WaPo: "When old pianos must go, it�s a difficult parting..."

[Michael W]

We downsized from our home of 18 years to an apartment a few months ago largely due to my health issues. This meant I needed to sell my Yamaha U3, which was purchased new in 2002 for about $8000, as I recall. I called a local piano dealer, who offered me $3500 in cash for the U3, and I gladly took it. I feared it could take a long time to sell the piano on the open market, even here in Chicagoland. Bottom line - the number of pianos being sold continues to decline...

 

From the article:

 

Although this will make music lovers cringe, the reality is that some pianos have become disposable. There are lots of them around, some not in great shape. Although memories of an instrument may spark joy, sometimes circumstances dictate that a piano be let go. Downsizing boomers often don"t have room for them; millennials can"t (or won"t) squeeze them into urban quarters; teens often learn to play on electric keyboards.

 

'They often just won"t fit,' says Libby Kinkead, one of the owners of Potomac Concierge, which offers downsizing and moving services.

 

She adds: Sometimes 'people have to choose between their couch and their piano.'

 

Their sheer weight â 500 to 1,200 pounds â makes them difficult and costly to move: Fees can start at $200 for uprights and $300 for baby grands, plus extra for stairs and distance. Then there are tuning costs. But anyone looking for a piano is in luck: Plenty are available free if you pay for the move. The downside: Many more old pianos end up in landfills, some after being chopped up so they"ll fit in a truck."

 

Link to the Washington Post article:

When old pianos must go...

 

[David Emm]

I'm sorry you had to get rid of your acoustic; I'd keep that and lose the couch! I've had the good fortune of getting to play a substantial number of keyboards, so I understand the debates about the connection you can make with some of them and how others are a lousy mountain of Meh. I've played some very nice DPs, but in the end, they're somewhat like the godawful "crossiants" you get at a grocery store bake shop, all spun sugar and powdered toenails. A real baby grand is the genuine article, made with actual butter, by a baker who gets the perfect spin on it. I'm glad that was my starting standard. Its made everything that followed far better.

[El Lobo]

I sent the article to my business partner who sort of collects pianos. He said, "They say people "don't have room for pianos" as if it is a space problem. As a piano fanatic, I notice most people who say they don't have the room seem to have the room to me, but they filled it with unused seating or storage units displaying knickknacks. It's not a matter of room, it's a matter of priorities."

[BluMunk]

I gave away the piano I got for my 17th(?) birthday just a few years ago. It was a beautiful, loud, tack-y upright from the 1880s with a big bright sound that just had a unique sound that I loved. And, it was a beautiful looking instrument as well.

 

It followed my mom through a number of apartments/homes after my folks divorced and sold the house, and eventually, when I finally bought my first home, my mom said "take it or get rid of it".

 

The instrument at that point needed some expensive work done (a few bent/broken hammers, among other issues), and my 990sq ft house just doesn't have room for a large acoustic instrument like that. It was sad to see it go, but what can you do?

[Joe Muscara]

[long story skipped about why]

 

My wife and I are semi-casually looking at homes we could move into that aren't far from where we currently are, but are a bit less expensive yet have more space. As Jim A and Josh P can attest, my grand piano is in a 12 x 11 bedroom that's my studio, along with the A-100, Leslie, and other gear. One of the criteria I have is a good room for the piano and probably the organ. One house that I really like has the formal living room in front with a large bay window and chandelier. I know where the piano is going in that house! Since the house also has a large den in the back, the day-to-day TV watching and such can happen back there. After looking at other houses in that same subdivision, I realized there are at least four houses for sale with basically that same floorplan.

 

So yes, I'm GASsing for a house with a formal living room for my Kawai RX-2 and Hammond A-100. What's it to ya???