Sorry... I should have said Astoria. But I'm not from there, and the Isle of Long is a mystery to me, best to be looked at from the train windows...I'll vote for the New York Steinways vs. the Hamburg ones -- although truth to tell there shouldn't be that much difference, at least before the mid 1920s. However Horowitz I am most assuredly not!
If you have spelt what you saw... then Stairway & Sons Fabrini (or similar) may have been a play on the name Steinway & Sons - when it is not actually Steinway. A common marketing ploy for cheap pianos is to make up a name that sounds similar (often ridiculously similar) to a famous make, or a composer even. Stein... Bech... Bose... - heck., there is a Senteinway, Bechendorfer etc. entirely manufactured names. I have seen a take on Baldwin also, same typeface, one letter was different. Imagine looking at an "aston marten".Sometimes the pianos with a fake European make are actually half decent, it is just a shame they had to make up a name to convince people it may have been something more than it is.Was this piano on tv, concert hall, school, shop, home??? Was it old?
I'll vote for the Hamburg Steinway... for the simple reason that I owe one : a bit old (about 30 years) but still a wonderful instumentMarg
While we are on the topic of Steinway, why are so many people saying a Hamburg Steinway is better than its New York counterpart? Also, is the retail price of a Hamburg Steinway more expensive?I don't seem to have heard anyone (not at least on this forum) that prefers a New York Steinway, apart from Horowitz.