steinway & sons - owner's magazine - issue two 2012

Owners’ Magazine

Issue Two 2012

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6 Steinway & SonS | iSSUe one 2012

Published by Faircount Media GrouP

European Headquarters5 ella Mews, hampstead, london nW3 2nh, uK

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Owners’ Magazine

©Copyright 2012 Faircount Media Group. All rights reserved. Reproduction of editorial content in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Faircount Media Group does not assume responsibility for the advertisements, nor any representation made therein, nor the quality or deliverability of the products themselves. Reproduction of articles and photographs, in whole or in part, contained herein is prohibited without express written consent of the publisher, with the exception of reprinting for news media use.

Editortim Glynne-Jones

Chief Writeringe Kjemtrup

ContributorsVince coveleskie, Jessica duchen,

Marcia hillman, david Kettle, chris Maillard, tim Mccann,

linda Parker, Francesca twinn, terry Wilson

Design & Production Controllerana lopez

Art Directorlorena noya

Picture Editoremma smales

Photographyas credited

Associate Publisherchuck oldham

Marketing Managerdara clancy

Production Coordinatorcolin davidson

Production AdministratorMargaret dube

Printed in the usa

unless otherwise credited, photography provided courtesy of steinway & sons archive.

PublishersPeter M antell, ross W Jobson

Consultant Editorsanthony Gilroy

sabine höpermann

mailto:[email protected]



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contents

8 steinway & sons | issUe two 20128

contents12 Publisher’s foreword

The Music

14 Steinway newsAstanova makes Carnegie Hall debut, two firsts for Steinway Hall and Gyorgy kicks off Euro 2012

22 States expectationsA bicentenary tale of Charles Dickens, his American tours and the Steinway & Sons connection

30 Leeds by exampleHow a teacher from Yorkshire put her home town on the international piano competition map

34 Competitions round-upNews, highlights and winners from this year’s prestigious international piano competitions

36 Holiest of holeysA centenary tribute to composer Conlon Nancarrow, pioneer of the Pianola and revolutionary in every sense

42 Steinway and the ‘player piano’How Steinway & Sons played their part in the craze for self-playing pianos in the early 20th century

46 All-Steinway SchoolsThe MTNA takes a tour of the New York factory, plus recent acquisitions for the growing roster of All-Steinway Schools around the world

52 Beyond imaginationHow a Beatles fan from Sweden became the first owner of a Steinway Imagine Series Limited Edition Model D

58 Double timeTwo Steinway twins recently came to light in Hamburg. We tell the tale of their 100-year-old adventure

62 A kind of lovingMore sales tales from Steinway dealers around the world, including the establishment of a firm foothold in Africa

66 Steinway PersonalitiesAshley WassStephen KovacevichLars VogtArcadi VolodosLenore Raphael

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Pictured on cover: europa iii, one of several new art case pianos made available by steinway & sons in 2012. For more information, visit www.steinway.com.

Below: conlon nancarrow, p36

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contents


contentsThe Good Life

76 Collective spiritTake a tour of this year’s festivals where you can expect to hear some world-class pianistic performances

84 Capturing perfectionAs high end hi-fi strives for ever more perfect reproduction of the studio sound, we ask the world’s top producers how they go about capturing that sound in the first place

94 Reinventing timeHow the obsession with measuring time has brought out the best in human ingenuity – and some outstanding examples of creative horology today

102 Stability amid the stormThe constant search for reliable investments takes us into the world’s leading markets for property and collectibles

110 Out of sight, man!When interior design meets high technology, the result is a dazzling array of home entertainment systems that have to be seen to be believed – but can you see them?

116 Lost and foundRelics from the RMS Titanic disaster reveal a fascinating insight on the way we lived then, or more specifically, what people were drinking

124 I’ll take the Steinway...A tour of Scotland turns into a catalogue of Steinway pianos, all found residing in the castles and grand houses of the Highlands and Islands

top: the schleswig-Holstein Festival in Germany, p76

Bottom: one of scotland’s many stately steinways, p124

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12 Steinway & SonS | iSSUe two 2012

Owners’ Magazine

Publisher’s foreword

if our last issue was all about progression, the theme of this issue is “learning from the past.” not that we

planned it that way – sometimes events conspire to write their own plan. For example, had it not been for

an intriguing artistic experiment in the amsterdam Hilton earlier this year, commemorating John Lennon

and yoko ono’s “bed-in” at the same hotel by playing tunes submitted by members of the public, via the

internet, on a Steinway piano fitted with an automatic playing arm (see p16), we might not have reopened

the book on the player piano and decided to shed light on the significant role that Steinway & Sons played

in the development of this mechanical instrument (p42). that, in turn, brought to mind the american

composer Conlon nancarrow, who would have turned 100 this year. nancarrow left a vast legacy of

compositions for player piano, which took piano music into such realms of complexity that only a machine

could play them. nancarrow’s is one of those stories that reminds you just how unusual life can get (p36).

a hundred years before nancarrow came Charles Dickens – not renowned for his piano playing, but an

early performer at Steinway Hall in new york nonetheless. Dickens gave a series of readings at the Hall on

his second tour of the United States (p22), which was met with the same sort of euphoria and fanaticism

that greeted the Beatles when they landed in america a century later.

of course, both Dickens and the Beatles remain hugely popular throughout the world. Later in this

issue we feature the Beatles fan from Sweden who recently became the owner of the first Steinway

imagine Series Limited edition Model D (p52). we also feature two beautiful twin Steinway Model Bs, built a

hundred years ago in new york and recently reconditioned in Hamburg (p58). their story provides a direct

connection with the past, a vivid insight into life during world war ii and an historic encounter with Mahler.

our final lesson from history comes aboard the titanic and, yes, we’ve found an original angle. we won’t

give it away just yet – suffice it to say it’s a rather spirited story, which we think you’ll enjoy (p116).

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news


The stars were in the ascendant on 19 January as Russian-born pianist Lola Astanova made her Carnegie Hall debut, for a concert in aid of the American Cancer Society.

The event, sponsored by Tiffany & Co, was a dazzling affair and Astanova, 27, lived up to the occasion with passionate renditions of Rachmaninov, Scriabin and Chopin. She was joined on stage by actress Julie Andrews and event chairman Donald Trump.

What made the performance all the more special was that Astanova played on the famous Horowitz Steinway, built in 1941 and presented as a wedding gift from Steinway & Sons to Vladimir Horowitz and Wanda Toscanini on 27 May 1943.

This piano traveled with Horowitz all over the world, including his legendary “Return to Russia” concerts in Moscow and Leningrad

in 1986. Horowitz also played it at the White House for President Reagan.

“Every Steinway piano is different,” said Astanova, “and this one is like the ultimate race car. Technically, it has a very rich bass and is extremely powerful.

“Even without the Horowitz connection, it inspires you to do things you never imagined you could do or express. And knowing this was Horowitz’s piano only adds to it.”

Franz Mohr, who was Horowitz’s piano technician, was also on hand to prepare the piano for the concert. He said of Astanova, “This is not just a great pianist, this is a great Russian pianist.”

The concert raised $130,000 on the night for The American Cancer Society. n

astanova glitters at Carnegie Hall

Singer-songwriter Billy Joel this year became the first non-classical performer to have his portrait hung at Steinway Hall. The painting, by Dr Paul Wyse, will hang among other musical greats such as Franz Liszt, Sergei Rachmaninov and Arthur Rubinstein.

Joel, 62, is portrayed standing upright in a leather jacket, with a Steinway piano in the background. At the unveiling, he revealed that the jacket was one of the few items of clothing that he bought without the advice of a female companion. He says he wore it for years but his girlfriend recently dismissed it as a 1980s relic.

He also joked about the fact that his portrait is hung beside that of Vladimir Horowitz, one of the singer’s idols. “I don’t know how crazy he’d be about having me that close to him,” he said.

The Steinway Artist said he was honoured to receive this recognition and took the opportunity to pay this compliment to Steinway & Sons. “When you find a great Steinway, it’s a phenomenal piano. There’s a quirkiness in individually produced pianos that I appreciate.”

Dr Wyse was commissioned by Steinway to complete the artwork, which measures three feet wide by seven feet tall. Joel selected a photo that Wyse worked from and it took him three months to finish.

“It was a great honor to be there with Steinway and Billy Joel, a truly exciting experience,” Wyse said. “It has been great fun and very fulfilling to be able to create art that is about music and musicians. I feel musicians can lend a unique flavour to a painting.” n

Joel immortalised at steinway Hall

Left: Billy Joel (right) at the unveiling with the artist Dr Paul wyse (centre) and Ron Losby, President, steinway & sons – americas

Right: Lola astanova making her Carnegie Hall debut

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steinway & sons | issUe two 2012 15

Steinway Hall was the scene of another first on 22 January, when jazz great David Benoit transformed the Rotunda into a studio and digitally recorded all the piano tracks for his new CD, Conversation.

Through the years, the famed Rotunda at Steinway Hall has seen many great performances; however, this was the first time that the area has been used as a studio to digitally record an entire CD of music.

“As a Steinway Artist, I’ve been very fortunate in having performed in Steinway Hall on numerous occasions,” said Benoit. “Aside from the great beauty of the hall itself, I’ve always been intrigued by its incredible acoustics and the way the most remarkable sound is produced there.”

Benoit, a prolific recording artist with twenty-five solo recordings to his name and multiple Grammy nominations, used a Steinway Concert & Artist piano that has previously been centre stage at Avery Fisher Hall and was a favourite of several classical heavyweights, including Emanuel Ax, Yefim Bronfman and Lang Lang.

Todd Sanders, Vice President of Sales & Marketing, Steinway & Sons – Americas, paid tribute to Benoit’s innovative spirit.

“Despite more than twenty-five solo recordings over the course of his career, David Benoit continues to innovate in his music and produce fresh, cutting-edge contemporary jazz music. He is a loyal Steinway Artist and we were honoured to work with him to make this recording project a reality. It’s impossible to explain what a great pianist, on a great piano, in a great acoustic environment sounds like – it’s something that must be heard.”

You can hear it on Benoit’s new CD Conversation, which was released on 29 May on the Heads Up label. n

Benoit jazzes up the Rotunda

Hungarian Steinway Artist Adam Gyorgy created a piece of history on 8 June when he became the first classical pianist to perform at a major football tournament. Gyorgy starred at the opening ceremony of Euro 2012 – the UEFA European Football Championship – in Warsaw.

Walking out in front of a crowd of 56,000 (and a TV audience estimated to be in excess of 300 million) at the National Stadium, Warsaw, Gyorgy teamed up with Italian DJ Karmatronic to play a tune they co-wrote called The Game of the World – based on motifs by Chopin – accompanied by several hundred dancers.

Gyorgy, 30, is a big football fan. He plays every day as part of his routine, and was selected for the Hungarian futsal team (a form of football involving a smaller ball). He described his performance at Euro 2012 as “a fascinating experience which I will never forget.”

He added, “It was not only about connecting different cultures, but also about introducing pure classical music to a very unusual environment, in a way it has never been done before.

“As a Hungarian, it is always a privilege to play Chopin in Warsaw, but especially this time, where hundreds of millions

watched from around the world on television. I still have goosebumps thinking about the crowd’s reaction in the stadium.”

Gyorgy’s Euro 2012 performance came a month after the release of his new album Adam Gyorgy Plays Liszt, Bach and Mozart, on the CD Baby label. n

Hungary 1 Rest of the world 0Gyorgy scores historic first in front of audience of millions

above: David Benoit during the recording of Conversation at steinway Hall

above: an artist’s impression of football fan adam Gyorgy, who opened the euro 2012 tournament in June

news


In our second issue of 2010, we ran an article by Caroline Stoessinger under the title “Music saved my life.” It was the story of Czech pianist Alice Herz-Sommer, the world’s oldest holocaust survivor. At the time the article was written, Alice was 107 years old and Caroline was working on a biography and a documentary about her life.

This March saw the release of that biography, A Century of Wisdom: Lessons from the Life of Alice Herz-Sommer, the World’s Oldest Living Holocaust Survivor.

It is an incredible story, remarkable enough for Václav Havel, the first president of the Czech Republic after communism, who died in December, to write the introduction, in which he describes Alice Herz-Sommer’s story as one of “truth and beauty in the face of evil.”

From a comfortable childhood in Prague, when she mingled with such luminaries as Franz Kafka, Alice grew into a pianist of some renown but had her

performing career sabotaged by the Nazis. She lost her mother and husband to the death camps and was herself imprisoned with her young son Rafi in Theresienstadt,

where she kept up morale by giving regular concerts and piano lessons. Somehow, in the face of evil, as Havel put it, she developed a philosophy of forgiveness that would help her survive all the agony that life could throw at her.

After the war she moved to Israel and later to London, following Rafi, who was forging his own career as a cellist. Rafi died in 2001,

a blow that broke her heart but could not crush her spirit. Alice kept playing, kept learning, kept advocating hope.

Today, Alice is 108, still living in her London flat and still playing the piano every day. Caroline S to e s s i nge r ’s account of her life is a moving tale, lovingly

told, and a lasting reminder of the uplifting power of music.

A Century of Wisdom by Caroline Stoessinger (ISBN 9780812992816) is published by Spiegel and Grau. n

a book for life

On 26 March, a Steinway & Sons grand piano was put to a very innovative use, albeit with a retrospective theme.

The piano, a white Model B from the Imagine Series Limited Edition, stood in the middle of room 702 at the Amsterdam Hilton, where John Lennon and Yoko Ono staged their famous “bed-in” during their honeymoon in 1969. It was played by a robot arm, connected to a computer, which was feeding in music submitted by people from all over the world via the internet.

The stunt was the idea of DDB Tribal, who won two bronze awards at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity for their work. DDB Tribal’s Chief Creative Officer Eric Schoeffler said, “With ‘Piano for Peace’ we commemorate the yet unattained goal, which John Lennon and Yoko Ono pursued in their authentic and unique way: peace in the world. We will not be able to achieve it either, but with the help of modern technical facilities and the enthusiasm of the people on the social web, we have the chance to take a symbolic stand, transported by the only universal language of mankind – music.”

The pieces played can be heard on the microsite www.pianoforpeace.com. n

P for peace

her heart but could not crush her spirit. Alice kept playing, kept learning, kept advocating hope.

108, still living in her London flat and still playing the piano every day. Caroline S to e s s i nge r ’s

told, and a lasting reminder of the

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This summer saw the release on the National Educational Telecommunications Association network of a wonderful documentary about one of America’s most pioneering pianists and a close friend of the Steinway family.

Olga Samaroff Stokowski, who died in 1948, was a groundbreaking pianist on two fronts: as a woman and as an American. Born Lucy Hickenlooper, in Texas in 1880, she found herself as a talented pianist in a musical environment where neither women nor Americans were held in any esteem. On the advice of William Steinway, for whom she auditioned, she went to study in Europe at the age of 14 and became the first woman to win a scholarship to the Conservatoire de Paris.

Returning to the US in 1904 after a brief and disastrous marriage, she organized and paid for her own New York debut at Carnegie Hall and established a reputation that would help to forge not only her career, but that of so many American and female musicians to follow. However, not before changing her name to something altogether less American: Olga Samaroff was born.

In 1911 she married Leopold Stokowski and her influence helped him to make his name as a conductor. They had a daughter, Sonya, but the marriage ended in 1923. For Samaroff, the firsts

continued: first American pianist to perform all thirty-two Beethoven sonatas; first American-born faculty member at the new Juilliard School of Music when it opened in 1924; first woman music critic for a New York daily (the New York Evening Post). In 1944 she became a small screen pioneer (she was friends with Thomas Edison) with a groundbreaking series of televised lectures.

As well as the Steinways (she was very close to Theodore’s wife Ruth), Samaroff moved easily in the company of statesmen and other artists. She was much loved by her students, who included William Kapell, Rosalyn Tureck, Eugene List and Joseph Battista. Van Cliburn wanted her to be his teacher when he entered Juilliard in 1947, but a year later she suffered a fatal heart attack. She was 67.

Forty years after her death, pianist and writer Donna Kline was told about Samaroff by her teacher, who had studied under her. Kline investigated further and ended up writing the first biography of Samaroff, An American Virtuoso on the World Stage, published by Texas A&M University Press in 1996.

“I always felt that it would make a wonderful documentary,” says Kline. “Olga Samaroff was a pioneer, an achiever. She did so much, like setting up the Schubert Memorial Competition, which has morphed into the many, many competitions that there are now.

“It took about five years to make – getting the money together and then finding a good editor. The most surprising thing to me was that everyone was so happy that I was doing this. They were very cooperative. As an example, Henry Steinway, who is in the film, said I could have the Rachmaninov room at Steinway Hall for filming. That was the rapport I had and that kind of overwhelmed me all the time. Sonya, who is now almost ninety years old and very supportive of my efforts, opened up her attic to me. I had to go back several times to make copies of all the letters. I call it my beautiful odyssey.”

Virtuoso: The Olga Samaroff Story was released to the cable network in July, but it is also available as a DVD from www.olgasamaroff.com. Kline hopes it will help to rekindle a wider interest in one of classical music’s great characters.

“She was a musical progressive. She had great intellectual powers. She had three honorary PhDs, even though she didn’t graduate from college. She had a lot of energy, a lot of poise, she spoke three or four languages, she knew everybody from the presidents to George Gershwin. She changed American music.

“I think her story would make a very good theatrical movie. Wouldn’t that be wonderful!” n

a legend is rebornLife of a musical progressive brought back into focus by new documentary film

top: olga samaroff around the time of her Carnegie Hall debut in 1905

above: in 1924, the year she joined the inaugural faculty at the Juilliard school

Virtuoso: The Olga Samaroff Story, produced and directed by Donna Kline and Wendy Slick, is available on DVD from olgasamaroff.com

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obitUarieS

Rosi Grunschlag, who fled Nazi Austria for the United States in 1939, where she established a successful career as a piano duettist with her sister Toni, died on 15 January, aged 89.

Born into a Jewish family in Vienna, Rosi and Toni, five years her senior, were prodigies and studied at the State Academy of Music. After the Anschluss in 1938, the girls’ parents and their violinist brother, David, were able to flee to Palestine, but Rosi and Toni were stranded in Vienna. It was only through the intervention of their brother’s teacher, the famous violinist Bronislaw Huberman, that they received visas to leave in April 1939. They went first to England and then to New York, where they were reunited with their parents.

In 1940 the sisters performed for the esteemed New York Times critic Olin Downes. He suggested that, as they had such different musical personalities, they should consider a joint career as a duo. They took his advice, making their

duo debut at New York’s Town Hall on 27 March 1945. The Grunschlag sisters toured the United States and Europe, recorded and taught. Neither one ever married and they, along with their two Steinways, lived together in the same New York flat for over sixty years.

Their performances embraced the standards of the duo repertoire as well as lesser-known works, including some composed especially for them. Their recorded legacy includes Dussek’s Concerto for two pianos, sonatas for two pianos by Hindemith and Milhaud and a disc of live recordings from 1978 and 1987, featuring Debussy’s En blanc et noir, as well as Hummel, Lutoslawski, Chabrier and Chopin.

The Grunschlags were the subjects of a fascinating documentary, Toni & Rosi, broadcast on the BBC earlier this year. Film-maker Will Wyatt, who followed the story of the sisters over an eighteen year period, recalled what

Rosi told an audience of young Austrians at one of their emotional concerts in Vienna in 2006, the year Toni died. “If you have a talent, work on it, because when you have to run for your life, you leave everything behind. You just take yourself, if you are lucky. But your education is yours to keep. It is your transportable asset.” n

rosi Grunschlag 1922-2012

Grammy nominated jazz pianist George Mesterhazy died on 12 April at his home in Cape May, New Jersey. He had just turned 59.

Mesterhazy collaborated with a host of stellar jazz singers and musicians, among them Paula West, Rebecca Parris, Bernadette Peters and the late Shirley Horn. West described playing with him

as “the best thing that ever happened to me musically.”

Mesterhazy was born in Hungary in 1953. Following the 1956 Soviet invasion, his family moved to the United States, first settling in Schenectady, New York, and later in Somers Point, New Jersey. The young George learned to play rock guitar, trumpet, accordion and other instruments, but finally chose the piano. By 17, he was leading bands in nearby Atlantic City.

Like so many jazz musicians, he headed out to Los Angeles to seek fortune and fame. There he met vocalist Rebecca Parris, who asked him to arrange music for a Sarah Vaughan memorial concert. The two hit it off and Mesterhazy’s career as the “singer’s pianist” took off. His arranging and accompanying skills came to the fore in two Grammy nominated albums for Shirley Horn, Loving You and

May the Music Never End. In recent years, Mesterhazy divided his time between the San Francisco Bay Area, where he performed with Paula West, and Cape May, where one could find him playing at his Steinway at the Merion Inn, owned by his partner Vicki Watson.

Vocalist Lisa Lindsley, who had just recorded with Mesterhazy, said, “George is one of my favourite people in the world, a gracious pianist for vocalists and one hell of a piano player. No wonder Shirley Horn loved him! I love him!”

Another musical colleague, Al Rinaldi, paid this tribute in the Philadelphia Inquirer: “He didn’t play notes collectively, he played them individually. If he played five notes at a time, it was like five different voices singing.”

Mesterhazy is survived by his father and four children. n

George Mesterhazy 1953-2012

above: rosi Grunschlag in London in 2010

above: George Mesterhazy, “one hell of a piano player”

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SteinwAy & SonS | iSSue two 2012 21

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Steinway hiStory


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Charles Dickens, who was born 200 years ago, made two trips to america in his life, the second featuring a sold-out run of recitals at Steinway hall. Francesca Twinn tells the story of the great storyteller on tour

States expectations

By the time he came to America in 1867-68, Charles Dickens was a “rock star” of the literary world. It was only natural that he should make his New York appearances in one of the city’s newest concert halls, and thus he performed a historic series of readings at Steinway Hall. But this was his second visit to the United States and an altogether more agreeable experience than his first.

In 1842, a month before his 30th birthday, Dickens had taken his first trip across the Atlantic, keen to see this great new land of the free. His stardom already spanned both sides of the “pond,” and his followers mobbed, swooned and swarmed in true fanatical style. This was a nation that had stormed the New York docks to beg sailors to reveal the fate of Little Nell – a reaction only witnessed once more in the last two centuries, on the publication of JK Rowling’s final Harry Potter story. As Kenneth Benson

Steinway hiStory


puts it in Charles Dickens: The Life of the Author, the American fans “had been stricken, almost to a man, when the news of the pathetic death of Little Nell in The Old Curiosity Shop had at last reached its shores.”

