Ivory Piano
The Story of The Oldest Original Steinway Grand Piano
The those of us who love Piano Music, there’s nothing like the joy of hearing the beautiful music played on a beautiful piano. Two sisters of San Antonio have enjoyed listening to their Steinway grand piano since they were kids. The sisters great grandfather bought the Steinway for his daughter as a gift in 1859. This beautiful piano is finally leaving the family and is being sold in an auction. In 2003, the Steinway grand piano was listed as the oldest original Steinway piano in the country. There is a Steinway piano in the Smithsonian institute that is older, but that piano was probably modified at the factory in 1863.
According to sources, the oldest Steinway piano is in pristine condition, lovingly taken care of by the owners for over 150 years. Even the original ivory naturals and ebony sharps of the 85 note keyboard are in pristine condition. The only obvious change to the piano is a refinish job at some point that removed the Steinway and Sons detail from the fall board. Everything else is original, but was probably worked on, or at least inspected by Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg, the founder of the company.
The action of the oldest Steinway grand is completely different from a modern Steinway piano action, though there is a double escapement mechanism in place for repetition. A handwritten note at the base the end of the keyboard cavity indicates that this action was patented on June 15, 1858. In fact, all of the 150 year old action inside the piano still worked remarkably well. There been no significant changes to the inner workings. The stringing is all original, but it has not fared as well as the action. The tuning pins have moved quite a bit in the pin block, and no one seems to recall when the piano was last tuned.
The owners of the oldest Steinway piano have no heirs and realize that the piano needs to go someplace special. This is the reason why the piano is up for auction. You can tell by looking at the pictures that this piano is in great shape and is definitely a collector’s item. Only serious buyers are allowed to bid on this beautiful instrument, and the price range is going to be in the millions.
If you are a collector or investor in old Steinway pianos, this would be the ultimate addition to your collection. You can find all of the details about the auction by visiting the official 1859 Oldest Steinway Piano site where you can read the full story of the piano’s history and inquire about acquiring it.
To see it and to bid for it please click on this link or paste it into you browser
http://ihid.us?i=a9wb
About the Author
http://ihid.us?i=a9wb
Witchita Lineman (Ivory II piano & Trilian bass)
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