Why Upgrade from a Digital Piano?

  July 4, 2017

Just 2 years ago you bought this brand new 88 key weighted digital piano and now you’re being told that it will not suffice. They both have the same amount of keys and it has the same touch as a piano. Why do we need to upgrade? … Read More

Visiting Pearl River Factory

  May 30, 2017

On this latest trip to China, I managed to catch a glimpse into the transformation of Pearl River Piano. Already the largest piano company in the world manufacturing more than 130,000 pianos annually, Pearl River Piano has its sights set on even greater advancement.

One hundred thirty thousand pianos annually equates into about 400 pianos being manufactured per day. Imagine though what it must be like to produce 400 pianos daily. With roughly 225 tuning pins…… Read More

Pearl River and Schimmel Alliance

  April 24, 2017

Recently I sat down with June Wang from Pearl River Piano Group and corresponded with Rob Slayman from Schimmel Piano to discuss their strategic alliance as I was curious how it had affected both companies. It was announced at NAMM 2016 that Pearl River had purchased a controlling interest in the Schimmel company.

Why do piano companies purchase other piano companies? We hear of company mergers in the news all the time. What is the impetus – the driving force for one piano company to acquire another piano company? If we paint with large brush strokes, on one side there is massive demand to be fulfilled in China. Nearly 80% of the world’s piano purchases happen in China.… Read More

Musical and Mechanical Basics of the Damper (Sustain) Pedal

  March 25, 2017

Arthur Rubenstein describes the sustain pedal as “the soul of the piano”. We’re going to delve into a bit more of the mechanical side of the damper pedal in hopes that awareness will clarify what happens when it is being incorporated into piano playing. … Read More

Player Pianos in the 21st Century

  March 1, 2017

A Voice from the Past
“Step right up… See the amazing piano that plays by itself!” I can just hear the man at a trade show in the 1920’s. “Just push the pedals and this paper roll will play songs like Swanee and The Entertainer and Bicycle Built for Two.”

This invention in the late 1800’s was quite remarkable. It functions similarly to a harmonica in reverse. Rather than blowing through holes in a harmonica, the player piano sucks air through a perforated tracker bar. The paper roll has a punch-out hole position for every note on the piano. Through the use of bellows and gears, the paper roll would mechanically slide over the tracker bar and when a hole would appear in the paper, air would get sent through a tube and pneumatically play the corresponding note.… Read More

Making the Perfect Piano Black

  October 27, 2016

Have you ever heard someone describe an object as being “jet black”? Jet is derived from the French word “jaiet”, a process that… Read More

Casting Iron Piano Frames

  September 26, 2016

Every piano has one. It is the backbone to structural integrity. It’s also what gives a piano most of its weight. What is it? Commonly called the frame… Read More

The Art of Piano Voicing

  August 26, 2016

When I was young I was slightly misguided in thinking that every piano brand had a signature sound. While there is truth in that statement, pianos can sound vastly different from model to model… Read More