Kevin Christie, managing director of Dickens World in Dickens’ home town of Chatham, adds, “Dickens’ first visit to America was accompanied by a public hysteria that many stars of today could only dream about. However, the tour was not a great success for him personally, as he found the adulation claustrophobic and his hope to find the new world society free of constriction misplaced.”

Dickens was not so impressed with the young republic. He fell out with the American press after criticising the lack of copyright laws to protect authors, and making clear his disgust at the slave trade and the treatment of the black workers. “This is not the republic I came to see,” he complained, “this is not the republic of my imagination.” He featured his disappointment in his following titles,

American Notes and Martin Chuzzlewit, as Dickens Fellowship member Clare Graydon-James explains. “In American Notes he was very critical of the slave trade and the widespread use of spittoons. And when the young Martin Chuzzlewit visits America, the people he encounters, with very few exceptions, are either pompous, stupid or corrupt. He does meet one ‘nice guy’ in New York.”

These writings were, not surprisingly, singular failures in America, but good relations were restored on his second visit, a quarter of a century later. Despite ill health, Dickens, now 55, was still very driven, and offers of considerable financial gain lured him once again to the United States. This time, it was the best of times. “Warmth was indeed restored,” says Christie, “and his second visit, a reading tour of eastern cities, was a great success.”

Once again, he received a hero’s welcome, but now he found a country he could enjoy. At

above: a lithograph from 1867 of Dickens fans queuing to hear him read at Steinway hall, new york

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a dinner in his honour in New York on 18 April 1868, he spoke of the “national generosity and magnanimity” he was experiencing and said he would add an appendix expressing this to every copy of American Notes and Martin Chuzzlewit.

In the meantime, William Steinway had built the first Steinway Hall in 1866 in Manhattan, to better present the quality and sound of his pianos, and it was here that Dickens performed twenty-two readings, including one particularly historic recital of David Copperfield that was reviewed by a 32-year-old Mark Twain. Twain seemed to revel in describing Dickens’ hair and goatee as giving him the look of a “comical Scotch-terrier.” He continued:

“But that queer old head took on a sort of beauty, bye and bye, and a fascinating interest, as I thought of the wonderful mechanism within it, the complex but exquisitely adjusted machinery that could create men and women, and put the breath of life into them and alter all their ways and actions, elevate them, degrade them, murder them, marry them, conduct them through good and evil, through joy and sorrow, on their long

above: the real old Curiosity Shop in London, immortalised by Dickens in a story that had america in raptures

Left: a book illustration by harold Copping of Little nell, the tragic heroine of the old Curiosity Shop

Steinway hiStory


above: another book illustration by Copping, this time featuring David Copperfield and Little em’ly

Left: Charles Dickens reading to his daughter and her friend

march from the cradle to the grave, and never lose its godship over them, never make a mistake! I almost imagined I could see the wheels and pulleys work. This was Dickens – Dickens. There was no question about that, and yet it was not right easy to realize it.”

Despite the part respectful passage, it was Twain’s turn to be unimpressed.

“Somehow this puissant god seemed to be only a man, after all. How the great do tumble from their high pedestals when we see them in common human flesh, and know that they eat pork and cabbage and act like other men.”

It was Dickens’ delivery that failed to ignite excitement in Twain.

Steinway hiStory


Mark Twain saw as a poor performance,” says Christie. “In common with artists today, it may have been a bad night.”

In the grand scheme of things it was a great lifetime of work that would be forever adored and commemorated. In Dickens’ own words, “Reflect on your present blessings, of which every man has many; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.”

The level of Dickensmania in the US on his second tour is clear from the picture of fans queuing outside Steinway Hall. The readings were sold out. Harper’s Weekly reported of the 11 December reading appearance, “…the throng of purchasers began to assemble at ten o’clock on the night before, and at least 150 persons waited in

“He read David Copperfield. He is a bad reader… I was a good deal disappointed. The Herald and Tribune critics must have been carried away by their imaginations when they wrote their extravagant praises… There is no heart, no feeling… his rich humor cannot fail to tickle an audience into ecstasies save when he reads to himself. And what a bright, intelligent audience he had! He ought to have made them laugh, or cry, or shout, at his own good will or pleasure – but he did not. They were very much tamer than they should have been.”

“One can’t help but think that perhaps a now older Charles Dickens and in failing health on a gruelling tour might have played a part in what

above: a reconstruction of the London back street world of Fagin and his gang in oliver twist – one of the features at Dickens world, located in Chatham, Kent

Steinway hiStory


into Braille, by paying $1,700 for 250 books to be printed in Braille and distributed to all blind schools in America. Other great writers wanted to spend time with him, such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry Longfellow, who said of Dickens’ death, on 9 June 1870, “I never knew an author’s death to cause such general mourning. It is no exaggeration to say that this whole country is stricken with grief.”

When revealing a daydream to a friend only weeks before, Dickens had said, “To settle down now for the remainder of my life within easy distance of a great theatre, in the direction of which I should hold supreme authority. It should be a house, of course, having a skilled and noble company, and one in every way magnificently appointed.” Maybe he was talking of Steinway Hall. n

the line or queued all night. When the sale began not less than five hundred persons, including two women, were in the line.”

The tour was a great success and there are countless examples of Dickens’ influence in the US. He spent time with one precocious but inspired 12-year-old, Kate Wiggins, who would go on to find fame as author of Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm in 1903 and later A Child’s Journey with Dickens in 1912. He also responded to a request from the Perkins School for the Blind for permission to translate The Old Curiosity Shop

this page: more Victorian scenes at Dickens world, where you can immerse yourself in the London portrayed in Dickens’ famous novels like Great expectations

Charles Dickens: The Life of the Author by Kenneth Benson: the new york Public LibraryDickens Worldwww.dickensworld.co.ukDickens Fellowshipwww.dickensfellowship.org

http://www.dickensworld.co.uk

http://www.dickensfellowship.org

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now in its fiftieth year, the Leeds international piano Competition has become a tour de force as formidable as the lady who conceived it. David Kettle tells the story of how a local piano teacher put a small city in yorkshire on the musical map

above: Fanny waterman the piano teacher at work

Right: wendy waterman, one of Fanny’s daughters, with allan schiller, feeling the inspiration of Fanny’s teaching

Leedsby example

It all began with a sleepless night. A Leeds piano teacher and mother sat up and woke her husband late on a summer evening in 1961 to ask, “Why don’t we start an international piano competition?” He said it would never work, but he was reckoning without the determination, drive and sheer energy of Fanny Waterman.

For Waterman (now Dame Fanny, since the 2005 New Year Honours) is synonymous with the Leeds International Piano Competition, as artistic director, chief fund-raiser and the elemental force that makes the competition happen every three years. Now aged 92, she has lost none of her strength and vigour. “All the core values of the competition have been laid down by her,” says the organisation’s recently appointed CEO Trevor Green, “and they are really strong and unshakeable. Fanny is everything to the competition.”

Leeds-born herself, Waterman had the value of hard work instilled into her at an early age by her immigrant jeweller father. After showing early promise on the piano, she later became a successful concert pianist, performing in London during the Second World War. She was called up for service but given the option of teaching, which she grasped firmly. Her private pupils have included such eminent British piano names as Allan Schiller, Michael Roll, Paul Crossley and Benjamin Frith, and her piano tutor books, written with friend Marion Thorpe, have sold millions around the world.

And it was with Thorpe – at that time Marion Harewood, wife of the Earl of Harewood – that she kick-started the Leeds competition in 1963, raising funds from local businesses, generous individuals, banks and the Leeds Corporation. (The fact that Harewood’s mother-in-law was Princess Mary, the Princess Royal, can’t have hindered matters either – Princess Mary would become the event’s patron.)

Since the inaugural competition in 1963, Leeds has helped launch the careers of some of today’s

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top left: princess mary, the competition’s first patron

top right: Dame Fanny waterman still living for the music

above, left to right: sir mark elder mBe, leader of the Hallé orchestra, and Leeds success stories murray perahia, Radu Lupu, mitsuko Uchida and sofya Gulyak

wasn’t the only controversy that the competition has provoked. Waterman was mortified at how it would look to the outside world that one of her own pupils, Michael Roll, won the very first competition, despite not even being on the jury herself. Peter Donohoe, already enjoying an international career when he entered the contest, was ranked just sixth in 1981. Lupu was originally placed fourth after the 1969 competition’s second round, excluding him from the final, until Waterman badgered the jury to extend the final round from three to five competitors. Lupu went on to win.

Every music competition has its controversies, though, and the Leeds still ranks as one of the world’s great keyboard events. Green agrees. “It’s in the top four piano competitions in the world and it has put Leeds on the cultural map. On the

pre-eminent pianists: Radu Lupu, Murray Perahia, Dmitri Alexeev and Artur Pizarro, to name just four winners. Ironically, some runners-up have gone on to have even starrier careers than the competitors placed above them. Mitsuko Uchida came second to Alexeev in 1975 and András Schiff was placed third below them both. Noriko Ogawa took third place in 1987 and Kathryn Stott was fifth in 1978.

Stott decided to re-enter the competition in 1987 – and didn’t make it past the first round. That

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back of the founding of the competition came Opera North, dance companies, galleries – it’s a very visible and high-profile thing for the city and Yorkshire.”

Leeds’ administrator, Elizabeth Blanckenberg, also highlights the competition’s connections with the local community. “People here are very glad to be involved in such a prestigious event. We have about 200 volunteers helping us, offering their homes, stewarding at events, helping with administration, driving competitors to where they need to be.”

For, despite the slick operation, once the event is happening there’s a frenetic buzz of activity behind the scenes. Accommodation and food are taken care of: competitors stay in the university halls of residence and get their meals there too. But what about their all-important practice?

“It’s a huge operation,” says Blanckenberg. “There’s a running schedule for practice: when competitors arrive, they draw a ballot number and that determines the order of play. But there’s a new schedule every day.”

The challenge of finding enough pianos of quality in a city the size of Leeds has been helped immensely by the All-Steinway Schools program. “We have a partnership with the Leeds College

of Music, which has recently become a Steinway college,” says Blanckenberg. “They have wonderful new Steinway pianos and they’ve kindly agreed that we can use a number of them for rehearsal. Steinway also sponsors a number of grand pianos that they bring up to Leeds from London to place in private homes for the competition, so a lot of competitors go round to people’s houses to rehearse.”

And that can lead to some close relationships between competitors and Leeds residents. There

above: Leeds town Hall, where this year’s final round will be held

Right: Clifford Curzon and sir arthur Bliss adjudicating at the first Leeds competition in 1963

Below: murray perahia on his way to first prize at Leeds in 1972

Competitions


are tales of pianists returning numerous times to visit Leeds families who have looked after them. 1984 winner Jon Kimura Parker, for example, would stay with his Leeds hosts if he was performing anywhere in northern England. “Alessandro Taverna, our third prize winner from 2009, has been back so many times,” says Blanckenberg. “He’s got a real following in the Yorkshire area. It just shows that they do touch people on a personal level.”

The 2012 competition received 260 applications, from which eighty competitors from forty-three countries have been invited to take part. “They’re sensational – it’s going to be a great year,” enthuses Green. “The Chinese are very strong, the Koreans and Americans are good and Europe is well represented too.”

This is also the first year for two new additions to the prize list, alongside the main awards of concert engagements and substantial sums of cash. A new orchestra prize will be voted on by the players of the Hallé Orchestra, under Sir Mark Elder MBE, which accompanies the six pianists in the concerto final. Winners get £5,000 and three engagements with the Hallé Orchestra, plus the possibility of recording a CD with the orchestra.

And a new audience prize will be awarded at the end of each stage, an incentive both to

Past winners

1963 Michael Roll (UK)1966 Rafael Orozco (Spain)1969 Radu Lupu (Romania)1972 Murray Perahia (USA)1975 Dmitri Alexeev (USSR)1978 Michel Dalberto (France)1981 Ian Hobson (UK)1984 Jon Kimura Parker (Canada)1987 Vladimir Ovchinnikov (USSR)1990 Artur Pizarro (Portugal)1993 Ricardo Castro (Brazil)1996 Ilya Itin (Russia)2000 Allesio Bax (Italy)2003 Antti Siirala (Finland)2006 Sunwook Kim (South Korea)2009 Sofya Gulyak (Russia)

Leeds International Piano Competition2012 programme29 August – 15 September 2012

First stages: 29 August–2 September, Great Hall, University of Leeds

Second stages: 4–7 September, Great Hall, University of Leeds

Semi-finals: 9–11 September, Great Hall, University of Leeds

Finals: 14–15 September, Leeds Town Hall

Prize-winners’ gala: 16 September, Great Hall, University of Leeds

encourage audience members to attend the earlier rounds and to involve them more in the event as a whole.

Indeed, looking outward to audiences and the Yorkshire community has become increasingly important. “We’re really keen to involve a younger audience in the competition,” says Blanckenberg. “We ran a project in March this year where we took classical and jazz ensembles involving the piano to schools all around Leeds. We wanted to show them how the piano can be used in various settings. At one of the schools the kids were so enthusiastic that we’ve invited them for a day at the competition, to meet the competitors as well.”

For Green, one of the key challenges is preparing for the future and maintaining the passion that the pioneering Dame Fanny has invested in the competition. “I’d love to see it become a piano festival eventually,” he says, “still with the competition, of course, but with lots of other keyboard activity going on. There’s the possibility of a junior competition, or a showcase for young talent from schools and conservatoires, and I’d love to do more master-classes, with Dame Fanny and other pianists.”

With what looks like a bumper year ahead and grand plans for the future, it looks like the Leeds competition will continue to put the north of England firmly on the international piano map for years to come. n

above: sir mark elder mBe with the Hallé orchestra, which accompanies the finalists

above: the splendid setting inside Leeds town Hall for the 2006 final

Competitions


above: the five pianists shortlisted for the 2012 proLiance energy Classical Fellowship award (clockwise from top left): andrew staupe, sara Daneshpour, Claire Huangci, sean Chen, eric Zuber, Joel Harrison (president/Ceo & artistic Director of the american pianists association)

Below: Jin Uk Kim on his way to first prize in this year’s Hilton Head Competition

For young pianists on the competition circuit, the prestige of winning certain competitions outweighs a hefty cash prize. It’s even more attractive if a competition offers professional management and mentoring, along with opportunities to perform in important venues. And these days, many competitions have realised that cash alone won’t establish a career.

Take Canada’s Honens competition, for instance. For the first prize winner, it doesn’t end when he or she walks off stage with a distinctive trophy and CAN$100,000. Instead, the winner will get three years of artistic and career development, including a recording on the Hyperion label (Hyperion MD Mike Spring is on this year’s jury). On 17 July, ten semi-finalists, selected through quarter-finals held in London, Berlin, New York and Los Angeles, were announced, with the competition taking place from 17-26 October in Calgary.

Jin Uk Kim, the winner of this year’s Hilton Head Competition, will soon be a name to be reckoned with in the piano firmament, thanks to prizes including a debut at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall and a performance with the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra. Korean born Kim is studying for a doctorate at the New England Conservatory of Music and already has extensive performing experience, as do the winners of the second prize (Wai Yin Wong, Hong Kong, also an Ettlingen laureate) and the third prize (Steven Lin, US-Taiwan).

The Ettlingen International Competition for Young Pianists, which takes place from 4-12 August, has a well-deserved reputation for spotting young talent. Now in its 13th season, the Ettlingen’s list of winners in two categories (A for 16 and under; B for 21 and under) makes it clear what a career boost a win can provide. Sunwook Kim, Lise de la Salle and Lang Lang are among the laureates.

A chance to play with one of the world’s greatest orchestras during a competition? Look

no further than the Géza Anda Competition in Switzerland, in which the finalists played with the Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra conducted by David Zinman. Cash prizes and concert engagements and management are not trivial either in this competition, which reached its final round on 12 June with Russian Nepomnyashchaya Varvara being awarded first prize by a distinguished jury that included Oleg Maisenberg, Michel Béroff and 2003 winner Alexei Volodin.

There will be an equally distinguished jury at this year’s Long-Thibaud Competition, taking place in Paris from 30 November to 6 December. Menahem Pressler heads a panel that includes Bertrand Chamayou, Cécile Ousset and Alain Planès. Finalists in this long-established competition will play with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France at the Opéra Comique.

A competition that takes a long view of its participants’ careers is the 2012 ProLiance Energy Classical Fellowship Awards of the American Pianists Association (APA). In April, at Steinway Hall in New York, the APA announced the five young pianists aged 18-30 who will perform throughout the coming year in recital, song, new music, chamber music and concertos: Sean Chen (aged 23), Sara Daneshpour (25), Claire Huangci (22), Andrew Staupe (27) and Eric Zuber (26). On 20 April 2013, one will be chosen as the APA 2013 Christel DeHaan Classical Fellow.

“Because we see and hear them over an extended period of time, we have the remarkable privilege to witness them grow in artistic stature at an important time in their professional development,” said Joel Harrison, President/CEO and Artistic Director of the Indianapolis-based APA.

The prize includes recording opportunities and two years of career assistance and performances. And, of course, the $50,000 cash award doesn’t go amiss. n

Inge Kjemtrup rounds up this year’s leading piano competitions, which go a long way towards establishing their winners on the road to stardom

it’s not about the money

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A different scale.

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one hundred years ago, on 27 october, a musical genius was born. you may not have heard of him. He lived much of his life in isolation, creating highly complex yet emotional pieces that were beyond the scope of human pianists. But his music remains a source of inspiration to this day. David Kettle tells the fascinating story of Conlon nancarrow

Holiest of holeys

If you’ve ever learnt the piano, you can probably play three against two – in other words, a triplet and a duplet at the same time. You can maybe even play four against three, but how about 20 against 21? Or even 21 against 24 against 25? Or 2 against the square root of 2, or pi against the irrational number e?

It’s enough to make your head spin. And it will probably come as no surprise – not to mention a relief – that music of such rhythmic complexity wasn’t written for human players at all. It was created for the mechanical “player piano,” by the composer with one of the strangest careers in classical music, Conlon Nancarrow.

Although more than three-quarters of his pieces are for the rather archaic instrument, which slowly swallows a roll of paper, dotted with punched holes to determine which of its notes should be sounded and when, the sheer breadth of Nancarrow’s output, its stylistic variety and its overwhelming invention make comparisons with the likes of Franz Liszt and Federico Busoni far from ridiculous.

Nancarrow was admired, but only towards the end of his life and only by a relatively small number of devotees who had discovered his music. These included rock radical Frank Zappa and fellow composer György Ligeti, who wrote, “His music is so utterly original, enjoyable, perfectly constructed, but at the same time emotional… for me it’s the best music of any composer living today.”

High praise indeed. But it’s the “perfectly constructed, but at the same time emotional” bit that’s most significant here. For, despite the complex mathematical constructions of many of Nancarrow’s pieces, it is music for the heart as much as for the head and it bristles with energy, a mischievous sense of fun, drama and even confrontation.

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It was certainly in Nancarrow’s character to be confrontational. Born in 1912 in Texarkana, Arkansas, he dropped out of the schools his oilman father hoped would instil some discipline in him, devoured frowned-upon books on sex, anarchy and atheism as a boy, and joined the Communist Party upon moving to Boston in the 1930s. He set sail for Spain in 1937 to join the fight against Franco’s fascist Republicans, dodging bullets and lice in the trenches. Upon returning to the USA and encountering persecution from the authorities because of his communist sympathies, he up and moved to Mexico in 1940, where he spent the rest of his life.

And there he lived in almost complete isolation. Nancarrow had had his friends and champions in America, who had done their best to promote his music, which was at that time relatively straightforward and composed for conventional instruments. Aaron Copland had written a flattering review and Elliott Carter was intrigued by his rhythmic experiments. But Nancarrow left all that behind.

The contemporary music scene in Mexico City was hardly thriving. Determined to push his rhythmic experiments still further, but faced with a shortage of performers, Nancarrow hit upon the solution to both problems: the player piano. In 1947 he made a brief return to New York to buy one, as well as an all-important hole-punching machine.

Fully equipped, Nancarrow embarked on the series of pieces that would eventually be his

legacy: more than fifty rather self-effacingly titled Studies for Player Piano. Composed over the following forty years in the small studio next to his house in Mexico City, these would range from light-hearted, jazzy offerings (Nos. 3 and 10) to overwhelming virtuoso spectaculars (No. 25); from lazy, Spanish-sounding rhapsodies (No. 6) to abstract, avant-garde workouts (No. 28).

But the form that Nancarrow explored most thoroughly was the simple canon, where different voices playing the same material follow each other around and around. Yet whereas a composer like Bach might have related the tempos of his voices in a simple ratio of 2:1, Nancarrow used more complex relationships of 4:5 (No. 14), or the aforementioned 21:24:25 (No. 31), or 2:root 2 (No. 33), or pi:e (No. 40). Study No. 37 is a canonic tour de force, with twelve different voices moving at twelve different tempos (related to the pitches in a chromatic scale) and thereby generating a vast web of sound.

Even among this mathematical complexity, though, emotion and energy abound. Whenever voices move at different speeds, those voices will ultimately rejoin together for a brief moment of arresting calm before hurtling off in different tempo directions again.

It’s a remarkable example of an emotional effect being generated by an intellectual process, and one that Nancarrow pushed still further in later experiments with rates of acceleration and deceleration, and with trademark sonic effects that could only come from a mechanical instrument: huge, hypersonic cascades of notes from one end of the piano to the other and

above: the machine nancarrow made to cut his piano rolls

Below and bottom: portraits of the charismatic nancarrow, in a cafe and at the telluride Composer-to-Composer Festival in 1989, shown with the first of several digitally driven boxes – able to attach to any piano – that were fabricated by Conlon’s friend, the mad genius and fellow macarthur award recipient, trimpin.

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towering staccato chords that seem to strike all of the instrument’s notes at once.

Few of Nancarrow’s player piano studies last more than five minutes – not surprising, given that it took the composer months to punch the holes required for just a short snatch of music. And unusually, Nancarrow began his compositions not on conventional manuscript paper, but by marking out the distances necessary to articulate his complex tempo relationships on the piano roll sheets. He only moved on to manuscript paper after punching all his holes, laboriously, by hand.But if this is music that simply cannot be played

by a human, where does that leave the issue of interpretation? Isn’t it simply lacking an ingredient that is vital to true musical performance?

It’s an interesting philosophical question and one for which Nancarrow had a typically forthright answer. In a 1987 interview, he said, “That’s what I don’t understand about musicians and music lovers – they always want something different and they never say that they would like to have War and Peace different each time, or the Shakespeare sonnets.”

