Showing posts with label Steinway Pianos. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Steinway Pianos. Show all posts

Thursday 12 October 2017

The Tuning Snob

If a piano is not in tune, surely it is out of tune! Simply put, it is one or the other!

Imagine if we piano tuners would turn up to work, flick some kind of switch, tinker about for an hour or so, play the 'Tuner's Waltz', have a cup of tea, get paid, smile and... on to the next job!

But alas, a tuner's life is not so black and white, not so easy. Whatever the piano may be: Steinway, Schimmel, Schiedmayer - just a few of those beginning with S - but Bluthner, Bechstein etc. and all the rest. All these good pianos, need regular tuning and maintenance to keep them sounding good.

Videos posted online, recordings heard on the radio, programs on the TV, all demonstrate the vast spectrum of ideas about in-tune-ness. The concept of 'in tune' can range from the boringly bland to the ridiculous clang of a poorly tuned street piano. Some people seem able to tolerate the most terrible twangs and jarring noises, oblivious to the blatant affront to musicality, while being quite serious in their playing.  

Perhaps being a piano tuner, one is unable to appreciate the honest effort of sincere musicians wanting to express their musical abilities. I find it surprising however that there is not a more widespread appreciation of the concept of being 'in tune'. 

Unhappily, 
we tuners are not among the most accommodating of people, often disagreeing about ways of doing things. For some, their own ideas and practices are the right ones - anything different, is simply wrong!

There is no point in being snooty about other ways of getting the job done - it is good that the profession is still alive and well! The truth is we can all improve. I'd be embarrassed to be met with some of my earliest tuning efforts. Thankfully, after so many years, nobody is going to complain now. We can only deal with the pianos we tune today with our very best efforts. Building experience one piano at a time. 

Tuner's Journal
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Wednesday 22 October 2014

Steinway Serial Nos.


Year
Serial No.
Year
Serial No.
1920
200000
1970
418000
1930
270000
1972
426000
1940
300000
1974
436000
1942
310000
1976
445000
1944
316000
1978
455300
1946
319000
1980
468500
1948
324000
1982
478500
1950
331000
1984
488000
1952
337000
1986
498000
1954
343000
1988
507700
1956
350000
1990
516700
1958
358000
1992
523500
1960
366000
1994
530000
1962
375000
1996
537200
1964
385000
1998
545600
1966
395000
2000
554000
1968
405000
2002
563000

These serial numbers can be used only as a reference point.
An Exact date does not make a material difference to an assessment of a piano - a year or so out 120 years ago really is neither here more there.

The idea that 100% accuracy for all piano makers over a century ago is an interesting thought - but considering that all record keeping would be hand-written and kept in large ledger books, inaccuracies are likely. These records will be as reliable as the clerks whose job it was to keep them. The digital age of barcodes and scanned labels was still in the realm of science fiction. So we have to be content with our best guess numbers.

Back to the Piano Atlas

Wednesday 22 May 2013

Steinway Pianos - A Short History

The history of the Steinway Piano begins with Heinrich Steinweg. His father, a forester, had to leave his large family while taking his older sons with him to fight in the Napoleonic wars. On the father's return, only Heinrich and 2 other children had survived from the lack of proper food and shelter. Even this was not the harshest blow to hit the young Heinrich - shortly after, his father and the remainder of his family were all struck by lightening! Henrich's ability to survive was further proved when he was awarded a medal for bugling in the face of the enemy during the Battle of Waterloo.

After the war, while still in the army, he devoted his spare time to woodwork and the making musical instruments. He made a mandolin, a dulcimer and a zither. Perhaps he had absorbed an understanding of wood from his father, but his talent with wood was permanently to change his fortunes and by so doing, give the world of music the gift of the Steinway Piano!

Before long Heinrich had decided to devote all his time to the making of pianos. The political turmoil of 1848 threatened to interrupt the onward progress of the Steinweg family and business. His son Charles who had previously moved to New York, persuaded his father to join him in America. So it was that Heinrich Steinweg emigrated and changed his name to Henry Steinway.

Henry took great care in selecting timber for all the different parts of the piano. His innate understanding of wood was at the core of his piano building principles. His sons each absorbed Henry's vision and brought to the business their own skills and abilities as engineers, craftsmen and researchers.

1980s UK Letterhead

Firmly established as among the very best of piano makers, Steinways strengthened their place in the music world still more by sponsoring concerts and tours featuring the most prominent pianists from Europe and America. Consistently building success upon success, the Steinway Piano has earned its place on the concert platforms of the world. Many Steinway pianos become treasured heirlooms handed down from generation to generation.

The story of the Steinway piano began in the privations of the early 1800s but looks into the future with assured security and universal acclaim. - This is a worthy legacy from a young survivor with a talent with wood!  


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