My in-laws are facing a similar challenge as they downsize and are looking for a good home for their 1940s Steinway Baby Grand. It's in great shape, and is a gorgeous instrument — but nobody in my household plays the piano, or is likely to enough to dedicate the square footage (and upkeep) to keeping such an instrument.
Pianos won't ever go away, but as a centerpiece of the family parlor, its day has come and gone.
Piano stores closing across US as kids snub lessons for other activities | US news | The Guardian
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Yeah, this breaks my heart. I took piano lessons growing up, and even taught piano for a few years.
It's really quite sad, in terms of very good instruments being essentially scrapped because there's no place that will take them.
Yesterday there was a TV news segment about this in the SF Bay area. Piano stores have shut down, and even selling them on Craigs List is a challenge. Sad. But I don't have one and don't have room for one. Guess Im part of the problem
I had to give mine up when I bought a townhouse. There was no way to get it in, short of a crane.
I gave it away to a family with two small kids. They still have it.
I now have a beautiful Yamaha keyboard. Not quite the same but, for the way I play, it's fine.
I have been putting this off for years. I guess this is probably the best time, to enroll in piano lessons.
I was terrible at the piano. My old piano is still apparently waiting for me, but it would cost a freaking fortune to move across the country.
Giving them away on craigslist is a challenge. I listed our c. 1894 upright (not a sought-after brand) for free a few years ago and the only response was someone that was put off when I explained that any piano would need a tuning after being moved. The last quote I got for disposal from a piano mover was upwards of $400, so it will sit until my folks downsize.
I began piano lessons when I was four years old and am now seventy three and still playing piano. I live in Asia now and teach some children.
Playing piano or any instrument adds another quality to your life and studies have shown that learning from an early age increases intelligence levels (see Google)
There are now many distractions these days and children do not seem to have either the parental or self discipline to learn anything that takes application or a bit of effort.
How sad.
If you love keys you never give them up 🙂
They snub lessons cos no discipline and low attention span.
So true Jenny, and when you think of all that talent being lost, or never discovered, the world and society are the losers
Noses in texts, I did not bring my kids up like that at all …… they all have their own biz or are in Uni.
You are to be commended and I am sure that your children thank you for it now. It is not easy to be in the minority, but eventuality they benefits become obvious.
Yes …….. thank you so much and very best wishes to you both ! Jennie
But Piano is my life
Me to! At least I have a keyboard already.. I was literally dying for a keyboard… Now IDK why I'm obsessed Drawing now.. ^_^
No Offence
well mom bought me a keyboard first when I was little
Aww u so lucky.. I got my keyboard when I was, like, 10… And I still am. II got it for christmas..
I got it when I was 10 too it was also my christmas gift XD
My brother (who does play the piano) would love to get one, but their house is just too small.
Get a synthesizer instead ! I have 3 🙂
I think musical intsruments should be respected
I can sympathize with anyone who wants a piano or has had to relinquish theirs. the piano I have played since 4 y.o.a. was to big to bring to Thailand with me so I also had to accept that an electronic keyboard was the only reasonable alternative. No it doesn't have the touch or the balance of a good piano, but I can still play the music I love. Sometimes we become so engrossed with the quality of the instrument we forget it is the music and the dedication of the muscian which is important.
🙂
Very sad idea, indeed. Very sad. Synthesizers are very good, but they don’t really sound like pianos. That’s why, when I had to give mine up, my son and DIL took it. He’s a musician – heavy metal guitar, believe it or not – and still wanted the piano as an addition to the other instruments in the house. I only gave it up because I had to move to a smaller place. I wouldn’t be able to play it now anyway, due to arthritis, but I do miss it so much. To read that they are becoming a thing of the past…sorry I read the article.
I am a retired piano tuner. I own and play on a Roland digital. It is always in tune and the action is like a grand piano. I would never own an acoustic piano unless I was a concert artist. They are too expensive to maintain.
I am totally satisfied with my Roland digital piano. I am going to play on it now at 4:44 AM with earphones while everyone else is sleeping. The digital piano stores will stay in business. It is unhealthy to play on an out of tune piano and most pianos are out of tune.
So true
I have a Roland also !
+ALTON SLATER
Pianos are just too beautiful to be ignored. They're my life. I'd go insane without piano. It keeps me mentally stable. Not joking.
Yes they are +Elena Santín
Yes
+Jennie F And because they're not being required to do so by their parents.
Plus, to some degree, pianos in the home date from a time when they were a major form of home entertainment, which is clearly no longer the case.
+ALTON SLATER Pianos won't disappear, any more than violins will, for much the same reason. But, yes, in the household (and for most casual- to semi-pro music), electronic keyboards can provide the same thing with much less inconvenience.
+Melissa Gutierrez Yeah, where to give one away is a challenge. Most schools, especially at the collegiate level, have all the pianos they currently need. Some churches might need one, especially if it's an upgrade. A professional / concert artist might need one, but probably doesn't need more than one.
Another sad article on this I linked to a few years back: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/30/arts/music/for-more-pianos-last-note-is-thud-in-the-dump.html
There are a few factors at work here –
1. In 1909, when the most pianos were sold (according to the article), the piano was the center of home entertainment. Knowing how to play added up to entertainment for the whole family.
2. Knowing how to play an instrument was considered a thing for rounded person to do, especially women. Pianos were a good default in an era before guitars became as popular.
3. When you come from that background, you make the choice to have your children do the same. Going back in my family, my paternal grandmother, maternal grand father, and my mother played the piano. (So did my dad, but he gave it up early and didn't retain much.) Given that background, I was informed that I was going to take lessons (which I started at 8). I didn't like to practice, but I did enough to continue to advance. I also started singing in a choir at that time, and though that was my first love, playing the piano as an accompaniment to singing was useful. And being able to read music has been very useful in other ways as well. But it took my father's insistence in the beginning to make it happen. And I think parents as a bit less likely to be that insistent today.