In any case, as his music became better known from the 1980s onwards and as he began reluctantly to accept acclaim at festivals around the world, several performing groups, including New York’s Alarm Will Sound and Bang on a Can All-Stars, and the Calefax Reed Quintet from Holland, have made multi-instrument arrangements of Nancarrow’s studies that are playable by human musicians. In the year of his 100th anniversary, though, there are still worlds of complexity and energy to discover in his thrilling, mind-bending music. n

top: nancarrow in 1992 with his collection of piano rolls

above: studies for player piano by Conlon nancarrow. the self-effacing title belies the complexity of the music within

Where to begin

Recordings

Studies for Player Piano (complete)wergo. wer 69072Studies for Player Piano (excerpts)Calefax reedQuintet, Ivo Janssen (piano)mDG 619 1548-2

Recommended pieces

Study for Player Piano No. 3 (Boogie-woogie suite)nancarrow collected five short pieces together for his third player piano study, which he named Boogie-woogie suite. Frenzied jazz, which sounds as though it’s being played by a crazed automaton rubs shoulders with more reflective, subtler movements.

Study for Player Piano No. 6a lazy, easy-going, spanish-sounding composition with singing melodies, which might sound improvised but are, in fact, precisely constructed rhythmic workouts.

Study for Player Piano No. 21a very simple idea using just two melodic lines: the lower one begins very slowly and gradually accelerates throughout the piece, and the upper one begins very quickly and gradually slows down throughout the piece. the result plays remarkable tricks on the ear, and also generates an astounding sense of drama when the two parts get closer and closer together in terms of tempo.

Study for Player Piano No. 25if you want to hear a piano like it’s never sounded before, go straight to this virtuoso showpiece. there are spectacular, high-velocity glissandos, vast chords and enormous explosions of sound – 1,028 notes whizz by in the piece’s last twelve seconds.

Study for Player Piano No. 37a twelve-voice canon with rhythmic proportions between 150 and 281 1/4. its rhythmic complexity might at times be overwhelming, but nancarrow ensures that there’s also enormous subtlety and wit in the piece.

AutomAtic instruments

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the “player piano” may have become something of a mechanical curiosity but the human fascination behind its invention lives on. Jessica Duchen takes a wander through the automatic annals

the ‘player piano’steinway and

A short stroll across the River Thames from where I live in London, there stands a fascinating museum. It’s the Musical Museum, Brentford, and it is devoted to one of the world’s finest collections of automatic instruments, amassed by the enthusiast Frank Holland. These weird and wonderful contraptions are all designed to make music at the touch of a button, or several. Most date from between the mid 19th century and about 1930. Among them is a Steinway piano that has been extensively doctored. It once belonged to Princess Beatrice, Queen Victoria’s youngest daughter: its full title is Steinway-Duo-Art Pedal-Electric Grand. This upmarket version of what used to be called a

Above: a steinway grand Pianola built around 1925, featuring the Duo-Art mechanism

Above right: “choosing a music roll for the pianola.” An illustration from 1912 by J Harris

right: c1885 portrait of Princess Beatrice, whose steinway-Duo-Art is still in use today


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top left: close-up of an Aeolian player piano, clearly showing the holed paper roll

top right: Frank Holland, whose collection of mechanical instruments can be seen in the musical museum, London

right: a steinway/weber player piano from the 1920s

“player piano,” fully restored, was used to make recordings for the BBC archives in the 1960s.

“Automatic instruments” are all about one of western civilisation’s odder obsessions: how to make music at home without actually having to play it. The same urge led to the record player, then the CD and now to computer technology for the 21st century. Yet apparently even the most sophisticated electronics can’t compete with our hunger for music on an acoustic piano – of one sort or another.

Steinway & Sons developed, in the early 20th century, an intriguing sideline in player pianos. William R Steinway and Edwin Scott Votey, who’s usually credited with being the inventor of the pianola, were good business acquaintances – a photo exists of the two sitting side by side at a

grand-scale dinner to launch the AudioGraphic Series of Music Rolls in London in 1926. The opulence of the occasion appears to indicate just what a good business prospect piano rolls were at that time. Collaborating with experts like Votey, Steinway’s contribution was to incorporate the new technology into high quality pianos.

Most early player pianos functioned through a pneumatic system: a paper roll was punched with a series of holes through which a rush of air would move a hammer that played the right note at the right moment. The “push up” pianola, created

western civilisation’s odder obsessions: how to make music at home without actually having to


44 steinwAy & sons | issue two 2012

by Votey, involved a cabinet fitted with wooden “fingers”: it could be pushed up to any piano where, powered by pump bellows, it could play just as human fingers would – though without, perhaps, quite the same expressive capabilities.

The paper roll system was patented earlier (1883) by Emil Welte – and his family firm, Welte-Mignon, was certainly ambitious, creating not only player pianos but the Welte Philharmonic Organ, on which performers including Max Reger and Eugène Gigout recorded. The company launched the Welte-Mignon reproducing piano in 1904, aiming to capture not just the notes but the tempo, dynamics and phrasing of a specific performance. Soon this contraption was being fitted into Steinway pianos.

Through the second decade of the 20th century, Steinway diversified its mechanical piano activities and built some upright pianolas in collaboration

Left: a young woman enjoying the automatic musicality of a player piano in 1910

Above: actress Barbara stanwyck plays the pianola in a scene from the 1937 film stella Dallas

Below: the steinway-Duo-Art Pedal-electric Grand that once belonged to Princess Beatrice


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with the hugely successful Aeolian, Weber Piano and Pianola Company, which Votey had joined. The Aeolian Themodist system enabled further expression, by positioning accents with the aid of marginal perforations on the music roll.

Aeolian brought in the Duo-Art reproducing piano in 1914. This system used a paper perforator that punched holes in real time as a pianist played. It could, they claimed, play back the performance to the accuracy of 1/60th of a second. Dynamics and so forth were added by a producer while the pianist recorded.

Historic Steinway pianolas still pop up on the market today from time to time, boasting beautiful mahogany cases, while Princess Beatrice’s grand is just one example of a piano that would be a treasure even without its extra mechanical magic. The instruments were built to last; in many cases they still function quite well. Steinway Welte pianos were used as recently as 2008 to play back and record for CD piano rolls made by Granados, Scriabin, Medtner and Fauré, among others (for The Pianola Institute).

People still argue, of course, about the level of “live” similarity that piano rolls can convey. Enthusiasts extol their abilities to replicate nuanced interpretations – and innumerable greats made such “recordings,” among them Ferruccio Busoni, Ignacy

Paderewski and Sergei Rachmaninov (the latter recorded piano rolls exclusively for another fine company, Ampico). Nevertheless, legend has it that when informed that a particular reproducing piano had access to thirty-two different dynamics, Artur Schnabel retorted that he himself used thirty-three.

The stock market crash of 1929 and the growing prevalence of gramophone records conspired to push player piano sales into decline. Yet we’ve never got over our fascination with instruments that appear to play themselves. Today they have a whole new lease of life through computer technology, which has revolutionised the industry since the late 1970s.

Some twenty years ago it was already possible for a pianist to record a performance via a floppy disk, which could then be played back on the keyboard. Recently Steinway has authorised the PianoDisc system, used by its New York branch, which has a library of several thousand recordings that can be played via computer on the piano; and there’s even a PianoVideo system, which enables the user to sync a piano with a video device like a smartphone or tablet computer.

Whatever will they think of next? Time will tell. But there’ll be something. The technology may be new – but the fascination remains exactly the same. n

top: adverts from the turn of the century for Pianola – the new form of home entertainment that “anyone can play”

Above: sergei rachmaninov, who recorded piano rolls for Ampico

All-SteinwAy SchoolS

46 SteinwAy & SonS | iSSUe two 2012

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School’s in at Steinway factoryIn March this year, more than two thousand music teachers visited one of the world’s most desirable classrooms – New York City – for five phenomenal days that featured a full slate of festivities involving Steinway & Sons.

Founded in 1876, the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) represents approximately 22,000 members, providing support through networking, financial assistance and continuing education initiatives aimed at advancing the teaching profession.

This year’s national conference on 24-28 March marked the MTNA’s first visit to the Big Apple in twenty-five years and was one of the most popular meetings in the group’s storied history.

The most eagerly anticipated event was a tour of the famous Steinway & Sons factory, located in Astoria, Queens. More than six hundred teachers participated in the tour, riding round-trip buses provided by Steinway from the Hilton New York in midtown Manhattan.

Many visitors witnessing the handcrafted procedures were proud Steinway owners themselves and teach regularly on Steinway pianos.

Gail Berenson, MTNA Past President said, “What an incredible experience it was to take the tour. I found it to be absolutely fascinating. Thank you to Steinway & Sons for making this unique experience available to us.”

The MTNA’s international influence was evident as instructors from China, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom joined their American counterparts on the 90 minute tour, where they observed the rim-bending process, the belly department, case making and action departments. Each tour was conducted by a head of Steinway’s manufacturing team, each one an expert in their field.


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left: yi-yang chen (seated), winner of the MtnA’s young Artist Piano competition, with (left to right) Dr Benjamin caton, President of the MtnA; Dr Douglas humpherys, Piano Department chair, eastman School of Music; Ron losby, President, Steinway & Sons –Americas; and Sally coveleskie, national Director of institutional Sales, Steinway & Sons

Right: craftsmen at the Steinway factory in Queens demonstrate the rim bending process

Vince Coveleskie reports on the 2012 Music teachers national Association conference, which was held in new york and featured a visit by more than 600 music teachers to the Steinway & Sons piano factory in Queens

“We were delighted to welcome this wonderful organisation to our hometown and provide an opportunity for teachers from around the globe to come and learn more about our world renowned instruments,” said Ron Losby, President, Steinway & Sons – Americas.

Opening ceremonies of the conference featured Steinway Artists Stecher and Horowitz, while later in the week internationally celebrated soloist, chamber musician and teacher Menahem Pressler presented a master class using two Steinway Model D grand pianos.

A reception for New York City teachers at Steinway Hall offered a presentation by Franz Mohr, former chief concert technician of Steinway & Sons, who also served as personal piano technician to Vladimir Horowitz. The “Horowitz Steinway” piano that accompanied Mr Horowitz on his legendary return to Moscow was on display at Steinway Hall and available for MTNA members to play during the week.Ph

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48 SteinwAy & SonS | iSSUe two 2012

Texas Christian University, an All-Steinway School, also hosted a special gathering at Steinway Hall, following a recital at Carnegie Hall by TCU faculty members Jesús Castro-Balbi, cellist, and Gloria Lin, pianist. Dr Richard Gipson, Director of the TCU School of Music, Dr Ann Gipson, Past President of the MTNA, and Steinway Artists José Feghali and Harold Martine were on hand to welcome TCU alumni and arts patrons.

Meanwhile, at the Conference Gala, Ron Losby and Sally Coveleskie, National Director of Institutional Sales, were recognised for Steinway’s ongoing support of the MTNA’s Young Artist Piano Competition. Steinway has sponsored the competition for thirteen years, and offered the first prize of a Steinway Model 1098 upright piano, valued at $24,000, to this year’s winner, Yi-Yang Chen. Chen is a student of Dr Douglas Humpherys at the Eastman School of Music.

Conference attendees also got a chance to see some rare, behind-the-scenes craftsmanship at the Steinway display in the Hilton’s exhibit hall. Santé Auriti, a native of Abruzzi, Italy, has spent the last twenty years working on every Louis XV Steinway piano that has been produced, and enthralled spectators with hand carving demonstrations

Above: teachers from the MtnA watch the case making demonstration by Santé Auriti at the convention exhibit hall

of the instrument’s intricate case design. The Steinway exhibition also included a large banner with a list of the entire current roster of more than 135 All-Steinway Schools.

“Accomplished music teachers are at the core of everything Steinway & Sons stands for,” said Coveleskie. “What a privilege it was to share some of our time-honoured traditions and offer them the experience of witnessing the hand crafted process of building our instruments.”

Finally, Steinway Artist Christopher O’Riley, host of classical music radio show From the Top, was on hand to record the conference’s last performance at Carnegie Hall for a future programme. Prior to the recording, a reception was held to honour the Carnegie Hall Royal Conservatory Achievement Program, which is designed to inspire excellence through individual assessment, and allows students to celebrate accomplishment and track their progress with others across the country.

Speakers at the event included Clive Gillinson, Executive and Artistic Director of Carnegie Hall, Dr Peter Simon, President of the Royal Conservatory, and Dr Gary Ingle, Executive Director and CEO of the MTNA. n

All-Steinway Schools demonstrate a commitment to excellence by providing their students and faculties with the best equipment possible for the study of music. That is why the pianos owned by these institutions – from the practice room to the recital hall – are Designed by Steinway & Sons.

celebrating more than 140 all-steinway schools

Oberlin Conservatory of Music (Since 1877*)Yale School of Music (Since 1897*)

Cleveland Institute of Music (Since 1920*)Curtis Institute of Music (Since 1924*)

Academy of Vocal ArtsCentral Conservatory of Music, School of Piano (China)China Conservatory of Music, School of Piano (China)

Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico Leeds College of Music – Conservatoire (England)

Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama (Wales)University of Cincinnati - College Conservatory of Music

conservatories

Ball State UniversityBelmont University

Bemidji State UniversityBlue Ridge Community College

Bluffton UniversityBoise State University

Cardinal Stritch UniversityCarl Sandburg College

Carnegie Mellon UniversitySchool of Music

Chestnut Hill College College of Mount St. JosephColumbus State University

Concordia University - St. PaulConverse CollegeCuyamaca CollegeDe Anza College

Duquesne UniversityEast Tennessee State University

Fairfield UniversityFlorida Gulf Coast UniversityFranklin & Marshall College

Franz Liszt College of Music Weimarat Kangnam University (Korea)

George Mason UniversityThe George Washington University

Georgia College and State University Gustavus Adolphus College

Hastings College

High Point UniversityImmaculata University

Indiana University of PennsylvaniaJames Madison UniversityKennesaw State University

Lake Michigan CollegeLewis and Clark Community College

Lindenwood UniversityLiverpool Hope University (England)

Lock Haven University of PennsylvaniaLoras College

Martin Methodist CollegeMcLennan Community College

Middle Tennessee State UniversityMidland College

Millikin UniversityMissouri Western State University

Montclair State UniversityJohn J. Cali School of MusicNew Jersey City UniversityNicholls State University

North Greenville UniversityOklahoma Christian University

Oklahoma City UniversityOklahoma State University

Oral Roberts UniversityPellissippi State Community College

Philadelphia Biblical UniversityPomona College

Portland State UniversityPrincipia College

Radford University Rowan University

Royal Holloway CollegeUniversity of London (England)

Saint Mary’s University of MinnesotaSanta Fe College

Seton Hill UniversitySnow College

Southern Adventist UniversitySouthern Utah University

Southwestern Assemblies of GodUniversity

Spelman CollegeSpring Hill College

State University of New York - PotsdamCrane School of Music

Teachers College - Columbia UniversityTexas A&M International University

Texas Christian UniversityTulane University

Union CollegeUniversity of Alabama at Birmingham

University of ArizonaUniversity of Arkansas

University of Central FloridaUniversity of Central Missouri

University of Denver

University of FloridaUniversity of Georgia

University of MarylandUniversity of Melbourne

Faculty of Music (Australia)University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

University of Minnesota - MorrisUniversity of Montevallo

University of South Africa University of South Florida

University of Tennessee at Martin University of Utah

University of Victoria (Canada)University of West Florida

University of West London (England) University of Wolverhampton

(England) Utah State University Utah Valley University

Vassar College (Since 1912*)Waldorf College

Wallace State Community College Weber State University

Webster University West Chester University of Pennsylvania

West Valley CollegeWestmont CollegeWheaton College

Youngstown State University

colleges and universities

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Cicely L. Tyson Community School of Performing & Fine Arts

City of Edinburgh School of Music (Scotland)Conservatori Liceu (Spain)

Cranbrook School (Australia)Cushing Academy

Episcopal High SchoolGould Academy

Hamburger Konservatorium (Germany)Henry Mancini Arts Academy at

Lincoln Park Performing Arts CenterKronberg Academy (Germany)

Levine School of Music

Longwood Nagakute School of Music (Japan)Loretto School (Scotland)

New Yorker Musische Akademie im CJD Braunschweig (Germany)

Pacific Northwest Ballet and School

Pangbourne College (England) Philadelphia High School

for the Creative and Performing ArtsPittsburgh’s Creative & Performing Arts

Magnet SchoolQatar Music Academy (Qatar) Raleigh Conservatory of Music

Rimsky-Korsakov Music School (Russia)Somerset College (Australia)

Syddansk Musikkonservatorium & Skuespillerskole (Denmark)

Valley Christian SchoolsWellington School (England)

other schools of distinction


SteinwAy & SonS | iSSUe two 2012 49

All-Steinway Schools demonstrate a commitment to excellence by providing their students and faculties with the best equipment possible for the study of music. That is why the pianos owned by these institutions – from the practice room to the recital hall – are Designed by Steinway & Sons.

celebrating more than 140 all-steinway schools

Oberlin Conservatory of Music (Since 1877*)Yale School of Music (Since 1897*)

Cleveland Institute of Music (Since 1920*)Curtis Institute of Music (Since 1924*)

Academy of Vocal ArtsCentral Conservatory of Music, School of Piano (China)China Conservatory of Music, School of Piano (China)

Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico Leeds College of Music – Conservatoire (England)

Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama (Wales)University of Cincinnati - College Conservatory of Music

conservatories

Ball State UniversityBelmont University

Bemidji State UniversityBlue Ridge Community College

Bluffton UniversityBoise State University

Cardinal Stritch UniversityCarl Sandburg College

Carnegie Mellon UniversitySchool of Music

Chestnut Hill College College of Mount St. JosephColumbus State University

Concordia University - St. PaulConverse CollegeCuyamaca CollegeDe Anza College

Duquesne UniversityEast Tennessee State University

Fairfield UniversityFlorida Gulf Coast UniversityFranklin & Marshall College

Franz Liszt College of Music Weimarat Kangnam University (Korea)

George Mason UniversityThe George Washington University

Georgia College and State University Gustavus Adolphus College

Hastings College

High Point UniversityImmaculata University

Indiana University of PennsylvaniaJames Madison UniversityKennesaw State University

Lake Michigan CollegeLewis and Clark Community College

Lindenwood UniversityLiverpool Hope University (England)

Lock Haven University of PennsylvaniaLoras College

Martin Methodist CollegeMcLennan Community College

Middle Tennessee State UniversityMidland College

Millikin UniversityMissouri Western State University

Montclair State UniversityJohn J. Cali School of MusicNew Jersey City UniversityNicholls State University

North Greenville UniversityOklahoma Christian University

Oklahoma City UniversityOklahoma State University

Oral Roberts UniversityPellissippi State Community College

Philadelphia Biblical UniversityPomona College

Portland State UniversityPrincipia College

Radford University Rowan University

Royal Holloway CollegeUniversity of London (England)

Saint Mary’s University of MinnesotaSanta Fe College

Seton Hill UniversitySnow College

Southern Adventist UniversitySouthern Utah University

Southwestern Assemblies of GodUniversity

Spelman CollegeSpring Hill College

State University of New York - PotsdamCrane School of Music

Teachers College - Columbia UniversityTexas A&M International University

Texas Christian UniversityTulane University

Union CollegeUniversity of Alabama at Birmingham

University of ArizonaUniversity of Arkansas

University of Central FloridaUniversity of Central Missouri

University of Denver

University of FloridaUniversity of Georgia

University of MarylandUniversity of Melbourne

Faculty of Music (Australia)University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

University of Minnesota - MorrisUniversity of Montevallo

University of South Africa University of South Florida

University of Tennessee at Martin University of Utah

University of Victoria (Canada)University of West Florida

University of West London (England) University of Wolverhampton

(England) Utah State University Utah Valley University

Vassar College (Since 1912*)Waldorf College

Wallace State Community College Weber State University

Webster University West Chester University of Pennsylvania

West Valley CollegeWestmont CollegeWheaton College

Youngstown State University

colleges and universities

* Den

otes

an

All-

Stei

nway

Sch

ool f

or o

ver

85 y

ears

.

Cicely L. Tyson Community School of Performing & Fine Arts

City of Edinburgh School of Music (Scotland)Conservatori Liceu (Spain)

Cranbrook School (Australia)Cushing Academy

Episcopal High SchoolGould Academy

Hamburger Konservatorium (Germany)Henry Mancini Arts Academy at

Lincoln Park Performing Arts CenterKronberg Academy (Germany)

Levine School of Music

Longwood Nagakute School of Music (Japan)Loretto School (Scotland)

New Yorker Musische Akademie im CJD Braunschweig (Germany)

Pacific Northwest Ballet and School

Pangbourne College (England) Philadelphia High School

for the Creative and Performing ArtsPittsburgh’s Creative & Performing Arts

Magnet SchoolQatar Music Academy (Qatar) Raleigh Conservatory of Music

Rimsky-Korsakov Music School (Russia)Somerset College (Australia)

Syddansk Musikkonservatorium & Skuespillerskole (Denmark)

Valley Christian SchoolsWellington School (England)

other schools of distinction


all-Steinway SchoolS roUnd-Up

May 2012 saw the All-Steinway School roster gain its first institution in the Middle East, when the All-Steinway distinction was bestowed on the fast developing Qatar Music Academy (QMA).

QMA opened in 2011 and is one of the most up and coming institutions in the world. It is part of the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, which aims “to support Qatar on its journey from a carbon economy to a knowledge economy by unlocking human potential.”

QMA Director Dr Abdul Ghafour al Heeti (pictured with Steinway’s James Ledgerwood) said, “The All-Steinway School distinction represents an important landmark in our short history and has enormous significance. It recognises that the QMA is dedicated to providing the highest possible quality facilities to our students. We are here to nurture the musical talents of the local community and, by giving them access to the crème de la crème of musical instruments, such as the Steinway piano, we give them the best possible opportunity to develop as musicians.”

Anne-Marie Pigneguy, Head of Western Music at QMA, added, “The piano faculty is especially delighted to be able to offer students the opportunity to learn and perform on such world-class instruments.”

James Ledgerwood, Steinway Sales Manager Overseas Territories, said, “Music knows no boundaries, be they geographical, political or religious. It speaks the international language.” n

Qatar

John Mauceri, Chancellor of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem, visited the Steinway factory in New York recently and selected a new Steinway Model D for the School of Filmmaking Scoring Stage.

