The period around the turn of the
Twentieth century was the golden age of American piano production.
Quality of craftsmanship and materials was at an all time high.
The old growth wood used in pianos of this era is no longer available.
Today, machines make parts that
were once carefully made by hand, as a result the level of craftsmanship
that was once widespread is today generally much lower or non-existent.
This is largely a result of business and marketing practices;
instead of producing high quality, handmade, superior sounding
instruments that would last beyond even one hundred years, piano
makers began producing smaller, cheaper, worse sounding pianos
using low skilled labor. About this time, many piano firms were
taken over in a series of mergers, brand names that once indicated
a skilled pianomaker were now licensed to other firms for marketing
purposes. These pianos had an expected lifespan of 10-15 years.
Cost savings were realized by skimping on materials. Unfortunately,
many of these pianos are still being used today, providing less
than spectacular performance, and many a headache for the piano
technician. Surely these pianos produced a quick profit, but at
the cost of limited natural resources and eventually the almost
total decline of the American piano industry. There were hundreds
of American piano manufacturers one hundred years ago, now there
are only a handful.
With this in mind, many people are
interested in the preservation of those remaining pianos from
the golden age. Some reasons include:
Superior quality of raw materials
and craftsmanship.
Superior sound quality.
Preserving our heritage.
Investment - historically, owning
a Steinway has outperformed the stock market.
Certainly it is more environmentally
responsible to restore a classic than to buy a new piano that
consumes more resources and energy.
Supporting a local craftsman instead
of some faceless far away corporation.
This is the restored soundboard
from a seven foot Steinway Grand, Model B, from 1906.
The straightedge demonstrates
proper crown has been achieved.
Work performed by Mark A. Roth
Piano Services.
Pianos from certain manufacturers
have a reputation for superior quality. Pianos not listed here
may still be excellent, but those on this list are almost always
superior.
