Category Archives: The piano world

Explorations into the world of pianos and piano makers.

Out of tune recordings

Posted on February 14, 2010 by Eric

I recently purchased a CD of Horowitz playing Schumann Kinderszenen, the Op 17 Fantaisie and the Arabeske. His performance of the last movement of Kinderszenen, “Der Dichter spricht” is worth twice the price of the CD, just  beautiful. The problem … Continue reading →

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The problem with sports

Posted on January 30, 2010 by Eric

I’m not a sports person. Skinny and hollow chested, I was much more at home behind the music stand practicing horn in high school than doing anything athletic. Now that I’m older I appreciate not having the knee and hip … Continue reading →

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2010 NAMM part 1 – Overview

Posted on January 24, 2010 by Eric

NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) is the big musical instrument industry trade show. Technically it’s held twice a year, but the big show is every January in Anaheim, California. Anybody and everybody connected with the musical products industry shows … Continue reading →

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2010 NAMM part 2 Bösendorfer

Posted on January 24, 2010 by Eric

Bosendorfer, in the past, has used NAMM to show some beautiful examples of our cabinet design skills and veneer work. However with business being slow and space smaller, it made more sense to show instruments that have more immediate sales … Continue reading →

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2010 NAMM part 3 Yamaha CFX

Posted on January 24, 2010 by Eric

Yamaha has had a high end “craft built” line for a number of years and has been a very serious builder of concert pianos for decades. The concert grand, the CFIII (CF3) has undergone a number of iterations and experiments, … Continue reading →

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2010 NAMM part 4 – Bösendorfer and Yamaha

Posted on January 24, 2010 by Eric

So now you have a major Japanese piano maker with a proven high end approach owning and taking marketing and sales responsibility for a 180 year old Austrian maker of what is generally referred to as one of the worlds … Continue reading →

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Factory visit: Feurich pianos

Posted on December 21, 2009 by Eric

Feurich is located in the charming lake town of Gunzenhausen. We in the states think things are old if George Washington visited. However both Martin Luther and Goethe visited Gunzenhausen. In fact, my hotel (same name, same site, different building) … Continue reading →

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Seth Godin is god!

Posted on December 13, 2009 by Eric

I never met the man, but I’d bet he would think this title is stupid. It may be, but he is not. If you want one great read, subscribe to his blog. Clear, short and always valuable. One post titled … Continue reading →

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Conducting Master Class

Posted on December 12, 2009 by Eric

I know this is classical music nerdy, but here is a master class in the conductors craft. Grainy, dull, black and white, yet riveting. The late, great, Carlos Kleiber conducting at Bayreuth. The soprano is Catarina Ligendza. Thanks for the … Continue reading →

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August Förster tour Part 2

Posted on November 23, 2009 by Eric

I learned a couple of interesting things about Forster pianos during my visit. Click on each thumbnail to enlarge. They have this cool slot cut in the inner rim that allows it to resonate somewhat separately. I’ve seen a number … Continue reading →

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