Maestro Mauceri, world-renowned conductor, said, “The Steinway Model D is considered the pinnacle of the company’s artistic creativity and we are indeed fortunate to have this instrument for the benefit of our students, faculty and guest artists.”

The Steinway Model D was a gift from Michael Tiemann of software company Red Hat Inc., with a matching grant from the Fidelity Foundation of Fidelity Investments. The first use of the instrument was in a world premiere studio recording of the complete score to Much Ado About Nothing by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, composed in 1921. n

north carolina

Shenandoah Conservatory of Music in Winchester, Virginia, selected two Steinway Model B pianos at the New York factory as part of its All-Steinway School initiative.

The instruments were donated by John and Marjorie Lewis and will reside in the teaching studio of Artist-In-Residence John O’Conor.

While in New York, University President Tracy Fitzsimmons hosted a group of conservatory supporters at Avery Fisher Hall to hear The New York Philharmonic with guest soloist Emanuel Ax. n

Virginialeft to right: president tracy Fitzsimmons; Bob larson, SU piano Faculty; John and Marjorie lewis, SU Benefactors; Karen walker, SU piano Faculty; andy Ferrari, SU chairman of the Board; emanuel ax (front)

left to right: ray and Karen hillyard; Karen walker; Bob larson; John o’conor; Marjorie and John lewis; terry and diana Sinclair


all-Steinway SchoolS roUnd-Up

The Department of Music at Utah State University (USU) celebrated the culmination of a seventeen-year campaign when it joined the ranks of All-Steinway Schools in June. The campaign began in 1995, since when $500,000 has been gifted to USU, including a donation from the Sorenson Legacy Foundation. The money funded the purchase of forty-four new Steinway and Steinway-designed pianos.

USU’s All-Steinway distinction was unveiled at an event hosted by USU President Stan Albrecht and Caine College of the Arts Dean Craig Jessop (pictured with Music Dept head James M Bankhead). “We’ve just grabbed one of the ‘brass rings’ in music education and now take a place among the great music schools in the world,” said Jessop. n

Utah

Belmont University, Nashville, TN, an All-Steinway School, celebrated the selection of two Steinway Model D grand pianos at the factory in New York. The pianos were gifts from the AWC Family Foundation and Sharon and Bill Sheriff. Both pianos will reside in the University’s new concert hall, which is due to open in October.

Pictured above from left to right are: Paul Moore, member of Friends of the Arts at Belmont; Sally Coveleskie, Steinway & Sons; Dean Cynthia Curtis; Bill Metcalfe, Steinway Piano Gallery of Nashville; Robert Marler, Piano Faculty; Sharon Sheriff, donor and president of Friends of the Arts at Belmont; Brandon Herrenbruck, Steinway Piano Gallery of Nashville; Dan Landes, Piano Faculty; Sarah Davis, Director of Advancement. n

tennessee

The Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music in San Juan, an All-Steinway School, recently selected three Steinway Model D grand pianos at the factory in New York. Shown choosing the instruments are Chancellor Maria del Carmen Gil and Dean Melanie Santana.

These Model Ds are gifts of philanthropist Guillermo L Martinez, world renowned tenor and conductor Placido Domingo, and the Banco Popular Foundation, Richard Carrión, President and Beatriz Polhamus, Executive Director.

They form part of a phase two acquisition of fifty-two instruments from Steinway & Sons for the Conservatory’s new building project, made possible by a group of private individual donors and the Banco Popular Foundation. The Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music owns more than one hundred recently purchased Steinway and Boston pianos, and has six Steinway Model Ds, the largest number anywhere in Latin America. n

puerto rico

Pianists and Pianos


Beyond imagination

In January last year, Beatles fanatic Jörgen Allercrantz, from Angelholm in Sweden, was surfing the Internet when he saw something that made his heart stop. He was looking for a grand piano and what he saw was the new Steinway & Sons Imagine Series Limited Edition, to commemorate the 70th birthday of legend John Lennon. As his pulse rate soared, he vowed to call his nearest Steinway dealer first thing in the morning.

“I called Lut de Winter at Steinway Piano Gallery in Stockholm and told her about my fascination for the Beatles and John Lennon and my dream of owning a concert grand piano, and I said, ‘How much for big one?’ She told me the price and I said, ‘Oh… OK… I’ll take two.’ She thought I was serious!”

Despite the joke, it was the start of a journey that this year saw Jörgen take delivery of the first Model D John Lennon Imagine Series Steinway. It now stands proudly in his living room in Angelholm, before two large windows with white curtains, a scene faintly redolent of the video for Imagine – were it not for the three pop art lithographs of Lennon that adorn the wall.

Jörgen’s love of the piano began at the age of three, sitting on his father’s lap and learning to play. He would later follow his father into the restaurant business, all the while fostering a passion for rock ’n’ roll. At three he was already listening to the Beatles, thanks to his brother, who was six years older and eager to turn the young Jörgen on to the new sounds coming out of Liverpool.

“It was fantastic, especially when you saw them on the black and white TV. I bought my first single I Want to Hold Your Hand up in Stockholm. I

From top: the imagine series pianos feature details that reflect Lennon’s personality and career, including his signature on the fallboard, a Japanese signature on the medallion, and sections of the imagine score on the plate

Pianists and Pianos


Right: a Model B grand piano from the steinway imagine series

Jörgen allercrantz had two dreams: one was to own a concert grand piano, the other was to own a white grand piano like John Lennon. this year, both dreams came true, as he told Tim Glynne-Jones

S t e i n w a y & S o n S • o n e S t e i n w a y P l a c e • l o n g i S l a n d c i t y, ny 1 1 1 0 5 • w w w. S t e i n w a y. c o m

STEINWAY ARTISTS ARE NEVER PAID TO ENDORSE OUR PIANOS

we would like to thank all of our Steinway artists—past and present—for their loyalty and for putting their music before all else. to view the entire roster of Steinway artists, visit steinway.com.

D u k e e l l i n g t o n

g e o r g e g e r s h w i n VlaDimir horowitz Cole Porter • sergei raChmaninoff • riCharD roDgers • irVing Berlin

franz liszt • arthur r u B i n st e i n • r u f u s wainwright • lang lang harry ConniCk, Jr. • Diana krall • Billy Joel • BruCe hornsBy • miChael feinstein miChel legranD • Peter nero george winston • ranDy newman VlaDimir ashkenazy • roger williams • ahmaD Jamal • helene grimauD • yefim Bronfman • regina sPektor • emanuel ax • DaViD Benoit • keith Jarrett • Van CliBurn • marCus roBerts

m o r e t h a n 1, 6 0 0 ot h e r s …



Pianists and Pianos


didn’t know the song but I bought it because of the cover.

“I also remember my brother saying, ‘Hey, listen, here is the new single from the Beatles,’ and he played Back in the USSR. He played it really loud so the neighbour started to bang on the wall, and I thought it was so cool.”

After the Beatles split up, Jörgen’s musical taste turned towards the heavy rock of the ’70s, bands like Deep Purple and Nazareth. In 1984, he got to tour with Nazareth as keyboard player in a Swedish rock band called Bai Bang. It was fun but he never intended it to be his career. Instead, he became a restaurateur, playing keyboards in his spare time. It was playing in a band by the improbable name of Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Nightmares Band that eventually provided the link back from heavy rock to the Beatles. And that was when Jörgen realised that his childhood love for the “fab four” had never died.

“I think I’m a bigger fan now than I was when they were together,” he says. “When we began to try to play their music, I realised they are the greatest band ever. Their music’s not easy, especially the later songs. The guy who plays the bass for the Nightmares hates Paul McCartney

because his part is like playing a guitar solo on the bass!

“Do I have a favourite Beatles song? No, they wrote so many great songs. When we play Hey Jude the audience goes crazy. They join in, ‘Na na na na-na na na…’ But how many groups had so many hits? Between the albums they released singles with two hits on, like Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Lane. They were incredible.”

Jörgen still owns a restaurant, El Greco, in Angelholm but now, aged fifty, he sees music as his future. “I’m too old for the restaurant business,” he says, then adds laughing, “Actually, I’m too old for the music business, but hey – take a leaf out of Keith Richards’ book!”

He is in the process of building a studio at his home and so, when he began to investigate the purchase of the Imagine Series piano, he was uncertain whether the concert grand would be the best choice. He was advised that, as a pianist, he shouldn’t let the studio considerations dictate his choice.

“They pointed out that when it’s a digital recording it’s ones and zeros, that’s all, but when you play, you want the piano that sounds the best. So I bought the big one and I don’t regret it. It’s a fantastic instrument and it’s just getting better and better. I didn’t know I was such a great pianist!”

It comes as little surprise that the first song Jörgen played on his new purchase was Imagine, which he performed for his one-year-old daughter Stella at the Steinway factory in Hamburg.

Left: Jörgen allercrantz, owner of the first imagine series Model d, pursuing his own musical career

above: Jörgen (far right) with the members of sgt Pepper’s Lonely nightmares Band

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Pianists and Pianos


star,’ so Stella, it fits her. The funny part is that her mother’s name is Linda.”

And so Jörgen’s passion for the Beatles and for the piano came together and he became the proud owner of a Steinway & Sons John Lennon Imagine Series Model D concert grand piano – not one but two dreams come true. Can you put a value on something like that? Jörgen insists not.

“I’m not going to sell it anyway. I know I can get the money back any time I want, but I want Stella to have it.”

And then he adds with Lennonesque wit, “When she’s six years old, she’ll have to make the money in the family!” n

“We came to the factory and they showed us how they made the whole thing. It was so interesting and now I can tell everybody. I know so much more about it, how much time they put in to make it like this. I had my daughter Stella with me and I had already decided that I was going to play Imagine, and I sang that for her. I didn’t care about the people there. It was fantastic.” Perched on her father’s lap, just as Jörgen had perched on his father’s, Stella’s introduction to the piano can’t have been more illustrious. But there was one question on everybody’s lips: Was she named after Stella McCartney?

“I was thinking of Paul McCartney’s daughter when we named her,” Jörgen admits, “but we hadn’t decided on the name before she was born. When we saw her we said, ‘OK, she is a little

above: Jörgen serenades his one-year-old daughter stella on his new piano during a tour of the steinway factory in Hamburg

above right: the first imagine series Model d now sits resplendent at the allercrantz home in angelholm, beside stella’s own mini piano

the John Lennon imagine series was launched to mark what would have been John Lennon’s 70th birthday, in october 2010. the limited edition pianos feature many creative flourishes that reflect Lennon’s personality and career, such as his illustrations and lyrics from his songs. the imagine series is available in Model M, o, a, B, d and the upright Model K-132/K-52 Upright, and each piano is marked with a medallion that features Lennon’s Japanese signature, together with the series name and number.


PianiStS and PianoS

double time

above: the twins in the pavilion at 42 Maria-Louisen Strasse, together with a rather fine organ

Right: Rafael Behn, who ordered the twin pianos from Steinway new york in 1912

Rafael Behn made his money selling galoshes to Hamburg’s well-heeled concert-goers, but his real passion lay inside the concert hall, a passion he shared with his cousin Hermann. Both were keen amateur pianists and composers and Hermann was a close friend of Gustav Mahler. In 1895 he wrote a version of Mahler’s Symphony No.2 in C minor, “Resurrection,” for two pianos.

Four years ago, a live recording of that piece was made at the Laeiszhalle in Hamburg, featuring Christiane Behn, great-granddaughter of Rafael, together with her playing partner Mathias Weber, soprano Daniela Bechly and alto Iris Vermillion. Christiane, a professional pianist and teacher at the Hamburger Konservatorium, is today the owner of the twin Model Bs and recently had them restored by Steinway technician Jan Höppner, bringing a remarkable 100-year history full circle.

Pianists and Pianos


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this twin pair of steinway Model B grand pianos was made 100 years ago for a wealthy Hamburg businessman named Rafael Behn. Recently restored, they are now in the possession of his great- granddaughter Christiane, who told the whole remarkable story to Tim Glynne-Jones

above left: illustration of Raphael Behn’s original, ornate spec

above: consecutive serial numbers stamped on the plates

Below: the original estimate mentions Raphael’s desire to have the pianos in grey

for them attached to his house at 42 Maria-Louisen Strasse in Winterhude, at the north end of the Alster lake in Hamburg. Like his father, the doctor was an enthusiastic musician and his wife Maria was a singer. During the war they hosted concerts in their house, sometimes three times a week. These were welcome bright spots in the lives of the Behns’ fellow Hamburg residents, and they paid their admission not in money but in essentials, such as coal or potatoes.

Despite the bombing raids on Hamburg, the Behn house survived, thanks to a combination of preferential treatment, the weather and sheer luck. Winterhude was a popular neighbourhood for British residents before the war, thanks to the size and quality of its houses, many of which were designed by British architects. The British were keen to return to their lovely houses after the war.

When Winterhude did eventually become a target for Allied bombers, the weather intervened. That night in 1944, a heavy fog sat on the Alster, obscuring this crucial landmark from the air. The bombers unleashed their terror elsewhere. But two bombs did eventually land on 42 Maria-Louisen Strasse. Miraculously, they were deflected by the curved roof of the pavilion and landed in the garden. The pianos survived intact.

The house concerts continued after the war, with the permission of the British occupying government. Thanks to their contribution to Germany’s “cultural guardianship,” the Behns were allowed to keep their pianos and use the house as a concert venue rather than a hostel for the homeless. Several volumes of handwritten books now in Christiane’s possession show details of every concert held at 42 Maria-Louisen Strasse. They include some significant names, such as Carl Seemann and Eduard Erdmann.

Christiane remembers her grandfather with great fondness. “He was a very good pianist and I have all the scores with his marks on. He was my first piano teacher. At the age of five he took me on his knee and he played with his arms around me. It was very intimate. It was like I was playing myself.”

Christiane began to take regular lessons at the age of eight and decided to study piano at sixteen, when she made the second of two appearances in the Steinway Competition at the Laeiszhalle. When her grandfather died, she inherited one of the twin pianos.

“It was the one my grandfather wasn’t so fond of because my grandmother wanted the good one. They are totally different, even now

Documents now in Christiane’s possession include the original quote for the pianos, and a drawing showing Rafael’s initial thoughts on design – a far more ornate style than he finished up with. “He wanted something in grey,” says Christiane with a look of alarm. “Thank goodness he didn’t go ahead with that!”

The pianos were made from the same piece of Honduran mahogany and, perhaps surprisingly, they were built in New York. “This is so interesting because these pianos for that time were really hip, a very new style, not ornate like the drawing, but more like art deco, really modern.”

The pianos lived a suitably genteel life until World War II, by which time they had become the property of Christiane’s grandfather, Dr Herman Behn. He had built a special pavilion

©Stella Artois. Always enjoy responsibly

Pianists and Pianos


after the restoration. One is very calm and soft and you can play very romantic and very good minor. The other one is more clear. You can play very good Bach and Scarlatti, Haydn, Mozart. But if you want to play Brahms, the other one is very good. It has more overtones. The strings sound more together, it’s not so clear.”

But Christiane developed a preference for the one she inherited and it followed her from one flat to another as she developed her career. “I had to move it seven times!” she exclaims, “because pianists are always unpopular with the neighbours. Moving it is a horror, and these weren’t always on the ground floor. Then I moved to a bigger house with more space and my grandmother moved into a home, so I had both pianos.

“Everything is new now: new strings, new hammers; but still it’s the old sound, and this is so interesting. It’s a different sound to how new Steinways sound today. It’s like the famous Rubinstein recordings of Chopin: a little more chamber; not the brilliance and sharpness like it is nowadays.”

With the twins reunited, there was still one piece of the picture to find: the piece relating to her great-granduncle, the friend of Mahler.

“Hermann Behn did lots of things for the university in Hamburg and gave lectures on music and was quite an important person, but my family

never told me much about him. They wanted me to make my own way [as a musician]. Hermann gave Mahler money. It was a close relationship, especially at the time when Mahler was a conductor in Hamburg.”Behn’s two-piano version of Mahler’s

“Resurrection” Symphony was the first printed score of any Mahler composition. Christiane’s father had the only remaining copy and lent it to the Mahler Society in Hamburg. “After my father died in 2003 I got it back. During all my research I got to know Dr Kubik from the Mahler Society in Vienna, who kindly sent me lots of information and letters from Mahler to Behn.”

Thus Christiane was able not only to perform and record her ancestor’s work, she was also able to fill in the blanks about the part he played in the life of one of Europe’s finest composers. Hermann and Rafael Behn would surely have been delighted to know that their contribution to piano music would still be living and breathing in one of their own, one hundred years down the line.

You can see and hear the twins being played by going to www.christianebehn.de. The sound recording is by Ralph Kessler of PINGUIN Ing.Buero, using “virtual acoustics” technology.

Mahler Symphony No.2 in C minor for Two Pianos, featuring Christiane Behn, Mathias Weber, Daniela Bechly, Iris Vermillion and the Harvestehude Chamber Choir, led by Claus Bantzer, is published on the Musicaphon label. n

top left: Christiane aged five, learning the piano beside her grandfather, dr Herman Behn

top right: the restored twins as they are today, at Christiane’s house in Hamburg

above: a submission to the British Commission in Hamburg after the war, requesting that the house concerts at 42 Maria-Louisen strasse be allowed to continue

Below: Christiane Behn

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Steinway dealerS’ taleS

ask any salesperson for the secret to success and they will tell you that, before you can close any deal, you have to engage your customer emotionally. For Steinway & Sons dealers around the world, this seldom seems to be a problem, as Francesca Twinn reveals

a kind ofloving



above: a sight to capture the heart at Pianos Hanlet, Paris

right, from top: Franck Hanlet of Pianos Hanlet; Carlos Bernardo of Music Factory, lisbon; deon van Vuuren of Pianoforte, Cape town

opposite: a Steinway & Sons Model d-274, black polished

Often the process of selling a Steinway piano is more like arranging a love affair, such is the passion that these beautiful instruments arouse in potential clients. That passion is shared by Steinway & Sons dealers around the world, who are always eager to recount their stories of pianistic romance.

Franck Hanlet, président-directeur général of Pianos Hanlet in Vélizy, on the outskirts of Paris, tells of one customer, a distinguished heart surgeon, who lost his own heart to Steinway & Sons, again and again.

“We meet for the first time,” says Franck, “and I convince him to purchase the piano of his life: a brand new Steinway B-211, black polished. He is delighted, overjoyed.

“Two years later, he comes again and falls in love with a beautiful C-227, new, powerful and bright. We trade in his B-211 and deliver a great C-227. Another two years later and Doctor D steps once again into the showroom to find himself astonished by a fantastic D-274, new, black polished. So what do we do? We trade in the C-227 and deliver the D-274.” Franck jokes, “I only regret Steinway never invented the E-333!”

And like true love, a Steinway piano is worth waiting for, as the sale of another D-274 illustrates. This customer was less compulsive and made the purchase after some pretty serious thought and financing plans arranged over ten years. Franck takes up the story.

“Work at his home meant he couldn’t get the piano right away, so we said, ‘Never mind, we’ll keep it for you.’ But later the work was delayed… ‘Never mind, we’ll keep the piano protected with a cover.’ Then the gentleman changed address, so the piano had to wait a little longer… ‘Never mind, we’ll keep it at the back store.’ Then the gentlemen couldn’t take the piano as he had some medical trouble... ‘Never mind, we’ll keep it in our warehouse, finely protected.’ And so on…

“Eventually, in 2000, the gentleman called and asked for Mrs Y, who luckily answered the call and remembered him. He gave his new address for delivery. ‘No problem, sir. Give us some time to prepare the piano and we’ll organise delivery.’ So we checked our tracks and read the invoice – it was dated 1985! Fifteen years to get delivery of his model D-274! Fortunately, he bought the best piano ever from a seriously reliable company.”

Portugal is a passionate country, but it is a culture in which the guitar, drum and accordion rule the roost. “To be a Steinway & Sons dealer in Portugal is very special; we live in a country

Available September 25, 2012Available September 25, 2012

In the last decade of his life, alone with his genius, Bach joyfully andpurposefully immersed himself in the culmination of a life’s work—intendingto place his own indelible stamp on the vanishing art of pure counterpoint.

What we hear in the work’s slow and deliberate unfolding is the miracle of a vast and moving meditation— a farewell testament for the ages.

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A N D R E W R A N G E L L



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without the culture of piano,” says Carlos Bernardo of Music Factory in Carnaxide, Lisbon. It is his job to introduce customers to the joys of Steinway ownership, but it isn’t always easy.

“A customer once came in and asked if new Steinway pianos existed for ten to twenty thousand euros. I answered that it was possible to find used, not new. The client had seen a used Roland grand electronic piano for €9,000 and asked if Steinway had electronic pianos. I explained a little of the history of Steinway and proposed the Essex Grand.

“Then the customer saw another used piano and asked if this was a Steinway. I explained that it was not. He asked if it was possible to change the name and add a sticker saying Steinway & Sons!”

But other customers are much quicker to recognise a good thing when they see it – or even when they don’t. “A client once asked me if I had a Steinway upright piano to show him,” continues Carlos. “I said unfortunately not, only an Essex upright. He invited me to his home in Porto, 300 kilometres away, to show me where he was thinking of putting the piano. On arrival, I discovered his house was a beautiful XVIII century palace and that the client was looking

for an upright for his five-year-old daughter’s bedroom. I saw the room, met the family and the client invited me to a nice restaurant, where he gave me a cheque to buy the piano he had never seen or heard.”

Steinway & Sons has enjoyed a presence in South Africa since 2006, largely due to the insistence of a Steinway owner, and senior airline captain, who complained about the absence of a dealership on the continent. James Ledgerwood, Steinway & Sons’ Regional Sales Manager for Overseas Territories, responded by concluding a distribution agreement with Pianoforte in Cape Town, and enthusiasts have since had a piano haven to delight in.

“Steinway & Sons instruments are the most iconic and aspirational brand in music,” enthuses the director of the dealership. “Pianoforte’s beautiful showroom, with an adjacent concert hall, in a magnificent Edwardian building opposite the Company Gardens in central Cape Town, has made it possible for music lovers to attend recitals, performed by local and international pianists on a Steinway concert grand piano, and enjoy access to the full range of the Steinway family of pianos and the international award winning Steinway Lyngdorf home entertainment audio systems.

“All the universities in South Africa, as well as many schools, hotels, restaurants and private individuals, own Steinway & Sons instruments, and Pianoforte proudly offers factory-trained technical support and authentic Steinway & Sons parts throughout the region. The University of South Africa [UNISA], a loyal Steinway owner since 1920, recently added various Steinway, as well as Boston and Essex, instruments to their fleet of concert and practice pianos. UNISA’s loyalty to Steinway was recently acknowledged when the university was named the first All-Steinway School in Africa [in February 2011].