4. Do I have a piano in my house? Yes, and when I bought my house in San Diego and when +Stan Pedzick and I bought in Colorado, I(we) made sure that that my piano would fit (at least it's an upright). Do I play my piano as much as I should? No, but it is at least as important to me to have it as any other piece of family furniture (I have a few other pieces – a Morris Chair, a china cabinet and 2 hope chests). And that's also important – do people value special furniture as much as they once did? I don't think so.
5. Do piano's need to much upkeep? Well, no. Should they be tuned occasionally? Yes, but honestly a good piano will not go out of tune so quickly as to make it unusable. Which reminds me, I need to have ours tuned.
+Dave Hill I rented a Steinway M 50 years ago when they rented new pianos. I had many other pianos and this Roland is awesome.
I can transpose, record, has a modem port and USB port and many embedded great pieces. I would chose this Roland over all the other pianos I had. Sure a Steinway concert grand sounds a lot better, but who can afford $150,000.
I mostly gave up playing to do other work when I got married and now am back playing but not so well.
Here is me playing an invention.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZC8i4ZD9cA
Disclosure. I have no connection with Roland or stores that sell them, except when I get the Polonaise ready I'll ask the man if I can record it on the Steinway concert grand at the store.
my son would die to have a piano like that if you are donating it?? He is 15 and has self taught himself by ear, as a homeschool student and plays classical which i have on my google + a couple of videos of him playing. my email is gartnerdonna@gmail.com
Only because teachers try to teach kids to "read" instead of "play". If you teach them chords, then songs, then to read, it gives them a pay off sooner than expecting a kid to do endless scales and drills and not be able to play a tune all the way through! Teach triads, then ask their favorite songs, go to http://www.chordie.com and get the chord charts and have them play the triad with the right hand while playing the single note root of the chord with the left!
No ……. a teacher needs to know and learn how a child learns and respond accordingly.
All children are different, they learn and percieve in different ways.
Only then will you have a successful child.
Stress does not induce learning.
Nor does archaic means, you may find the child of today far brighter than you are.
Check out star seeds.
Jennie
I will put in a link for star seeds.
You may be one. I am.
The transition from acoustic to digital piano wasn't easy after so many years of playing classical music, but now I enjoy experimenting with all the possibilities of my Yamaha. Using the auto rhythm and harmonic facilities have opened up more melodic improvisations and even at this late stage I am beginning to write again.
Hehe Or conversation lead to more comments for the person who posted this…
I think it's because of how school lessons are created. I'm a senior in my high school and our arts program is highly suffering. We have a total of thirteen pianos for use…well…twelve now as one of our piano stands broke but nobody knows how. My teacher doesn't help you unless you specifically ask as it is a student paced class. Meaning, you're on your own. Me and a few others were lucky enough to already have some musical background but those who do not seem to just give up. There are many people in my class who just end up talking the entire time, sleeping, and doing other class's homework. Really, I think all this just depends on a lot of variables. But really, like the article said, kids aren't as interested in music as they used to be. In my opinion, they think it's all about what's more popular.
It's all sports in my school. Have to learn art and music on my own time. Which is rather unfortunate, since they don't exactly give you loads of time to do anything extra. (unless you're like me and you find a way to make time)
It's a sad fact. Most people are buying keyboards over pianos. But while things like key weight, feel, dynamics, sound, and timbre can be emulated; it's just an emulation, and a digital one at that. Any audiophile will know that analog is far superior to digital. I tune, fix, and rebuild pianos as a hobby and have a home studio. I own a 1924 Brambach baby grand, a 1969 Cable spinet, and a 1926 Cable studio upright. I also have keyboards and I prefer the pianos any day. I prefer ANY acoustic instrument over electric or digital, but that doesn't mean I don't like them. Real pianos just have more dynamics and options. Their day in every home has gone, true. But for players, you can't bypass them. A keyboard, no matter how good, can't emulate every facet of the real thing. And let's not forget, it's an imitation. The real things always better than even an expensive imitation.
+Gonzo Beans As a former piano tuner I now own the Roland HP 508 and like the action as well as a grand piano. Try it and report back here.
+Gonzo Beans I suspect the better way to look at it is to appreciate the sound and capabilities of the keyboard itself, not to treat it as an imitation grand piano (any more than an electric guitar is an imitation guitar).
It's possible that you could get a sound system and keyboard that would stand up to the best of concert grands, but better to appreciate them each in their sphere.
+ALTON SLATER +Dave Hill I can't really argue about the feel or action. And you're right about the fact that they are really 2 different instruments. And I am going to be the first to say I was wrong about have more options, or something like that, with a real piano. That's just stupid, and wrong. You can add so many filters, effects, secondary samples etc. that a electric piano has way more sound options. But I still like the real thing better 😉 I guess what I meant about options is, mic placement, the actual piano placement, the tone of a really good soundboard that's aged beautifully just like on a guitar, it sounds better and better the more it's played. Whereas an electric piano has a set amount of sounds, be it thousands, it doesn't grow or evolve and become completely unique. Plus I'm a traditionalist and I love tinkering with old stuff;) but like I said I do have 3 electric keyboards, an electric guitar and bass, drum machine, an MPK mini with pads and knobs, plus a 1983 Kimball organ. I love electric stuff too, a lot. But I myself prefer an old acoustic guitar, or piano, or any instrument with a wooden soundboard that can age and have it's own unique sound. Just personal preference. I mean no offense or disrespect.
+Gonzo Beans Took no offense here. I love a fine analog/acoustic instrument, too. 🙂