost to its power.
Concert grand pianos represent the pinnacle of piano making. Their sheer size and weight make them unique instruments, and the only ones professional concert pianists want to play. They are capable of enormous dynamic range.
Let’s take a look at how concert grands compare to other grand pianos in terms of their length and weight:
Typically, a new concert grand’s price ranges from $130,000 to $200,000, depending on the brand and finish, though some models can go higher. The most accurate prices are found by visiting an authorized dealer for a given brand.
How much do popular concert grand pianos cost?
The Yamaha CFX costs $185,799.
The Steinway Model D costs $198,400.
The Kawai SK-EX costs $197,595.
The Bosendorfer Imperial costs $250,000+.
Sound is the main difference in a concert piano. A concert grand has an abundance of power thanks to its size and hefty construction. It can fill a large concert hall with sound, usually without amplification. Such an instrument can easily be heard over a large orchestra.
Investing in a concert grand for the home makes sense if you are seeking the ultimate piano experience. The touch on a concert grand is unlike any other piano you will play due to its extra-long key design.
This additional key length affords the pianist an extraordinary amount of dynamic control when playing, from the softest pianissimo to the loudest fortes.
And as far as the tone goes, a concert grand is beyond compare, due to the extraordinarily large soundboard and long bass strings.
While it is true that 97% of concert pianists prefer Steinway, you needn’t be a professional pianist to appreciate the power, resonance, and sustain of a quality concert grand. It will truly bring your playing to a new level.
Individuals and institutions interested in buying a concert grand piano know that such an investment will require a step-by-step process to assure the right selection for them. Premium piano companies who make concert grands are ready to assist such buyers with a tried and true approach to finding the right piano.
For example, the Steinway Selection Process gives peace of mind to the institutions and individuals interested in participating in this structured, deliberative approach to piano buying.
The fact that Steinway instituted this process years ago illustrates how extraordinarily special concert grands are.
Once you are serious about buying a concert grand, you can try some Steinway Model Ds and other brands’ concert grands at their authorized dealers to make comparisons. This is a huge purchase and one to be taken with great care.
Then you can determine if the Steinway Selection Process is for you.
Take an inside look at one institution’s purchase of a concert grand for their university and how the Steinway Selection Process worked for them:
Fitchburg State pinpoints the right Steinway for their needs