“Since Steinway & Sons’ 2006 return to the African continent and adjacent islands, South African pianists Jill Richards, Charl du Plessis and Christopher Duigan have been added to the prestigious Steinway Artists roster, joining fellow South African-born Abdullah Ibrahim, Anton Nel and the late Bheki Mseleku.”

And who is the dealer so proudly telling us this story of success? None other than the formerly discontent airline captain himself, Deon van Vuuren – now the extremely content director and founder of the Pianoforte showroom in Cape Town.

No wonder things are really taking off! n

top: the Pianoforte showroom in Cape town, which has helped to give more people access to Steinway pianos in africa

above: South african pianists Christopher duigan and Jill richards, who have become Steinway artists since the showroom opened in 2006

Steinway perSonalitieS


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“It was just chance I started to play”



above: ashley wass performing with the BBC Scottish Symphony orchestra, conducted by Donald runnicles, at the BBC proms 2010

Below: wass fell in love at first sight with his Steinway Model B, a mellow instrument from the ’80s

“We were on a huge stage in Buckingham Palace, with tens of thousands of people watching us and hundreds of thousands watching outside. It was quite a surreal experience,” says British pianist Ashley Wass, recalling what it was like to perform with clarinettist Julian Bliss in Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee gala concert in 2002. “We met the Queen and then we all gave the crowd a wave!”

He wasn’t practising his royal hand-waving skills for this year’s Diamond Jubilee, however, and when I reached him by phone at his home in Somerset, he sounded a bit relieved to be avoiding all the Jubilee hoopla. You could say he has already done his bit for the nation by recording more than 20 discs of British piano music for the Naxos label.

There’s music by most of the major, and many of the minor, British composers of the 20th century, such as Elgar, Vaughan Williams, Bax, Alwyn and Bridge, and there are many pieces that have been unplayed for decades. The musical press loved the series, with one critic citing his Bridge and Bax discs as “the yardstick against which all future recordings will be judged.” Wass says that he’s particularly grateful to have been introduced to Bridge, “one of Britain’s most fascinating, original composers. His sonata is a masterpiece and it has retained a place in my recital repertoire.”

These days a Wass recital programme is more likely to include music by the Austrian-German masters, although he finds plenty of room for Franz Liszt, to whom the 35-year-old is a relatively new convert. “Ten years ago, my interest in Liszt was very limited indeed. I subscribed to the notion of him having rather superficial virtuosity above all. But Bénédiction de Dieu dans la solitude, his masterpiece, and Années de pèlerinage transformed my views. I now hold Liszt’s work above all others. His music is spiritual – perhaps naive at times in its heart-on-sleeve approach – but it is very honest.”

Wass’ CD of Liszt’s Album d’un voyageur and Apparitions (Naxos) was cited as “unquestionably Liszt interpretation on a very high level,” by International Record Review, which added that “the disc may also be appreciated purely as vividly imaginative piano playing of wide expressive range and exquisite charm.”

For a second Liszt disc for Naxos, of his two-piano transcription of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Wass was joined by Leon McCawley. “Along with the Rite of Spring, it’s the most fun you can have on the piano. It’s exhausting, of course; even dividing the notes between two pianos, it’s fiendishly hard to play.”

Wass recently recorded Liszt’s Sixth Symphony “Pastoral” transcription (for one piano this time) at the historic Restoration House in Rochester. He feels transcriptions can hold a special interest for listeners. “When you take away the orchestra you have no choice but to focus on the structure.”

His next project, for Orchid Classics, finds him playing “pieces that are significant to me,” which means music by Kurtág, Stravinsky and Bach. Wass will also play duets with Hamish Milne, one of his teachers (Christopher Elton was the other) at the Royal Academy of Music.

As an Academy student, Wass became familiar with the Steinway showroom in nearby Marylebone. “I went in one day about eleven years ago and found an instrument I fell in love with [his Model B]. I didn’t go in expecting to buy a piano but it happened! My piano dates from the 1980s and is a mellow instrument. The sort of pianos I enjoy the most are pianos that offer plenty of colour.”

Wass maintains a close relationship with Milne and with Martin Roscoe, whom he met at Chetham’s School of Music, which he first attended at the age of eleven. Wass came to Chetham’s from a small town in Lincolnshire. “My parents are hoteliers in a small seaside town with no musical background. It was just chance I started to play.”

He returns to his stomping grounds every June as artistic director of the Lincolnshire International Chamber Music Festival, which starts from the cathedral town of Lincoln and takes music around the county. The festival also highlights his love for chamber music, which he says now occupies some 50 per cent of his professional life.

His personal life is about to get significantly busier with the arrival of his first child this summer. It’s a lucky thing that Wass, as a consummate chamber musician, is used to sharing the spotlight. n

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“Seventy is such a manic, ridiculous age to feel”



above: Steven Kovacevich playing at izumi Hall, osaka. in Japan they cut down the bench for him

Below: Kovacevich finds that his Model D gets better and better with age, developing more overtones and varied response

Some might think that, in 60 years of performing, Stephen Kovacevich has done it all. The American pianist has played in all the world’s great halls and with the best orchestras and conductors, he’s made benchmark recordings such as Beethoven’s “Diabelli” Variations and he’s partnered with some of the most brilliant musical talent, such as fellow pianists Martha Argerich and Daniel Barenboim, violinist Pinchas Zukerman and cellist Jacqueline du Pré.

But don’t imagine Kovacevich has any intention of resting on his laurels. Exhibit A: four years ago, forty years after the famous Philips recording of the “Diabelli,” he decided to revisit the piece for Onyx Classics. What was it like to return to the piece that had made his name?

“A little intimidating,” he admits. “I occasionally heard the old recording and I thought it was good, but sounded to me like a gifted student. When I made that recording I thought I had explored every possibility. You see more as you get older and the new recording is richer – and technically as good.” He won a Gramophone award for the new disc.

Kovacevich is not dismissive of his back catalogue, however. “I do think some of my early recordings are good and I would be proud if I made them today,” he says, citing the Brahms Concerto No. 2 and the three Bartók concertos, all with Colin Davis conducting the London Symphony Orchestra. “I was an angry man when I did the Bartók and that’s what the music is,” he says. Critics would also point to his Beethoven sonatas for EMI and the Beethoven Cello Sonatas with Jacqueline du Pré.

Kovacevich’s path from his birth in the California town of San Pedro in 1940 has been a long and winding one. He made his first concert appearance aged eleven, moved to London to study with the legendary British pianist Myra Hess when he was eighteen (“That time was the making of me artistically,” he has said of his time with Hess), dazzled London audiences with his debut at the Wigmore Hall in 1961 and became a fixture on the concert scene, particularly in the core Austro-German repertoire. Along the way he changed his name, twice, from Stephen Bishop (his step-father’s surname) to Stephen Bishop-Kovacevich, to Stephen Kovacevich (his Croatian father’s surname).

He’s changed pianos too. His current Steinway is a fifteen-year-old Model D that he’s owned for about eight years. “It gets better and better, as some of the best pianos do,” he says. “I don’t know how it works, but the piano gets more overtones and a varied response.” His previous piano was a Model D from the 1930s. “It was a wonderful piano but central heating did it in. More recent pianos have been treated so they can withstand that.”

He has strong views about the tuning of his pianos, seeking out the so-called “stretched” tuning “so you produce more overtones and you produce more clashes,” he explains. “It’s important that a piano opens up – the overtones aren’t there otherwise. A tuner should have the ear of an artist.”

He’s also particular about his piano stool. Like Gould and Pollini, Kovacevich favours an extremely low stool, which can pose a problem for some concert presenters. “The most cooperative place is Japan, where they cut the bench down.”

Kovacevich has been conducting regularly since the mid 1980s. He recently gave a demanding concert in Paris, in which he played a Beethoven violin and piano sonata and the Mozart Piano Concerto No. 24, conducting the orchestra in the concerto and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7. Chamber music is also important. Next October he’s playing the Brahms violin sonatas with Alina Ibragimova, which they’ll also bring to several locations in India.

In 2010 Kovacevich celebrated his 70th birthday with a star-studded concert at Wigmore Hall that turned out to be one of the hottest tickets of the season (it didn’t hurt that the programme included the Bartók Sonata for two pianos and percussion with his long-time musical partner Martha Argerich). “Seventy is such a manic, ridiculous age to feel, and I thought this concert would be something to take my mind off it,” he told Pianist magazine before the performance.

Whatever he may feel about his age, Kovacevich has plenty of time for the younger generation. He enthusiastically teaches and coaches students in Dartington and Verbier. “The amount of talent out there is encouraging!” he says. n

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“Life is about getting to know ourselves and the mysteries within us”



top: lars Vogt inspiring children at the Bernhard-rose School in Berlin as part of his rhapsody in Schools project

Below: Vogt feels most at one with his piano when he doesn’t have to think about it at all

Settling on a programme order for a concert is a subtle art, as Lars Vogt well knows. In May, for his recital at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall, the German pianist swapped the order around. He began with joyful Haydn’s Sonata in C Hob.XVI:5 – as scheduled – but then swapped two Chopin pieces (the Berceuse and Piano Sonata No. 2 “Marche funèbre”), originally at the end, with a new piece by Thomas Larcher and Brahms’ “Paganini” Variations. “The ending of the Chopin Sonata is so shocking: a window over a grave,” says Vogt. Not the mood he wanted to end with.

In the recital, Vogt, wearing a slate grey jacket over a black T-shirt, frequently shuffles his left foot as he plays, almost as if he’s dancing. He introduces the Larcher 12 Poems for piano, composed for Vogt’s Spannungen Festival, with light-hearted remarks about the piece’s titles (examples: “Sad yellow whale” and “Eins, zwei, drei, vier, neun”).

Vogt was born in Düren, Germany, in 1970. There was a piano at home but little musical inclination in the family. Vogt came to the instrument by chance and, after winning some competitions, went to study with Karl-Heinz Kämmerling, whose studio has produced such stars as Severin von Eckardstein and Alice Sara Ott. In 1990 he won second prize in the Leeds Competition. Almost more thrilling than this was meeting Simon Rattle, who was conducting the orchestra for the finals.

“There were sparks flying all over the place. It inspired me so much!” It was the start of a relationship that has seen Vogt play with Rattle and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) and with the Berlin Philharmonic, where he was their first Pianist-in-Residence for the 2003-2004 season.

His recordings with Rattle include Hindemith’s Kammermusik No. 2 (with the Berlin Philharmonic, on EMI) and the Schumann, Grieg and two Beethoven concertos (with the CBSO, also EMI). In 2006 he released a disc of Mozart solo piano music, of which Pianist magazine wrote that “he brings spontaneity and a spring-like freshness to everything he plays.” His most recent disc, for Berlin Classics, is of the Schumann Fantasie in C with the Liszt Sonata (“a satisfyingly magnificent reading,” said Gramophone of the Sonata).

For the past six years, Vogt has lived in London with his partner, violist Rachel Roberts, and his daughter. “I feel quite at home. I call myself the honorary Brit,” he says. A Steinway Model D, a former concert hall piano that has been completely renovated, takes pride of place in the Vogt home. In concert, his ideal situation is “when I don’t think about the instrument at all!”

His concert schedule continues to be hectic, with performances of the Lutoslawski concerto at the Edinburgh Festival in August and Rachmaninov Concerto No. 2 with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and rising British conductor Robin Ticciati in October, either side of a gala concert at the Berlin Konzerthaus on 27 September for Rhapsody in Schools, a project he launched in 2005 to inspire schoolchildren to take up classical music.

“Like everywhere else, children in Germany are not properly presented with music,” Vogt says. “How can we awaken interest in people not so involved in music? The only way to give music a chance to survive is if we go in and we help, be emotional about music, play for kids, speak about what it means for us and what we love about it.” So far, some one hundred artists have become involved on a voluntary basis and the project is expanding.

Rhapsody in Schools started in Heimbach, a town not far from Vogt’s birthplace and, for the past fifteen Junes, the site of his Spannungen Festival. “Heimbach is by a lake and we play in a 1904 Art Deco building.” What’s unusual is that the building is a power station and the stage is built between two turbines (turned off during the festival). The performances are electrifying, though, with artists such as violinists Isabelle Faust, Alina Ibragimova and Christian Tetzlaff and cellists Alban Gerhardt and Tanja Tetzlaff among the regulars. This year Vogt makes his Heimbach conducting debut with the Cologne Chamber Orchestra.

“I’ve had good feedback and I want to explore,” he says of his conducting, following a philosophy he expressed in relation to his schools project: “Life is not always about functioning in work, it’s about getting to know ourselves and the mysteries within us, and music is a way of exploring that.” n

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“I do not regard myself as a virtuoso. I do not find these pieces at all difficult”



Early in their careers, many pianists end up narrowing down their repertoire to a small core of composers that they believe – or have been told – best suit their playing style. The Russian pianist Arcadi Volodos has taken almost exactly the opposite tack, presenting a wide repertoire that ranges from the Baroque era through Schubert and Liszt to the lush pastures of Rachmaninov.

It doesn’t hurt that Volodos is a technical wizard who flies through the most demanding repertoire with ease. It’s true that his no-holds-barred playing style divides the critics, yet no critic could ever accuse him of being uninteresting or uncommitted – and any sceptical reception by the critics is counterbalanced by his fans: a diverse and devoted group that includes other concert pianists.

Take, for example, a recital Volodos gave recently at London’s Royal Festival Hall. The audience in this important hall greeted the end of his performance of Brahms’ Three Intermezzi Op. 117 with an awestruck hush. His Liszt Sonata was rewarded with another amazed silence, followed by a heartfelt shout of “bravo!” and clamorous applause. Volodos was recalled to the stage time and again. By the third encore, his own transcription of Lecuona’s Malagueña, they were on their feet, shouting for more. But this master performer wisely ended with a Schubert Minuet: an after-dinner mint to the lavish main course.

One might expect that someone who inspires such passion for his technique and interpretation and who has been likened to the 20th century virtuoso Vladimir Horowitz must have been pounding the piano keys as soon as he could toddle over to the keyboard, but this is not the case. Volodos was born in St Petersburg (then Leningrad) in 1972. With parents who were both singers, it was perhaps natural that he would gravitate first to the voice and then to conducting. The piano, an instrument he’d studied since the age of eight, did not become his focus until he was in his teens.

But then he caught up rapidly, taking lessons in Moscow with Galina Eguiazarova (who also taught Radu Lupu), in Paris with Jacques Rouvier and in Madrid with Dimitri Bashkirov. By the time he made his New York debut in 1996, the world

realised that a bright new piano star was shining in the musical sky.

Luck also played a role in his rise: a fortuitous meeting with a Sony producer in France brought him a contract with the label (which may have spared him from the competition circuit). That first CD set the tone for his idiosyncratic career. It was an album of transcriptions, his own and those of others. Cziffra’s Improvisations on Rimsky-Korsakov’s Flight of the Bumblebee and Volodos’ own Concert Paraphrase on Mozart’s Rondo alla Turca became his calling cards.

“Here is a disc of visceral excitement and unashamed virtuosity, blending refined poetry with an exploitation of colour and sonority,” wrote Gramophone, “Volodos’ magical control of pedalling and finger-weighting demonstrating a rare feel for melodic and inter-voicing. Few recent discs have served the art of transcription so well.”

The transcription disc was followed by a live recording at Carnegie Hall, which included music by Liszt, Scriabin and Rachmaninov. This earned Volodos a Gramophone Award in 1999 for Best Instrumental Recording. He’s also essayed solo and concerto works of Rachmaninov, as well as solo works by Schubert and Liszt. He picked up another Gramophone Award in 2010 for his two-disc Volodos in Vienna, featuring a programme of everything from Bach to Scriabin.

When he walked on stage to the Steinway at Royal Festival Hall, Volodos carried himself with authority, though some find his use of a regular chair in front of the Steinway, rather than a piano bench, somewhat unusual. But Volodos seems less worried about risking comparisons with another fan of of the low seat, Glenn Gould, than being thought of as a two-dimensional virtuoso.

As he told the Süddeutsche Zeitung, “I do not regard myself as a virtuoso. I do not find these pieces at all difficult. Many people think, only because there are really a lot of notes, that the pieces have to be difficult. That is basically not the case. The only difficulty lies in the musical form – it is really about achieving the correct sound image. Once you have this, you just have to play it back.” n

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Below: Volodos in concert at the Vienna Musikverein in 2009



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“The furthest thing from my mind was being a professional musician”



above: lenore raphael with Howard alden on the cover of their new CD loverly

Below: raphael enjoys a feeling of intimacy with her Steinway, praising its warmth, brightness and response

At the age of three, jazz pianist Lenore Raphael began her first love affair – with the piano. Now, in her 70th year and well-established on the international jazz scene, this Steinway Artist and native New Yorker’s affair with the instrument is still going strong.

Everything began very simply when, as a young child, Raphael sat down at the piano and just started to play by ear. Formal lessons followed at the age of six. “My first teacher,” she recalls, “was in a music school and I forget what the name of it was and the name of my teacher, but I remember cheating because I couldn’t read the notes and she didn’t know it. I would ask her to play it for me and I would play it by ear. Then one day I started to cry. She had asked me what note she was playing and I told her I didn’t know. After that, she taught me how to read.”

When Lenore was eight, her family moved to a new home in the Bronx, and there she met her second teacher, Beulah Eisenstadt. “She was a marvellous concert pianist and teacher who, lucky for me, just happened to live in the same building. We lived on the sixth floor and she lived on the fifth. She was to be my teacher until I was eighteen.”

Raphael’s musical education continued with her attendance at New York City’s prestigious Music and Art High School and then New York University, where she received a Bachelor’s Degree in Music. At that time, she states, “the furthest thing from my mind was being a professional musician. I did not want a classical concert career.” But jazz came into her life when her brother, who was studying trumpet, brought home records by Clifford Brown. “I was about eleven or twelve and I started playing along with them, because I could and I liked not having to be glued to the notes.”

Jazz resounded in her and she began going to New York jazz clubs in the late 1950s and sneaking in. “Listening to trumpeter Maynard Ferguson, pianists Teddy Wilson, Lennie Tristano and, of course, Stan Kenton, and seeing them live – I just thought this was great stuff and I navigated into jazz because I could do it.”

Raphael married early and as she started raising a family her career consisted of teaching. But then

she discovered pianist Oscar Peterson, who would become one of her biggest idols, along with Bill Evans and Bud Powell. “I bought all of Oscar’s albums and started playing along with them, practising five or six hours a day.”

Raphael started playing professionally in the early ’80s, with various groups and solo. While playing an engagement at a club called Gregory’s, a bass player suggested she take lessons from Mike Longo, Dizzy Gillespie’s pianist for many years and his music director. Longo became Raphael’s third teacher and, along with Barry Harris, helped her to develop her own distinctive style. She began leading her own group in 1989 and made her first recording in 1991.

To date, Raphael has recorded six studio albums and two live albums, all on her own label Swingin’ Fox Records – doing her own producing and promotion. Her newest recording, titled Loverly, with jazz guitarist Howard Alden, was released in June, just after her 70th birthday.

She still follows a busy and varied performing schedule, playing at clubs and jazz festivals all over the United States and in Europe (including a sold out performance at Ronnie Scott’s in London), hosts her own interview/performance internet radio show Lenore Raphael’s Jazz Spot on purejazzradio.com, as well as playing concerts and conducting jazz workshops and clinics at All-Steinway Schools and for various Steinway Societies.

The piano that resides in the Raphaels’ New York City apartment is a Steinway Model L, manufactured in 1931. “It is an extension of my fingers,” she says. “For me, Steinway pianos have the warmth and feeling of intimacy with the instrument that I love. I can express the emotions of the music and at the same time achieve the brightness that I enjoy playing and hearing in a jazz performance. Also, since I play a lot of fast runs, I like the keys to respond quickly.”

When asked what keeps her going with a performance and travel schedule that would daunt someone half her age, Raphael responds, “It’s the music – I love playing the piano – and also the reactions to the music from my audiences.” n

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STEInwAy & SonS | ISSUE Two 2012 77

Tis the season for music celebration. Inge Kjemtrup takes the festival march through Europe and the United States

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Holidays in Germany: www.germany.travel

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Behind every great summer music festival there’s a great vision. Frankly, there simply has to be a great vision, because how else could a festival organiser persuade sought-after musicians to make their way to a remote corner of the planet to play in a drafty tent, an insect-filled outdoor amphitheatre or a creaky church?

Those summer festivals that have lasted the longest have mastered that vision thing, or at least they know enough to provide congenial surroundings to refresh the artistic temperament. And if everything works well, innovative and joyful music making will result.

America boasts an eclectic mix of festivals, amidst which you will find some genuine pianistic highlights. Sixty-one years ago, the Marlboro Festival – set in a congenial but remote corner of Vermont – was founded by the distinguished pianist Rudolf Serkin (the equally distinguished pianists Mitsuko Uchida and Richard Goode run it today). The Marlboro vision? To mix up professional and upcoming young players, who then rehearse and perform together.

Audience members don’t know until the week before the concert who is playing or what they’ll be playing. It may sound a bit hit-or-miss, but in

Previous page: dusk falls on ozawa Hall, the main venue for the Tanglewood Festival

Above: the stage is set at the Roque d’Anthéron festival near Aix-en-Provence

Below: the Boston Symphony orchestra playing at Tanglewood

practice it has made for some extraordinary musical mash-ups. Almost every well-known American chamber musician (and many a non-American) has played at Marlboro.

Two other American festivals have an equally renowned record for nurturing the stars of tomorrow: the Tanglewood Festival in the Berkshire Hills of Massachusetts and the Aspen Festival in Aspen, Colorado. Tanglewood, which celebrates its 75th season this year, is the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, whose rehearsals and concerts are the core of the activities, though there are chamber music concerts and solo recitals as well. Pianistic highlights this year include German pianist Gerhard Oppitz in Brahms’ complete solo piano music (throughout July), Nelson Freire in Mozart Concerto No. 20 (27 July) and Jean-Yves Thibaudet in Saint-Saëns’ rarely played Concerto No. 5 “Egyptian” (5 Aug).

Meanwhile, up in the vertiginous heights of Aspen (a ski resort in winter), newly appointed artistic director Robert Spano has been presenting his first season. Aspen is proud of the musicians who have studied here as youngsters, and Aspen alumni such as pianists Jeremy Denk and Ingrid Fliter feature on the concert schedule. Two concerts

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in particular stood out: Pianopalooza, an evening of two-piano works with Anne-Marie McDermott and Inon Barnatan, and pianist-composer Lera Auerbach playing her own 24 Preludes alongside Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition.

