A guide to smart piano buying.

Whether you’re a beginner, an accomplished pianist or running a teaching or performance venue, buying the right piano can be a minefield if you’re unsure of your direction. 

Even having a great teacher isn’t going to maximise a pianist’s progress if the practice instrument isn’t good. Mechanical or tonal issues can put a real downer on practicing both from a technical point of view, and also the simple enjoyment of playing. Concert performance on a second rate piano can be soul destroying.

So often, people acquire an old piano from a friend, pay very little for it from a private sale or get an ‘apparent’ bargain from a dealer. Almost every time a piano deal seems too good to be true, it is! Worn out pianos require huge amounts of time spending on refurbishment and significant costs on new parts, and that spending usually vastly exceeds the potential value of the instrument.

But in addition to that, buying the right piano can be the difference between spending money which is basically thrown away, or buying a make and model which will at least retain its value, and possibly even increase its value over time.

There are many pianos on the market that are not what they seem. Some that are claimed to be Japanese or European but are actually made in China. Some which sport the name of a highly respected manufacturer on the casework, but are a second tier piano in their range. These pianos actually bear little or no resemblance to the parent instrument. 

I’ve had the opportunity to purchase the name of a very good quality European manufacturer which went out of business 70 years ago. Once owning that name, I could get cheap pianos made in China or Indonesia and market them with that original name. I think this would be wrong and very misleading for customers.

Even the most respected piano builders such as Yamaha, display the their name on all their pianos. Their flagship instruments are made in Japan, but cheaper models come from factories as far afield as Mexico, the USA, Indonesia and China, and are not of the same quality.

In my 40 years working as a concert piano technician and a domestic tuner, I’ve become increasingly disappointed and more aware that so many pianos are not what they seem. Since I started retailing, I’ve remained independent of the manufacturers and so have been to sell what I know are honest instruments which are excellent quality and good value for money. 

Over the last few decades, the Japanese Yamahas have become what are almost certainly the best production line pianos in the world. Others like the Japanese Kawai are also very well built and highly respected instruments, though in recent times have started using more plastics in the mechanism, and this can be problematic in NZ’s climate in my experience. Hence I choose to focus on supplying the majority of my clients Japanese Yamahas.
On a side note… I know some salesmen are telling buyers that their Yamahas are Japanese when they are actually Indonesian. The letter J before the serial number stands for Jakarta… and NOT Japan!!

For the clients who are looking for a more serious investment and a genuinely world class hand built piano, the top European instruments are
absolutely the place to focus. Steinway, Bosendorfer, C. Bechstein and Fazioli are simply superb. The new price of these instruments has increased massively in recent times, with some of the concert grand pianos being over $500,000. Even small grands can exceed $300,000 and hand built uprights over $100,000.

Hence all the pianos I sell are pre owned and every one is in ‘as new’ condition. All are a small fraction of the new cost and with the European pianos in particular, I can honestly say that they are more than competition for brand new models in terms of tonal quality and condition both inside and out.

In short, buying a good brand which will hold its value, is in top condition, and is half the price of the equivalent new instrument is smart buying.

I’m always happy to advise, so please do call me at the New Zealand Piano Centre.

Glenn Easley