For real round-the-clock piano music, however, you’ll have to make your way to France for its Roque d’Anthéron festival or to Germany, for its multi-city Klavier-Festival Ruhr. Looking over the offerings for both festivals, it’s almost easier to ask which A-list pianist won’t be appearing. Recitalists at the mighty Roque this year include Arcadi Volodos, Khatia Buniatishvili, Benjamin Grosvenor, Grigory Sokolov and Aldo Ciccolini.

One of the most appealing aspects of Roque is its Provençal setting, and the “Nuits du Piano” concerts take place at the gorgeous Parc du Château de Florans (be sure to take a walk around the stunning gardens). If you’re quick you might just catch the “Nuits du Piano” on 9 August, which features all of the solo and multiple keyboard concertos of Bach played by Evgeni Koroliov, Anna Vinnitskaya and others, accompanied by the Sinfonia Varsovia.

Klavier-Festival Ruhr also attracts the leading lights of the keyboard. Rather than being in a relatively small geographical area like Roque

d’Antheron, this is spread out among cities in the Ruhr Valley, such as Essen and Düsseldorf. Happily, German trains are excellent (and the Autobahn can be thrilling for more assertive drivers). As a measure of the quality on display, this year’s programme included a recital from Pierre-Laurent Aimard, a duo extravaganza with Martha Argerich and three of her protégés, Lilya Zilberstein and Daniel and Anton Gerzenberg, and András Schiff in an all-Schubert programme.

If it’s true that art thrives on the borders between cultures, then the Schleswig-Holstein Festival, in

Above: the iconic red piano, symbol of the Klavier-Festival Ruhr in Germany’s Ruhr Valley

Below: Claudio Abbado conducts the Lucerne Festival orchestra

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Germany’s picturesque northernmost state, on the border with Denmark, must be bubbling with artistic ideas. Each year this festival focuses on one country or culture. Last year it was Turkey; this year it’s China (“The Year of the Dragon” is the official theme). Considering the outstanding pianism coming out of China now, this is quite a star-studded event, with appearances from Lang Lang, Yuja Wang, Zhu Xiao-Mei (her recital is titled “From Mao to Bach”) and Jenny Lin, among others.

For a country with a population of only 7.6 million people, Switzerland boasts an incredible number of heavyweight music festivals, helped in no small part by the well-heeled audiences. Nonetheless, there’s a surprising willingness not to cater to overly cautious tastes. The Swiss-based Martha Argerich, the legend for whom “legend” is such an inadequate appellation, is certainly not one to adjust her style to please an audience. She’d rather please herself. These days she seems happiest performing in the company of her vast collection of brilliant young protégés in festivals around the world, though she’s most at home at the recently concluded Project Martha Argerich in Lugano, on the Italian side of Switzerland. Another one for a future diary.

Taking place as we go to press is the Menuhin Gstaad Festival, founded by, yes, the late great

violinist Yehudi Menuhin. This year’s attractions included master classes from András Schiff at the Gstaad Piano Academy and performances from Angela Hewitt, playing Bach and Ravel in recital, and Emanuel Ax with the London Symphony Orchestra, under their former conductor Michael Tilson Thomas, in the Brahms First Concerto and the Beethoven Third Concerto.

On another, equally breathtaking Swiss mountainside, the Verbier Festival furthers its vision of putting together the superstars in chamber music groups (best if they’ve never played together before, apparently). There are also solo recitals and concerto appearances from

Right: Gut Altenhof, the venue for the annual Schleswig-Holstein Festival in northern Germany

Below: Lake Lucerne provides a spectacular setting for one of Switzerland’s big festivals

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the superstars. Star piano recitals this year include Elisabeth Leonskaja, Khatia Buniatishvili, Alice Sara Ott, Nikolai Lugansky, Daniil Trifonov, David Kadouch and Yuja Wang.

Coming down from the mountains to the quintessentially Swiss town of Lucerne, one finds the Lucerne Summer Festival, centered on the excellent hall built by Jean Nouvel that sits gracefully on the shimmering Lake Lucerne. Pollini brings his wide-ranging Perspectives concert series to Lucerne this year and there are two unmissable concerts with Radu Lupu in Beethoven’s Third Concerto with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, conducted by Claudio Abbado, in August. In November, Lucerne plays host to a week-long piano festival.

Britain’s largest and most famous festival is the BBC Proms, though other festivals have made an international impression, not least the Aldeburgh Festival in Suffolk. Founded by Benjamin Britten with his musical and life partner, the tenor Peter Pears, Aldeburgh has a 60-year tradition of glorious song and piano recitals, chamber music and new music. Next year the festival (and the world) celebrates the 100th anniversary of Britten’s birth in the small Suffolk town of Lowestoft.

Do not miss this year’s BBC Proms if you’re in London in the late summer. Top-flight

Above: the concert hall at Snape Maltings, home of the Aldeburgh Festival in Suffolk, UK

Below: the Royal Albert Hall in London provides the main setting for the BBC Proms festival

keyboard stars fill the schedule: Kirill Gerstein in Rachmaninov’s Concerto No. 2 with BBC Symphony and Jirí Belohlávek, Joanna MacGregor in a concerto written for her by the 80-year-old British composer Hugh Wood, young British star Benjamin Grosvenor, in the Saint-Saëns Second Concerto and Nelson Freire in Villa-Lobos’ Momoprécoce, with his compatriots of the São Paulo Orchestra conducted by Marin Alsop.

Youth, vigour, excitement and originality – conductor Henry Wood, founder of the Proms 118 years ago, had that vision thing precisely right from the start. n

FESTIVALS


FRANCE

Roque d’Anthéron July-AugustFly to Marseilles and take a train or car up to Aix-en-Provence (about half an hour).www.festival-piano.com

GERMANY

Klavier-Festival RuhrMay-July There are many inter-European flights to Essen and Düsseldorf, two of the main locations for this festival.www.klavierfestival.de

Schleswig-Holstein Music FestivalJuly-AugFly into Hamburg and hire a car from there to be able to reach the diverse and intriguing cities and towns that host the festival.www.shmf.de

SWITZERLAND

Menuhin Gstaad FestivalJuly-Septemberwork your way there by train or car from Bern or Geneva airports.www.menuhinfestivalgstaad.ch

Lucerne FestivalAugust-September19-25 november: Lucerne Festival of the PianoFly into Zurich and take the train around Lake Lucerne.www.lucernefestival.ch

Verbier FestivalJuly-AugustFrom the well-connected Geneva Airport, take a train around Lake Geneva and then a car, cable car or bus.www.verbierfestival.com

UK

BBC PromsJuly-SeptemberLondon is busy at the best of the times, but with the olympics and the Paralympics overlapping some of the Proms season, advance planning will be essential.www.bbc.co.uk/proms

Aldeburgh FestivalJuneAldeburgh is about two hours by train or car from London. The nearest railway station is Saxmundham.

USA

Aspen Music FestivalJune-AugustAspen, Colorado, is a major US hub; however, European visitors will probably have to fly into Denver and make the four-hour drive.www.aspenmusicfestival.com

Marlboro Music FestivalJuly-AugustIt’s a two-hour drive to Marlboro, Vermont, from Boston, or a four-hour drive from new york City, so you’ll want to linger a while.www.marlboromusic.org

Tanglewood FestivalJune-SeptemberA two-hour drive from Boston to Lenox.www.bso.org

Festival planner

http://www.festival-piano.com

http://www.klavierfestival.de

http://www.shmf.de

http://www.menuhinfestivalgstaad.ch

http://www.lucernefestival.ch

http://www.verbierfestival.com

http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms

http://www.aspenmusicfestival.com

http://www.marlboromusic.org

http://www.bso.org

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the mantra of high end hi-fi is to reproduce as faithfully as possible the sound as intended at the recording end. But what exactly do record producers intend these days? Terry Wilson turned the microphone on them

Capturingperfection

Hi-fi


above: David frost with one of his many Grammy awards

Right: frost in the studio with alicia de Larrocha (seated), andré Previn and Christianne orto

opposite: abbey Road studio

The aim of a classical producer is to translate the feel of the concert hall, with all its reverberations and scale, into a finished recording, so that the listener should experience, as far as possible, the sensation of hearing the performance “in the flesh.” Of course, it is no simple matter. The work of the producer has to be close to faultless, since minor imperfections can mar a recording beyond all proportion. As eleven-time Classical Grammy winner David Frost puts it, “Imagine a photograph that is unintentionally out of focus, or is badly exposed or lit – your attention is drawn to those things instead of the subject.”

The need for perfection contains within itself a contradiction: to execute the task to the very highest standard, the work of the producer becomes increasingly imperceptible, at the service of the pure music. Says Frost, “A great recording will draw you into an attractive and appropriate sound world, but then should not draw attention to itself. It should vanish and the listener should be having an emotional experience with the music.”

In recent times, the recording industry has undergone a minor revolution, fuelled by the increasing attraction of high-resolution digital

technology. Many top producers have turned their backs on the tape formats that were standard for recording studios for many decades, cursed as they were with unwanted problems such as “wow and flutter” (minute variations in capstan speed, which cause notes to “wobble”), in favour of new digital hardware. One of the biggest names in the

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Hi-fi


business, Steven Epstein, has recorded prolifically, including several works for Steinway & Sons’ own ArkivMusic label, and is one of a growing number of producers to make the switch.

“Piano recordings are no longer plagued by wow and flutter, which one couldn’t fully avoid in the analogue realm. The advantages of high-resolution digital sound are quite formidable,” he says.

High-resolution is designed to reveal as much detail as possible, and is a vast improvement on the primitive digital technology that hampered CD in the early days. It also takes the listener closer to the instrumentation. Tony Faulkner runs Green Room Productions and is recognised as one of the leading classical recording engineers in the business. Like Epstein, he champions high-res.

“High-resolution digital formats make a huge difference to recording a piano compared with regular CD. The higher the resolution you can get your hands on, the more you get to hear of the instrument’s colours.” Of course, the quality of the output stage cannot be separated from the quality of the original recording.

When it comes to getting a performance down, perhaps the most critical consideration for classical

producers is the placement of microphones. Standard practice is to find the “sweet spot” in the auditorium, where the acoustics are just so, and position a pair of microphones right there. Faulkner, a Steinway owner himself, explains, “People who do not understand recording think, for some misguided reason, that they must place

above: digital devotee Steven epstein during a recording session with violinist Mark o’Connor

Right: tony faulkner of Green Room Productions, another champion of high-resolution digital formats

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88 SteinwAy & SonS | iSSue two 2012

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Combined into a stereo set, AKG’s C414s capture the beauty of the piano’s every note, ensuring the audience is fully immersed in an astounding, grand sound. Realistic stereo recordings require microphones with outstanding performance and excellent quality. They also require performance consistency and accurate localisation from the pair of microphones. Therefore, every factory-matched pair has been created from thousands of individual microphones selected by AKG’s sophisticated computer-aided matching method. The result is the highest possible correlation over the whole frequency range and virtually identical sensitivity for stunning, three-dimensional recordings.

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as the saying goes, a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. So it seems a pity to spend thousands of dollars on top end CD players and amplifiers, only to link them together with inferior cabling. Kubala-Sosna is one company that has devoted its attention to the perfection of hi-fi cables and it claims that its latest elation Series “has the ability to transport you to the venue.” How? through a patented cable architecture called optimiZ, designed to pass nearly perfect square waves. Joe Kubala puts it more simply: “Listen for 15 minutes. if you don’t like what you hear, just send them back!”

www.kubala-sosna.com

Delivering the signal

Left: multiple Grammy nominees Marina and Victor Ledin, of encore Consultants, are big fans of surround sound

microphones under the lid, close to the strings, to get ‘presence.’ But an instrument like a Steinway D was designed to project into a concert hall audience and to excite the resonance of the hall in the process. The sound beneath the lid can be the ugliest place to put a microphone: brittle, with a lot of mechanical action noises.

“For classical piano I always prefer recording in a concert hall type venue, rather than a studio. Unless you are in a wonderful, large orchestral studio like Abbey Road or AIR, most studios are too small to handle the weight and range of a Steinway D playing a large-scale classical work such as, say, Beethoven’s Hammerklavier or Messiaën’s Vingt Regards.”

Like many in the industry, Faulkner is something of an audiophile, which doubtless informs his

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Hi-fi


Reading the cues

professional approach, and he sees digital formats as “the future of home listening.” Although most piano music is recorded with a conventional two-microphone arrangement, which lends itself to stereo, a recent innovation for home audio is surround-sound, with its multi-speaker set-ups. It is interesting to find that several top names in classical recording do their listening though surround-sound, including Epstein, who declares himself a devout audiophile.

“I wish that all recordings could be made and reproduced in surround,” he says. “When done correctly, the added spatial cues give the listener a more immersive and realistic experience, whether large symphony orchestra or solo piano.”

Hinting at what the future has in store, the issue returns, as ever, to authenticity. Victor and Marina Ledin run Encore Consultants in California, and have received three Grammy nominations in the classical category. Marina also favours surround systems for home playback. “Stereo systems and headphones are perfectly fine if one is doing post-production work, but for just the joy of listening to music we prefer the enveloping experience of listening in surround.”

few CD players deliver the wonders of surround sound to the standard of Spemot’s Soulution 745 SaCD player. the enticingly understated casing conceals components of the highest quality, meticulously planned dual mono circuitry and an absence of anything that could interfere with the faithful reproduction of the sound on the disc. the power supply, for example, is formed of separate units for drive, digital and analogue stages, and stored in an external housing. the Soulution 745 SaCD player is the first stage in reproducing the sound the producer intended.

www.soulution-audio.com


HI-FI

STEINWAY & SONS | ISSUE TWO 2012 91

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Visually, Dartzeel takes a radically different approach to Spemot with its bright gold and red CTH-8550 integrated amplifier. It makes no bones about its ability to deliver audio nirvana: you don’t turn up the volume, you turn the Pleasure Control to “more.” But, being Swiss like Spemot, Dartzeel also leaves no stone unturned in the search for internal perfection. No-expense-spared components, clever circuitry and dedicated power supplies all contribute to a pure, precise quality of sound that delivers fine detail right down deep in the mix.

www.dartzeel.com

Adding the power

The point to be made is that recording methods and hi-fi equipment, while generally aiming at the same aesthetic, are sometimes better suited to particular styles. When it comes to selecting speakers, for example, Victor Ledin has compared several speaker systems against a range of his own recordings and notes, “Different high-end speakers outperform other high-end speakers depending on different tones. For example, solo flute may sound great on speaker set A, but speaker set C may perform better in a symphonic orchestra playback.”

EQ-ing – filtering the frequencies artificially to affect the sound – is a common technique in popular music recording, but the classical engineer’s craft is of far more import when capturing a “performance,” as opposed to making a “record.” Says Epstein, “When I record a piano, my goal is to have the instrument speak as effectively as possible in the given acoustic space. I rarely, if ever, add EQ to a piano recording. The ‘EQ,’ as I would define it, is correct use and placement of the microphones.”

In other words, it’s the skill and judgment of the producer that counts. There are many factors

Left: celebrated Canadian pianist Glenn Gould, who, according to David Frost, liked a clean, dry sound to his recordings

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next to the heavyweight high end loudspeakers favoured by many aficionados, earphones tend to be dismissed as disposable gadgets for getting a bit of sound in your ears on your way to work. But aKG – as it has with headphones – is changing all that. it has succeeded in squeezing a genuine three-way speaker system into its K3003 earphones. this is a brand new technology that combines one dynamic and two balanced armature drivers to give a quality of sound that places you right in the performance. interchangeable sound-tuning filters even allow you to adjust the balance between the three frequencies to suit your preference for more bass boost, high boost or reference sound.each housing is chiselled out of a single piece of stainless steel and connected by tangle-free cabling, for a sleek, crafted look and durable, quality feel. each pair has its own individualised serial number and they come in a fitted leather case for that extra touch of class and, more importantly, protection. Something this delicate yet powerful deserves to be looked after.

www.akg.com/k3003

Music to your ears

that enable him to do this but at the heart of the issue is a deep respect for the music itself. According to David Frost, the method of recording should be keenly sympathetic to the style of the music. “The sound of the recording should be appropriate for the musical style and for the artist’s interpretation. The recorded sound Glenn Gould liked, for instance, was clear and dry; completely appropriate for his musical approach, especially for repertoire such as Bach. If one recorded Horowitz playing Rachmaninov with that same approach, it would not be as convincing.”

Ultimately, the point of recorded music is to capture something fleeting: the sounds produced by musicians in moments of high attunement to great pieces of music. If a producer has a pure vision, it is to preserve the excitement of the piece, not just in the hands of its immediate performers, but in a style and manner that does justice to the composer’s intentions.

Tony Faulkner sums it up succinctly: “Composers go to a lot of trouble to mark pp’s and ff’s in their scores, and not only should performers respect these requests but also engineers and producers.” n

Left: positioning of microphones is key to the producer’s art of capturing the authentic sound. if carried out correctly, says Steven epstein, there should be no need to add eQ

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Piotr Tomaszewski - Piazzale Degli Uffizi, Florence - Sunday afternoon

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timepieces


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Dawn, 388Bc, athens, Greece

the water clock became widely known across the civilised world, from persia to china. But philosopher and teacher plato is widely credited with introducing it to Greece. he used a particularly sadistic variation; he woke the students at his academy using a vessel full of lead balls, which floated on top of a vat. During the night the vat filled up, until by dawn the level was high enough for the vessel to tip up and the lead balls to fall out on to a copper plate. the racket must have been enormous. however, Greek water clocks were not terribly accurate even after several redesigns, one including the earliest recognisable clock face with moving hands.

reinventing timesince the dawn of civilisation, mankind has sought ever more accurate ways of measuring time. Chris Maillard winds back the clock to look at some of the quirkier milestones in this never-ending questIt flies. It heals all wounds and waits for no man. It is tight, money and of the essence. It has a nick and a march and a Brief History. We waste it and kill it and spend it. It is an old father and it will tell, apparently. It is, of course, time; a concept with which the human race is obsessed.

That’s unsurprising, perhaps, since it is a measure of our lifespan, but does our sense of time come from outside or within? After all, we have a body clock, we have cycles and we have rhythm – some of us more than others. Whether it’s governed by a beat or a deadline, most things we do in life we set against a benchmark of time.

It makes sense, then, that the means by which to accurately split our lives into universally understood increments has been an obsession that has occupied some of the most clever and imaginative minds since the dawn of civilisation. Today, almost all of us carry our own personal time measurement device. Even in a world where there is a clock on your phone, your reader or tablet and your computer, and half the appliances in your home or office have a blinking LED time display, we still find it useful to be able to glance at one wrist and find out exactly what the time is.

So how did we come to value time so highly? Or more pertinently, when?

Left: reconstruction of a clay water clock of the late 5th century Bc, in the stoà of attalus museum, athens.

above: plato, who introduced an alarm element to the concept

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Half a bowl past six pebbles, 328bc, Zibad, persia

the persian water clock, or fenjaan, was an elegant, simple and surprisingly accurate device, which they found invaluable for calculating planting seasons and timed irrigation rotas. a bowl with a small hole in its base sits in a vat of water. it takes a set amount of time to fill, after which it sinks. the timekeeper fishes out the bowl, puts a pebble in a jar to mark one unit, then puts the empty bowl back into the vat. the one at Zibad, now in iran, was used from around 300bc, and ran continually until finally replaced by a modern clock – in 1965.

above: a persian water clock dating from around 500bc

right: a 16th century depiction of a persian water clock in action

late eveninG, 878ad, wessex

there’s one, probably apocryphal, story that everyone knows about King alfred the Great of britain: while hiding out from danish invaders in a woodsman’s cottage, he was asked to watch the cakes so they didn’t burn. He forgot, they did, and he received a right royal telling-off from mrs peasant. possibly as a result of this traumatic event, alfred is credited with inventing a sophisticated candle clock, using six carefully marked foot-high candles, placed in glass boxes so they burned evenly and didn’t blow out. He apparently relied on this to organise his time efficiently. as he revolutionised law, religion and education, invented the royal navy and finally defeated the danes, it probably worked.

left: an illustration by ac michael of King alfred burning the cakes

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Mozart set the standard in his field ...

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5:68:97, 5 october, 1793, paris

the French revolution came with quite a few good ideas. However, one of its less successful brainwaves was the decimal clock. according to a 1793 decree, this divided the (previously) 24 hour day into 10 hours, each one of 100 minutes, split into 100 seconds. on the surface this was highly logical, but it quite simply failed to catch on – the population were just too used to the traditional system, and the cost of altering all existing clocks and watches, even then, was prohibitive. a brief attempt at re-starting the idea was made in 1897, but met the same problems. Logical? oui. popular? non.

six beLLs o’ tHe First dog watcH, 13 may, 1764, barbados

at sea, accuracy is everything. John Harrison, a carpenter’s son and highly skilled clockmaker, solved the puzzle of building a timepiece that would withstand the humidity, damp and shocks of a long sea voyage and still stay accurate enough to calculate longitude to within yards. His second test voyage, to barbados, was final proof that his creation worked perfectly. as anyone who read the best-selling book on the subject, Longitude, will know, it took him far longer to solve the puzzle of getting britain’s establishment to pay him the promised prize money for his feat of horological engineering. meanwhile, seafarers, confusingly, were still telling time by splitting the 24 hour day into seven watches of eight half-hourly bells each...

Left: detail of an oil painting by thomas King of John Harrison

right: an earlier experimental effort at keeping accurate time at sea, built by Harrison in 1735

right: a rare example of a decimal timepiece made by 18th century French watchmaker robert robin

below: a scene from the French revolution by Jean-Victor schnetz

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2:37pm (London), 2:37pm (BristoL), 22 septemBer, 1847

Until surprisingly recently, time was set by the sunrise. which was fine until the railways ushered in the era of high-speed cross-country travel. in Britain, for instance, if you got on a train in London, by the time you travelled west to Bristol your pocket watch would be 10 minutes fast. this caused havoc, so in 1840 the Great western railway introduced standardised London time across its network. this was met by some stiff opposition locally – some stations even added a second minute hand to their clocks to display both times. However, in 1847 the central railway clearing House decreed that Greenwich mean time should be used throughout the railway system. it still couldn’t make the trains run on time. 0:00:00, 1 JanUary, 2000,

san Francisco

with a double bong, the first prototype of the 10,000 year clock heralded the millennium. now ticking very slowly in London’s science museum, this was a trial run for an astonishing project: a clock, buried inside a remote texas mountain, built to run for 10,000 years. Funded by amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos and led by inventor and scientist danny Hillis, the team from san Francisco are excavating the site and building the huge mechanism, which will be powered by thermal energy and human visitors (if indeed there are any in 10,000 years time). made to self-adjust, never need lubrication, and resist corrosion for an almost unimaginably long time, this is futuristic in the most extreme sense of the word.

11:00am eastern dayLiGHt time, 18 may, 2012

crowdsourced fundraising website Kickstarter is a brilliantly simple idea. a would-be entrepreneur or artist puts a description of a project and the amount it needs on the site; anybody can take a look and decide whether to back it or not. the sums involved are usually small and if a project doesn’t meet its target, nobody has to pay. But one project, pebble, which officially finished its fundraising on 18 may, has blown the model sky high. Looking for $100,000, it hit $1million in just 28 hours and had to pause its appeal with over $10million in the pot. what is this brand new genius idea? a watch. yes, it does some neat tricks with Bluetooth and apps, but mostly it’s a thing that sits on your wrist and tells you one vital, eternal fact: the time.

above: a prototype of the 10,000 year clock, currently being assembled inside a mountain in texas

above left: three models of the pebble watch, which raised $10m in investment capital via the internet

above: the shepherd Gate clock, mounted outside

the royal Greenwich observatory, showing

Greenwich mean time

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Light years ahead

François-paul Journe is a watchmaker who is forever striving for new ways to measure time. in 2010 he won the Best technical innovation award at the champions of time event in china for his Vagabondage ii, a watch that used a mechanical movement to display the time digitally. clever stuff. that movement, as with all Fp Journe watches before it, was crafted from 18k rose gold, but a move into sports watches has prompted a shift away from his precious metal of choice and into high-tech aluminium alloy – the kind used in aeronautics. it’s lighter, you see.

Fp Journe’s “linesport” series offer the mechanical precision of haute horology in a body so light you barely notice you’re wearing it. the flagship model, centigraphe sport, weighs just 55g including the strap. it is all aluminium, specially formulated to be scratch resistant, anti-corrosive and anti-allergic. Little bits of rubber here and there act like car bumpers, protecting it from dents. the face is in dark grey with red numerals on the three chronograph dials, showing 1/100ths of a second, 20 second and 10 minute cycles. now the centigraphe sport has been joined by the 53g octa sport, a simpler design, which has a separate seconds dial, as well as date, power reserve and day/night displays, and a choice of rubber or aluminium straps.

the first centigraphe sport was auctioned by christie’s in aid of survivors of the Japanese earthquake in 2011, and raised Us$465,170 – about eight times its retail value. thirty per cent of the profit from every watch sold is donated to icm in paris, an institute for the treatment of brain and spinal cord ailments. www.fpjourne.com

one day Leads to another

h moser & cie is a 200-year-old swiss watchmaking company that burst back onto the international scene in 2005 after a period of quiet. the watch that got the world talking was the moser perpetual 1, the first watch to display the date as a digit, without the need for manual adjustment. it took a particularly clever complication to manage the inconsistent lengths of the calendar months and display the change from, say, 28 February to 1 march without having to spool through 29, 30 and 31. But moser mastered it. and yes, it took leap years into account too. Further innovations from moser include the perpetual moon, which features a display of the phases of the moon that deviates by no more than one day in 1,027 years!www.h-moser.com

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AdvertoriAl FeAture

100 SteinwAy & SonS | iSSue two 2012

Craftsmanship and performance in perfect harmonywhen lotus won the 1965 indianapolis 500, it was

the first time a mid-engined car had triumphed at the legendary race. in watchmaking terms, the creation by F.P. Journe of the world’s first all-aluminium wristwatch, the Centigraphe Sport, was equally innovative.

Given their respective penchants for innovation and joint passion for precision craftsmanship and performance, it is hardly surprising that F.P. Journe should have chosen to partner with lotus and Jean Alesi for his first indy 500 outing.

the first step of a potentially fruitful partnership took place in May of this year in the legendary motor race when Jean Alesi took to the track wearing an F.P. Journe Centigraphe Sport watch, made entirely of high-technology aluminium alloy.

the journey from 18K rose gold, used by F.P. Journe in all its other movements, to aluminium has not been without difficulty and goes some way to explaining why the first Centigraphe Sport timepiece, numbered 001, was auctioned by Christie’s in their Hong Kong sale of May 20, 2011, and achieved an amazing sale price of HK$3,620,000/uS$465,170 – close to 10 times its original estimate. it is worthwhile noting that the entire amount was donated to the Franco-Japanese Foundationde Fère (http://fondationdefere.wordpress.com/) and to doctors of the world Japan (http://www.mdm.or.jp/) helping to finance the construction of a community centre in ishinomaki, near Sendai on the Japanese coast, to reunite family victims of the tsunami.

Above: the lotuS car in partnership with F.P. Journe. right: the F.P. Journe Centigraphe Sport watch worn by Jean Alesi on his first indy 500 outing in May. Below: the first Centigraphe Sport watch (numbered 001) from F.P. Journe’s new “Sport line” collection was auctioned off in May in support of the victims of the Japan earthquake and tsunami. Bottom: Master watchmaker François-Paul Journe explaining a movement to his good friend Jean Alesi.

the partnership will cement the history of two friends from the south of France who met through a love of beautiful technology: Formula 1 legend Jean Alesi and master watchmaker François-Paul Journe.

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timepieces


all in one case

the oldest of the great swiss watchmakers, Vacheron constantin, proved its pedigree for innovation in the 1950s when it produced the world’s thinnest wristwatch, the patrimony, measuring just 5.25mm thick. to mark its 250th anniversary in 2005, it decided to really show off by putting sixteen complications into one watch: the limited edition tour de l’ile (pictured). a spellbinding combination of temporal and astronomical displays, requiring the use of two faces (front and back) and 834 individual parts, it was considerably thicker than the original patrimony, but with just seven made, it became an instant horological legend. if you can lay your hands on one today, expect to pay considerably more than the original $1.5m price tag.www.vacheron-constantin.com

Deep thinking

in 1923, Rolex took the concept of time into a new dimension: underwater. the Rolex oyster was the world’s first waterproof wristwatch and paved the way for Rolex to become the diver’s watch. in 1960, a special one-off Rolex “Deepsea” was attached to oceanographer Jacques piccard’s submersible that went to the bottom of the marianas trench. piccard sent a telegram to Rolex, reading, “am happy to confirm that even at 11,000 metres your watch is as precise as on the surface.” today the Rolex Deepsea (pictured) maintains that standard of water resistance, together with that unmistakeable Rolex style.

mateRial gain

patek philippe is a company that’s not afraid to focus its innovative brains on the minutiae, and in 2005, in collaboration with centre suisse d’electronique et de microtechnique (csem), it developed a breakthrough component that sits virtually hidden deep inside the mechanism. it was an escape wheel, just like any other escape wheel, except it was made out of a silica compound they called silinvar. Unlike steel escape wheels, it required no lubrication and it could be made in a one-step process called Deep Reactive ion etching (DRie). in short, it was more precise. this technology has enabled patek philippe to develop further components that enhance the precision of its watches, such as the spiromax hairspring, which featured for the first time in the limited edition Ref. 5350 (pictured), launched in 2006.

http://www.vacheron-constantin.com

Investments

102 steInway & sons | IssUe two 2012

seeking out solid investments has become something of a guessing game in the last few years. the gung-ho approach to building portfolios has left a lot of people licking their wounds. But if you tread carefully and do your homework, says Chris Maillard, there are still some attractive opportunities to be had

amid

Money is a bit of a problem. Or several problems. Making it is one; holding on to it thereafter is another; and spending it wisely is certainly a third. So let’s assume that you have scraped together something of a surplus; a nest egg or a rainy-day fund. While it’s tempting in the current climate to blow it on something utterly frivolous, you want to make it work for you and grow, preferably at a faster rate than the cost of everything around you.

the stormstability

Investments

steInway & sons | IssUe two 2012 103

Below: gold, gems and other precious metals bought as jewellery are risky investments, with fashion and security both potentially costly factors

But financial safe havens have been somewhat unreliable of late. If you’d put your money into a supposedly solid and very high-interest account at an Icelandic bank a few years ago, for instance, you would have been left staring into a smoking black hole at least the equal of one of the country’s famous volcanoes.

Gold is hardly exciting. It’s often bought as a hedge against economic hard times, but unless you keep it in bricks under the bed (in which case you’ll need a good chiropractor), you have to pay a fee to buy it, another to store it and a third to sell it again. And you never even get to see your investment. The gold market, like many other financial arenas, can also be rather a dangerous place unless you’re well-informed or well-advised. All that glisters, as Shakespeare noted, is not gold...

Buying gold – or indeed diamonds, other gems, platinum or silver – in the form of jewellery is a superficially attractive idea, but it too can lose its sparkle. Firstly, you have to choose a design that is classical and elegant and, therefore, unlikely to go out of fashion. Then you have the worry of keeping it in a safe or strongbox; and, of course, there’s actually wearing it. It would be very difficult to enjoy a carefree night out if “Darling, I think I’ve lost an earring” becomes as financially

A Cliché that is almost impossible to avoid...

Any manufactured product that comes from Switzerland, especially one that is the result of dazzling engineering and superlative attention to detail in

construction—and most especially one that has achieved international recognition and awards—is often at risk of an admirer’s failures of creativity and imagination. Which inevitably result in the product’s being compared to a rich, dark, luscious bar of fi nest-quality Swiss chocolate.

Not really. But you already knew that.

The cliché comparison is—of course—to “a fi ne Swiss watch.”

Yes, the Swiss-made music components from the Geneva fi rm of darTZeel Audio SA are made to exacting tolerances. Their metalwork and machining are exquisite. However, in the competitive world of ultra-premium audio equipment, superb industrial design and world-class build quality are almost givens. And darTZeel yields pride of place to no other fi rm in those areas.

That said, the people at darTZeel are robustly confi dent that their customers do not buy darTZeel components just to look at them, or just to show them off to their friends. Music lovers are willing to pay the price asked for darTZeel products for one reason only: darTZeel amplifi ers deliver the soul of a musical performance as few other components can.

darTZeel accomplishes this by painstakingly eliminating all possible causes of unmusical behavior. These include distortions that are well-known and readily measureable—such as harmonic distortion—but more importantly, distortions that are harder to identify and seem to be impossible to measure—such as timing errors. darTZeel’s patented circuit designs are, to paraphrase Albert Einstein (himself once a Swiss Patent Offi ce clerk), as simple as possible, but no simpler.

For an in-depth explanation of darTZeel’s philosophy, please visit www.dartzeel.com. To

hear a darTZeel amplifi er, please call your local dealer. If you are traveling to Switzerland,

please email in advance if you wish to visit darTZeel’s headquarters.

They keep a bowl there that is always full of squares of Swiss chocolate for

their visitors to enjoy.

A Cliché that is almost impossible to avoid...

Dartzeel Audio ad.indd 1 30/9/10 18:02:29

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significant as “Darling, I think I’ve burnt the house down.”

Speaking of houses, property is often seen as a sure bet for long-term investment, and yet there have been some spectacular failures in recent times. Its illiquidity is one of property’s major disadvantages. Let’s say you buy a rental property in an area that is blessed with a pleasant climate and a continual flow of holidaymakers – like Spain or Greece, for instance. When economic storm clouds roll in and property prices start to slide, you may want or need to sell up. But you now have to join a lengthy queue of people wanting to do the same thing. As a result prices crash, in some places semi-permanently, and you are left with a near worthless property, which still needs maintenance and local tax to be paid for. No fun.

Real estate prices have suffered in Europe of late, and Deutsche Bank, which has one of the largest

top left: Brazil is seeing a rise in property values, due to a growing middle class and the prospect of two major sports events coming in the next four years

top right and above: while Deutsche Bank predicts the european slide to continue into 2013, switzerland bucks the trend, with Geneva and st moritz both seeing property values continuing to escalate

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property portfolios in the world, has forecast that the slide will continue into 2013. A report published in March by RREEF, Deutsche Bank’s real estate investment management business, stated that real estate performance across much of Europe is likely to weaken further this year, recovering slowly from 2013 onwards.

But while southern Europe especially continues to suffer, property prices in Germany and Austria have bucked the trend. Switzerland too has seen an alarming rise in real estate values, with prime property in Geneva valued at $31,900/sq.m in the fourth quarter of 2011. According to Knight Frank, that puts it in the top 10 most expensive places to live in the world, where it is joined by St Moritz and Gstaad. Norway too has seen exponential rises in residential property values, although there is a sense that that particular boat may have sailed, with the IMF having warned this year that Norwegian property has become overvalued by 15 to 20 per cent.

The property boom in Asia that saw a rush of foreign investment in the last decade has been curbed by government intervention, such as the 10 per cent stamp duty levied against foreign buyers in Singapore. China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and India have all seen a slow down in property growth.

When looking for sound real estate investments, it’s important to look at the big picture. Political stability and favourable market prospects are key indicators of a housing market set to grow. Colombia and Brazil are two prime examples: both have a growing middle class, and in the case of Colombia, the government has turned the tide against the armed drug gangs that formerly made the country such a volatile investment. Foreign investment in Colombian real estate rose by 30 per cent in the first quarter of 2012. Brazil is also experiencing greater affluence and the arrival of the FIFA World Cup and the Olympic Games in the next four years will be a major boost for trade. A Credit Suisse report says, “Brazil should remain the primary Latin American investment destination in 2012.” A recent weakening of the real against sterling and the dollar has made Brazilian property more affordable for foreign investors.

Do you like cars, boats or planes? If you’re a knowledgeable enthusiast you might be able to leverage that into a portfolio of exciting yet appreciating investments. But you need a good

eye and a large dollop of luck. Generally speaking, these are assets that will empty your wallet almost as fast as you can drive them. We all know that a brand new car loses value the moment you drive off the forecourt. The economics of owning a yacht were once summed up by British Prime Minister and keen sailor Edward Heath as “like standing under a cold shower tearing up five pound notes.” That was a long time ago, so you could probably replace that with £20 notes these days.

But there are exceptions. Look further back in time and you’ll find that classic machinery, long out

top: a classic aston martin, well looked after, will fetch a good return as a collectible investment

above: while the art market continues to confound, Chinese works by artists such as Zhang Daqian and Qi Baishi have been good investments in recent years

Investments


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so how do musical instruments fare in this ever-changing environment of unpredictable assets? there are odd instruments that, if you’re insanely lucky, could make you a very large amount of money. If you find an early 1700s stradivarius violin ($2m-6m) or a late ’50s sunburst finish Gibson Les Paul guitar (anything up to $1m) lying in a dusty corner of your local charity shop, then well done you.more or less anything that has been played by a famous musician will, of course, gain in value. Do you happen to know any impoverished rock stars? outside happenstance, however, you would probably prefer a solid, playable investment that will make its money back, and more, should you ever sell. Ron Losby, steinway’s President of the americas, has some reassuring words on that front.“steinways normally sell on for 85 per cent of the price of a new piano,” he says. “that’s in the region of £75,000 for our model B, for instance. Back in the ’20s and ’30s it would have cost two to three thousand, so as a long-term investment it makes a lot of sense.“the reason they hold their value so well is that, cared for properly, a piano will last for over 100 years. there are pianos from the 1800s still going strong. and as a result, pianos that have been cared for properly, with original steinway parts used if any replacements were needed, have value as an enduring musical instrument.“our pianos are still built to a standard, not to a price, which is why prices of new ones keep rising. For instance, we use the best spruce for our soundboards, and not many companies grow trees of the quality we need. the bass strings are copper and the price of that has risen sharply recently too. our pianos are put together by hand, which is not a cheap way to do it. But, thanks to that, they hold their value exceptionally well. we like to say that a steinway is the least expensive piano anyone can own… over time.”so is your piano a wise long-term investment? oh yes. and one that you, and your descendants, can enjoy for many years to come? Until someone writes Concerto for share Portfolio in C minor, of course...

of its depreciation cycle and now into the preserve of the collector, holds its value and in some cases increases swiftly due to scarcity or fashion. The grandest car marques, like Bugatti or Aston Martin, are now very highly prized and priced accordingly. The classic car market is now mature enough to be tracked by an index called HAGI, and its founder, Dietrich Hatlapa, has claimed that a 12 per cent return is possible if you buy wisely.

“Ferraris are a good bet,” he says. “They have performed best by a mile.” However, bear in mind that you will have to garage, maintain, tax and insure your shiny vehicle. Rust is an ever-present menace; if you drive it you will have to keep replacing parts due to wear and tear, but if you don’t then parts will seize up, dry out or rot. Still, on a sunny day there’s nothing finer than taking your pension fund out for a spin.

Or how about wine? If you know a bit about vintages and vineyards, you may fancy a drinkable investment. One flaw, though: it’s drinkable. The wise thing is to keep it safely under lock and key, which, of course, costs money, on top of your broker’s fee. However, if you buy ‘investment grade’ wines, choose your vintages wisely and sell at the right time, you can outperform the stock market quite handsomely. As with many luxury items, though, fakes and fraudsters are by no means rare. In vino veritas? Not always.

Art is an interesting, if somewhat scary, investment market. If you are a well-heeled connoisseur and confident of your own taste you can be happy knowing that the paintings or sculptures you love, if by fairly significant artists, are unlikely to lose significant value in the long term. But the detailed picture of which artists’ values are rising or falling makes an investment choice much more difficult.

The big names in modern art, like Warhol or Picasso, still creep upwards in value, but are very expensive. Some middling Old Masters, on the other hand, have headed downwards quite sharply. Meanwhile, Chinese art is booming thanks to the country’s newly rich collectors. Know your Zhang Daqian from your Qi Baishi? You’re in luck, then.

Wherever you feel the smart money should go, it’s always worth heeding the advice of someone who’s been in the game a while. Lombard Odier has been around longer than any other private bank in Geneva. The secret of its success? “A long-term view, accompanied by strict risk management.”

As with any storm, your best chance of a happy landing lies in the hands of an experienced pilot. n

the least expensive piano anyone can own... over time. steinways have proven to be a sound investment, usually selling on for 85 per cent of the price of a new piano

Sound investments

The Absolute Sound of a STEINWAY

Post Office Box 505Cedar Knolls, NJ 07927

Access to music has never been greater than it is today. We can listen to almost any artist or composer with our computer or cell phone in moments.

That is a great leap from the situation a mere 100 years ago when for almost everyone the only access to music was via live (acoustic) events.

The advantage of listening to music in a purely acoustic en-vironment is that we hear the instruments or voices directly, without any electronic process-ing involved. The sound is real. It is pure. It is an absolute. It is a reference.

In contrast, a recorded event, as played back through an audio system, is a “moving target.” Even when the recording itself is true to the source, the playback changes in different systems.

That is the issue that Harry Pearson, founder of The Absolute Sound magazine, began to ad-dress in the 70s when he chal-lenged the “if it measures the same it sounds the same” men-tality of the day.

As owners and users of one of the paragons of music - a Stein-way Piano - I am sure you can un-derstand this issue. No matter what an oscilloscope might say, we know we can tell the differ-ence between a song played on a Steinway and another piano.

So in terms of creating an absolute reference for an audio system, we can use the Steinway piano as an example.

If we were to record your Stein-way in your house/facility, and then were to play it back on a system in the same room, would we not expect the sound to be similar?

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It can be. It usually is not. Too often we lose the timbre, or the weight of the registers below middle c, or the wonderful har-monics as we play it back. Too often, it just is not our Steinway!

This concept of the absolute sound is what has driven Kubala-Sosna. Our reference sound is what we hear at a live jazz concert, or in Carnegie Hall, Chicago Orchestra Hall, Musikv-erein (Vienna) etc.

So in the design process, we car-ry that reference sound to our products, trying to achieve the absolute sound as we hear it.

Our goal is to create products that help an audio system at any price point produce sound that would be recognized as being true to the source.

Kubala-Sosna helps audio sys-tems make sure that a Steinway sounds like a Steinway!

Connect to the Performance!!

Kubala-Sosna recording the Binghamton NY Community Orchestra & Madrigal Choir


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InterIors


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the demand for hi-tech home entertainment, coupled with rapid advances in wireless remote control and “smart” appliances, has created an exciting new challenge for the interior designer. Linda Parker looks at the state of the art of seamlessly integrated gadgetry

InterIors


above: triptych artwork disguises the control cupboard in this home cinema

opposite: close-up of the sieMatic s1 smartBoard with iPod dock

Below: savant’s trueImage app for the iPad gives control of the home via an interactive image

Anyone involved in interior design and décor has their work cut out these days. Not only are they expected to create stunning room schemes but it almost goes without saying that most rooms will need to be wired for sound and vision. And that’s not just living rooms; many homes have a specially designed media room or home cinema, and even the kitchen is expected to be up and running with a television and sound system. Kitchen appliances will soon be internet linked too, giving us on-line shopping lists and suggesting menus using provisions stored in the refrigerator.

So, investing in beautiful furniture and furnishings goes hand in hand with keeping your home in the technological loop. Bespoke furniture makers are being commissioned to create beautiful cabinetry that can be home to all manner of technological delights, from straightforward shelving and storage systems for hardware such as the TV, the iPod dock, the children’s game consoles and the DVD player, to false walls that hide giant-sized screens and all the associated controls and cables.

It has become quite usual to have to construct false ceilings for grand schemes that include ceiling-mounted drop-down projectors and sophisticated lighting systems that are recessed into the ceiling space or around the edges of the room. Multi-room systems that allow music to be streamed into every room in the house are a wonderful investment for music lovers, and the controls can be programmed to allow each family member to have their own playlists, as well as storing all their music on a central hub.

Of course, to pull all these strands together you require an expert in home automation and electronics, and interior designers are getting used to working alongside home technology designers to achieve the most high quality and streamlined schemes. There’s a skill in specifying and designing systems that aren’t just suited to contemporary homes, but that will blend into period and traditional homes without disrupting original architecture and classic proportions. Consequently the most successful installations are very often the result of three-way collaboration between the architect, the interior designer and the “smart home” technology expert.

It’s not just sound and vision that need to be considered; homeowners who aspire to utilising the best technology are also likely to want hi-tech security systems and automated electronic systems for temperature, blinds, curtains and lighting, which can allow the home to be controlled remotely, from

anywhere in the world, via the owner’s laptop, desktop or iPad. SmartSystems from Savant is one such example of how the ubiquity of the internet can be harnessed to give you control of your home from anywhere in the world. Its intelligent control system (intelligent because it will work out the most efficient settings for heat and light) can be accessed via an iPad, iPhone or iPod touch, through an app called TrueControl. Wake up on the beach in Tortola with that blood shilling feeling that you’ve left the iron on and you can simply tap into TrueControl and check. You can even scan your security cameras for signs of smoke.

Expert consultants and installers should be more than willing to tutor their clients in the use

and management of these systems. The Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association (CEDIA) is the international trade organisation for the home electronic systems industry and ensures that its members adhere to high standards of service.

A work of art (above)This space is designed as a multi-function home cinema, music and games room. The designers had to reconcile the classic proportions and details, such as the fireplace, with the requirements for a false ceiling to store the drop-down projector and allow the fibre-optic starry night sky effect. The system, designed and installed by Grahams Hi-Fi, enables the whole room, including the lighting and curtains, to be controlled via a Philips pronto touch screen. The workings are disguised by the focal-point triptych artwork and Bowers & Wilkins speakers provide the sound.

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Beam me up (left)This once derelict barn was brought into the 21st century by ClearSphere, working with Vivien Lawrence Interior Design. ClearSphere were briefed to create a system including multiple home cinema screens, multi-room audio and even automated doors for the wine cellar. Music is heard throughout the home via Crestron Adanto multi-room amplifiers and SpeakerCraft in-ceiling speakers, and surround sound is delivered using Onkyo amplifiers and SpeakerCraft built-in speakers, which provide top quality sound but with minimal visual intrusion.

Light fantastic (above)This CEDIA award-winning basement family room was designed by Olive Audio Visual, who had to work closely with the architects to achieve the desired effect. The “floating” boxes on the wall disguise the speakers and sub-woofer, and are lit to provide different lighting scenes. The screen drops down in front of the floating boxes, reducing the ambient light from the roof lights located above the floating boxes.

Barnstorming sound (above)Perfect Integration supplied an integrated Crestron audio-visual and lighting control system for this beautiful barn conversion, and also developed an iPad app for advanced control of the lighting scenes. The family’s main television is built into a stone clad fireplace and the sound system also uses plaster-over speakers – invisible within the wall once installed.

In addition there are Amina invisible speakers in the double-height main living area and Velodyn in-wall units, with grilles routed into the oak skirting boards to allow the room to be filled with crystal clear sound, but with no immediately visible sound sources.

top and above: clever design and technological expertise enables old buildings to feature cutting-edge equipment without compromising features or charm

right and above right: more modern environments can integrate contemporary style with hi-tech systems

InterIors


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Screen star (previous page, top right)The film-maker owner wanted to use this room for screenings, as well as a party room. Graham’s Hi-Fi installed a plasma screen for everyday viewing and a large projection screen for film nights. The whole system was designed to work with the architect-specified red leather “runway’” on the floor. Custom-built cupboards, covered in matching red leather, accommodate all the AV equipment. A Control4 processor allows all the equipment, including lights, blinds and curtains, to be controlled via iPad. n

Cabinet leader (above)Bespoke kitchen makers are experts in solving tricky cabinetry problems and will generally turn their skills to creating tailor-made furniture to house AV systems as well. Designer Martin Holliday from Chiselwood created TV cabinetry to match that featured in the new kitchen extension of this Tudor manor house, using maple, maser birch, walnut and a Tabo veneer. This linked the cooking and living spaces with a continuous theme.

Cool cookies (right)The S1 kitchen by SieMatic integrates technological features into the overall design, including a flush swivel-out flat screen LCD TV/computer with DVD and internet access, phone and a music system. The SmartBoard system is also compatible with “Miele@Home” wireless technology that allows Miele appliances to be controlled via the internet.

above: cabinet makers will re-create period styles for housing entertainment systems that blend in

Below: the modern kitchen conceals its wizardry behind clean lines and uncluttered surfaces

CEDIA www.CeDIa.Co.Uk

ChIsElwooD www.ChIselwooD.Co.Uk

ClEArsphErE www.ClearsPhere.Co.Uk

GrAhAms hI-FI, www.grahams.Co.Uk

olIvE AuDIo vIsuAl www.olIve-av.Co.Uk

pErfECt IntEGrAtIon www.PerFeCtIntegratIon.Co.Uk

sAvAnt www.savant.Com

sIEmAtIC www.sIematIC.Co.Uk

http://www.CeDIa.Co.Uk

http://www.ChIselwooD.Co.Uk

http://www.ClearsPhere.Co.Uk

http://www.grahams.Co.Uk

http://www.olIve-av.Co.Uk

http://www.PerFeCtIntegratIon.Co.Uk

http://www.savant.Com

http://www.sIematIC.Co.Uk

RMS TiTanic ReMeMbeRed

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This year has seen numerous events marking the tragic demise of RMS Titanic one hundred years ago, and still new stories are coming to light about that ill-fated ship. Tim Glynne-Jones looks into the Steinway connection and also finds an historic link to the wine trade

Lost and found

An unique musical experienceRediscover it with the best in high end ampli�ers

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Ever since the moment it disappeared beneath the icy waves of the North Atlantic, on 15 April one hundred years ago, people have been trying to piece together the facts surrounding the demise of RMS Titanic. The sinking of the “unsinkable” ship on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York is one of the most compelling stories of modern times and, while the disaster should be remembered primarily for the tragic loss of 1,514 lives, it also serves as a fascinating insight into the way we lived a century ago.

The Titanic was, first and foremost, a luxury liner. Among her passengers were some very wealthy and influential people and no expense was spared in keeping them in the manner to which they were accustomed during the seven

These photographs from the sister ship RMS olympic show how the Steinway pianos would have looked aboard the Titanic

above: a Steinway Model R upright in the entrance to the boat deck, in First class by the forward grand staircase

Right: detail of the ornately carved piano and bench

below: a Model b grand, fixed to the floor on casterless feet and anchored with metal rods

Previous page: RMS Titanic under steam in preparation for her maiden voyage to new york

above: a picture postcard from white Star Line, the shipping company that owned Titanic

days they were due to be at sea. That included the food, the drink and the entertainment.

The popular story tells how “the band played on” while the ship went down. Accounts from survivors do indeed indicate that the music could still be heard after the last of the lifeboats had been launched, but question marks remain over which band was playing (for there were two) and what they played. One thing is for certain: the pianist was playing a Steinway.

We know that there were five Steinway pianos aboard the Titanic: two Model K uprights, two R uprights and a Model B grand. They were built in Hamburg and delivered between March and May 1911, through Steinway & Sons London, to Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, where



Titanic was built. Four of them were delivered “rough,” which means they were fitted with art cases after shipping. Craftsmen added rich appointments to match the pianos to their luxurious surroundings. The Model B would have been a centrepiece amidst the ship’s adornments, with mahogany veneers offset by other exotic woods. All five pianos would have been fitted with brass feet instead of casters and these would have been anchored to the floor. Rather like the heroic bandsmen, they were taken down with the ship and now lie silent on the ocean bed.

The existence of these pianos aboard the world’s most prestigious liner shows us that Steinway & Sons was the name in top quality pianos in 1912. Of similar stature was the wine merchant, Berry Bros. & Rudd, of St James’s, London, which still thrives as one of the world’s most revered purveyors of wines and spirits, with a history that goes back more than 300 years.

Top: a reconstruction of the Titanic’s Grand Staircase

below right: part of the ledger found at berry bros. & Rudd, showing the orders to be shipped to the United States aboard the Titanic

Several years ago, a clear-out in the offices of Berrys threw up a remarkable document that had for years lain forgotten at the back of a filing cabinet. It was a letter from White Star Line, owner of RMS Titanic, informing Berrys of the regrettable loss of the ship and a consignment of Berrys’ Champagnes and spirits that were aboard,

destined for New York and Washington. The letter was dated 16 April

1912, the day after the ship went down.

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In the last few years, Berrys found the ledgers from the time and were able to see exactly what had been lost. The list made very interesting reading: a dozen bottles and a dozen half bottles of Champagne Pommery Nature 37, a dozen bottles of Victoria Port and a dozen of 50-year-old Liqueur Brandy, all bound for the Manhattan Club; a dozen dry gin and a dozen 10-year-old Scotch whisky addressed to Esmond Ovey Esq of the British Embassy in Washington DC…

The list goes on: Champagne, port, Scotch whisky, Green Chartreuse, Yellow Chartreuse, fine Manzanilla sherry. The sherry was bound for His Honor James F Tracey, a prominent attourney in Albany, New York. There was Champagne, whisky, cognac and liqueurs addressed to Joseph Leiter Esq, a Chicago and Washington millionaire who made his money on the stock market and in coal mining, and founded the town of Zeigler, Illinois.

Esmond Ovey, later to be knighted Sir Esmond Ovey, was a distinguished diplomat, who was an envoy to Mexico and ambassador to Moscow, Belgium, Argentina and Paraguay. He was also the uncle of Monty Python star Michael Palin.

The fact that Berrys was primarily a wine merchant that traded mostly in claret, yet there was no wine (discounting Champagne) in any of the consignments, provides an interesting indication of drinking habits at the time. “People did drink a lot more spirits and liqueurs in those days, in America especially,” says Berrys’ Chairman Simon Berry, whose grandfather opened up the company’s trade to the States around the turn of the century. “Even in the UK, people drank Champagne throughout a meal if they drank wine. Certainly they drank spirits instead of wine. Liqueurs were far more popular then than they are now. Wine’s popularity is a comparatively recent phenomenon.

“I can remember going to the States in the early ’80s and going to a New York restaurant for lunch, and my host said, ‘Would you like something to drink?’ and I asked for a glass of wine. A bottle of wine was produced just for me, and everybody else ordered whiskey sours and martinis, and I looked around the restaurant and I was the only person drinking wine in the whole place. That was 1981.”

The frustrations of trying to establish a wine trade with America led Berrys to try another tack. As the Titanic inventory shows, there was a demand for whisky in the US and Berrys had taken to supplying its own brands. In 1923 it launched what would become its most successful brand, Cutty Sark, a pale whisky designed for the

above: the letter to berrys from White Star Line informing them of the loss of their consignment in the Titanic disaster

Right: a consignment of whisky at the end of the Prohibition era

below: Simon berry, chairman of berry bros. & Rudd

STeinWay & SonS | iSSUe TWo 2012 121

American market. It would go on to become the number one selling whisky in America in the 1960s and ’70s, the biggest whisky market the world has ever known, and its success, according to Simon Berry, involved an ironic twist. “What made the export business take off was prohibition – it was prohibition that made Cutty Sark. We invented it because it was perfectly obvious to my grandfather and his colleagues that while Americans might not be allowed to drink, that didn’t mean to say that they didn’t want to.”



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The whisky was shipped from Britain to the Bahamas, from where it was run off the coast of Florida by a teetotal bootlegger named Captain McCoy – whose name gave rise to the expression “the real McCoy” – and ended up in the speakeasies of America. Estimates vary, but it is said that from the start of Prohibition in 1919 to when the law was repealed in 1933, the number of drinking establishments in New York alone multiplied by a factor of ten.

These coming trends could be seen in the orders that went down with the Titanic, and while the demand for liqueurs did not go on to match the whisky boom, a surprising phenomenon that Simon Berry is witnessing today is the popularity of a liqueur his company invented in 1903. The King’s Ginger was concocted as a restorative for King Edward VII, who died in 1910, two years before the Titanic disaster. Today this rather toothsome liqueur is enjoying something of a renaissance, and one of the places where it sells best of all is San Francisco.

Simon Berry thinks there are two reasons for this. “Firstly, if you go to a really good bar now, the last thing you want to see are the big brands – that’s lazy. A really good bar is going to have a good barman and a good barman, who is the star of the show, will get to know you when you walk in and will create a drink for you – and it won’t be what everybody else is drinking. It’s all about niche.

“One of the reasons why it’s working so well in San Francisco is because there is a large Chinese population, so the use of ginger as a flavouring is absolutely the taste of San Francisco. If you’ve got a liqueur that tastes of ginger, with a great story

Family history

The Titanic voyage came at a time when europe’s historic drinks brands were just beginning to explore their opportunities further afield, in america and asia especially. berry bros. & Rudd, as we know, was making inroads into the american market, and it would be another eleven years before it launched cutty Sark. Rémy Martin had just begun exporting to the US and asia in 1910. both were family businesses with a heritage that already stretched back two centuries, berrys to 1698, Rémy Martin to 1724.

in between had come another famous european name, artois, the beer brand that is best known today for Stella artois. The brewery, in Leuven, belgium, has records dating back to the 14th century, but it was in 1717 that Master brewer Sebastianus artois gave it its modern name. Like cutty Sark, its biggest export success, Stella artois (originally brewed as a christmas beer, as clear as the winter star – hence the name), was a product of the 1920s, and first took hold in canada.

Like berrys and Rémy Martin, the artois brewery was a family business, which proves perhaps that blood is thicker than alcohol.

Top left: Louis Xiii de Rémy Martin being poured during the lunch to commemorate the final First class meal aboard Titanic

below: berrys’ commemorative single malt whisky from the Glenrothes distillery, produced in a limited edition of 100 bottles

behind it, that is quite exotic because it comes from London, England, the Americans will love it.”

And so, it seems, it was the case a hundred years ago. But it wasn’t just British tipples that the Americans were crazy for. French brandy was also highly sought after, both for use in cocktails and to be drunk neat.

Among the premium cognacs of the time was a brand that still sits among the elite today, Louis XIII de Rémy Martin. In April this year, a special lunch was held in New York to commemorate the Titanic, where chefs Adam Banks and Rob McCue re-created the final meal served in First Class aboard the ill-fated ship. McCue described it as “a 100-year-old menu – very Edwardian, very heavy, not very sexy. Everybody ate like locusts back then,” he added. “They ate their weight.”

Each course was paired with wines from labels that were around in 1912, and notable amongst them was the Louis XIII, which rounded the whole meal off in style. Louis XIII is a blend of up to 1,200 eaux-de-vie, each selected when young and then aged for between forty and one hundred years. In other words, a bottle today may well contain elements that were first distilled in the year the Titanic set sail. n

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above: The Steinway Model B grand piano at Dunrobin Castle, which is still used regularly for weddings and recitals

left: The spectacular Dunrobin Castle has all the grandeur and architectural panache of a 17th century French château

Picture yourself in a boat off the north-east coast of Scotland. For once the weather and sea are calm and you find yourself in the Dornoch Firth – part of the vast Moray Firth that, when viewed on a map, seems to take a large bite out of Scotland.

As the waves gently slap against the hull, you edge slowly through the “haar,” the local name for sea mist, and come upon a sight that may, for a second, fool you into thinking you were approaching the coast of 17th century France. Towering over the shore in shining white is Dunrobin Castle, the most northerly of Britain’s great castles.

The conical spires and beautifully manicured gardens are distinctly French in style, as is much of the furnishing inside the 189 room house, the largest in the northern Highlands. Glide

Take the high road to the spectacular and remote Scottish Highlands and you can expect an abundance of castles, golf courses and distilleries. But, as Tim McCann discovered, you’re also never far from a very special Steinway

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lost it forever when the lorry transporting it ended up in a ditch after skidding off an icy road only a few miles from the castle gates. Thankfully, the piano survived intact, and stands proud to this day in Dunrobin, overlooking the Dornoch Firth.

Far from being a museum piece, this fine instrument is regularly used, both for weddings held at the castle and for public recitals. Last year Ukrainian pianist Sasha Grynyuk played it for audiences at Dunrobin; and over the years it has been played by such distinguished guest musicians

as Steinway Artist Alfred Brendel. There’s a relaxed informality about Dunrobin, and even visitors are allowed to try their hand at the Steinway and hear its dulcet tones echo through the castle.

Dunrobin is just one of the many outstanding attractions in this part of the Scottish Highlands. Fine golf courses, such as Royal Dornoch, are never far away, neither too are the many whisky distilleries offering visitor tours and tastings, notable among which is Glenmorangie, about 10 miles south of Dunrobin. But while golf and whisky are standard fare on a tour of the Scottish Highlands, more surprising is the proliferation of Steinway pianos in this part of the world.

Perhaps the most northerly Steinway on the British mainland that is used for public performances is the black gloss Steinway B found at the Lyth Arts Centre, about 30 minutes drive from John O’Groats and the Castle of Mey, home of the late Queen Mother. This converted old village school is host to music events throughout the year, many of which feature the 2004 Steinway.

From the big skies of Sutherland and Caithness, we leave Dunrobin and Lyth, and drive south to

through the entrance hall and sweep up the marble staircase to the drawing room and you’ll discover that Dunrobin also happens to be home to a magnificent Steinway Model B grand piano, dating back to 1932.

Dunrobin has been the seat of the Earls and Dukes of Sutherland since the 13th century, and the present castle was built by Sir Charles Barry (architect of London’s Houses of Parliament) in 1845. Today it is home to Lord Strathnaver and his family, but is also open to the public from April to October, attracting visitors with its beautifully decorated and furnished interior, and splendid ornamental gardens and exciting falconry displays.

The piano was purchased by Lord Strathnaver’s father, Charles Janson, who was an accomplished musician. Janson had the piano delivered to Dunrobin from London in the 1950s, but almost

Top: Glenmorangie, one of many whisky distilleries in the Highlands

above: Steinway artist alfred Brendel is one of a number of distinguished pianists who have performed on the Model B at Dunrobin Castle

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island. This grand, late Victorian mansion was built as a private residence for Sir George Bullough, a textile tycoon from Lancashire. Bullough’s wife, Lady Monica, played piano and her 1900 Model D Steinway still sits in the Great Hall, dominating the resplendent decor and hunting trophies.

The more observant among us may notice that Lady Monica’s Steinway is missing its casters. The piano was originally intended for Bullough’s yacht, and they were removed to prevent it from rolling about. Kinloch Castle is also home to an Orchestrion, an elaborate mechanical and electrical device designed to emulate a forty-piece

Inverness, taking the A82, which snakes its way around the northern shore of Loch Ness. Here you can visit Urquhart Castle and take a cruise on the inky black waters in search of Nessie, the elusive Loch Ness monster! This is the heart of Scotland’s Great Glen, where the earth splits open, giving way to a succession of fresh water lochs that lead you to Fort William. The outdoor capital of the Highlands, Fort William sits under the shadow of Britain’s highest mountain, Ben Nevis.

One of the finest hotels in this part of Scotland is Inverlochy Castle, a favourite of Queen Victoria, who holidayed there during her reign. Today the 17 bedroom castle hotel boasts a Michelin Star restaurant and a beautiful walnut Steinway that guests can play before venturing out to enjoy more energetic pursuits, such as fishing and shooting.

On leaving the Victorian splendour of Inverlochy Castle, a mist-covered Ben Nevis recedes into the distance as we head for the small coastal port of Mallaig, along the romantically named “Road to the Isles,” about an hour’s drive from Fort William. As you wind your way through the empty glens, look out for golden and white-tailed eagles soaring on thermal currents above the mountains.

We bring you to Mallaig because we’re taking a trip to two beautiful Scottish islands brimming with history and wildlife, and home to a pair of very special and rare Steinway pianos. The first of these hidden treasures can be found on the Isle of Rum at Kinloch Castle. You’ll see the rust-red sandstone castle walls from the sea loch as you approach the

left: Urquhart Castle, on the banks of loch ness, is a sight not to be missed on the road from Dunrobin to Fort william

Below: inverlochy Castle hotel at Fort william is home to another of the Highlands’ distinctive and historic Steinway pianos

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widely regarded as one of the most beautiful places in Scotland. Looming mountains dominate the landscape as you climb the vertiginous, twisting roads to Rannoch Moor – an empty expanse of peat moorland and perhaps Europe’s last true wilderness. Winter often sees the snow gates shut as nature closes in. Descending down the southern side of Rannoch Moor, the A82 winds its way around beautiful Loch Lomond and on to Glasgow.

If you have time, it’s worth making a detour to Argyll for a visit to Crear, near Lochgilphead. This specialist centre is a retreat for musicians, who can stay and use the rehearsal space, taking inspiration from the wide open countryside and restless Atlantic below the rugged coastline.

Crear also hosts music events throughout the year, featuring international artists and orchestras, who make use of the centre’s gorgeous Steinway Model D. It’s hard to imagine a more beautiful setting in which to experience the unique sound of a Steinway played to the very highest standard.

And if all that culture leaves you longing for your own Steinway at home, why not stay at Lachlan Castle, on the shores of Loch Fyne, where you can make use of the Clan Lachlan’s own Steinway grand? Half the baronial castle, set in 1,500 acres, is available to let throughout the year and is just a 90 minute drive from Glasgow.

It’s good to know that, no matter how remote your journey may be, there’s every chance a Steinway has made it too. n

orchestra, although to many ears rather more resembling a fairground organ!

Linked by ferry with Rum is the island of Canna, the westernmost of the Small Isles archipelago. This most tranquil and beautiful of islands was home to Gaelic folklorist John Lorne Campbell, whose American-born wife Margaret had a 1900 Model D Steinway, which was delivered to their remote retreat in the mid 1930s, all the way from Edinburgh. Margaret was a collector and editor of Gaelic songs, and learned to play the piano by ear, later taking lessons to professional level in London and New York. She died in 2001, aged 101, but was able to play Strauss waltzes and Gaelic folk songs on the prized piano at her 100th birthday party. The Steinway, worth in excess of $125,000, can still be viewed in Canna House on the island.

Head back to the mainland and Fort William, and rejoin the A82 heading south to Glen Coe,

Dunrobin Castle www.dUnRobinCaSTle.Co.UK

lyth arts Centre www.lyTHaRTS.oRG.UK

GlenmoranGie Distillery www.GlenmoRanGie.Com

royal DornoCh Golf Club www.RoyaldoRnoCH.Com

inverloChy Castle hotel www.inveRloCHyCaSTleHoTel.Com

Crear ConCerts www.CReaR.Co.UK

Castle laChlan www.CaSTlelaCHlan.Com

From top: Kinloch Castle on the isle of Rum, with its distinctive rust red sandstone walls; lady monica bullough’s model d, minus casters, in the great hall at Kinloch; margaret Campbell’s Steinway can still be seen in Canna House on Canna

http://www.dUnRobinCaSTle.Co.UK

http://www.lyTHaRTS.oRG.UK

http://www.GlenmoRanGie.Com

http://www.RoyaldoRnoCH.Com

http://www.inveRloCHyCaSTleHoTel.Com

http://www.CReaR.Co.UK

http://www.CaSTlelaCHlan.Com

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