Which grand piano should I buy?

[annawong8002]

I stopped playing piano at the age of 12 while I was just a junior player. I am 32 year old now who would like to learn piano playing again. I live in Hong Kong and my flat could accomodate a small grand piano ( <6 feet) only. I could afford US$20000 - $35000 for a new grand piano (no 2nd hand market in HK). Available dealers in HK offer Boston/yamaha/ seiler/ sauter/petrof..... smallest bosie/ Fazioli a bit out of my budget and seems I am not qualified to play them......it is really embarrassed for me to admitted that because of my primitive piano skills and knowledge, I could not make a confident decision as they seem to be too similar for me and there is no opportunity for me to put all the piano side by side and compare them.

I still hope to buy the best that I could afford and hopefully stay on it forever. 

Hope piano lovers help can give me some advices and forgive my ignorance.

[Brian Lawson, RPT]

HI, Given that they are all good pianos of a good quality, unless you need to buy a piano today I would take the time to learn or re-lean a simple piece of music you are confident with and go an play that on each and every piano, and listen to the piano rather than your playing.  Or, have a salesman demonstrate each piano, playing the same piece.  Make note of what you hear & feel when playing, talk to an instore technician if possible.

The bottom line, you are buying the piano for you, not for the saleman. What sounds good to you.

[athykay]

Brian's advice is good.  Play as much as you can on the various makes and models until you have  a really good feel for the differences.

Also, what type of music do you play or want to play?  I find that for the more lyrical romantic and classical pieces, e.g. Mozart, Chopin, Brahms, the German pianos can't be beat for their singing quality - Seiler, Schimmel, Grotrian, etc.  If you're more into hard-driving music - from Rach to jazz, the more complex tonal qualities of Yamahas can be preferable.

If you can afford a Fazioli, go for it.  I can't imagine being unhappy with that choice no matter what you'll be playing.

However, I wouldn't compromise on size.  If your room will accomodate it, go for 6 feet at least.

Pianoworld.com has a piano forum that is rife with information on this topic (although some real hotheads post there).  Also, Larry Fine's piano book is a must have for all piano shoppers.

Good luck, and let us know what you end up with.

[mutatismutandis]

For that U.S. price range, you should really consider getting an August Forster (assuming you can get them in Hong Kong).  They are outstanding pianos, and the 170 and 190 models are roughly in your price range. 

[annawong8002]

Hi ALL, thanks for your reply!

I will start my very first piano lesson this friday and will practice hard to bring one script for piano testing as soon as possible. 

I love chopin (waltz, mazuka), Mozart (can play sonata only) and some romantic musics. The cost of the smallest fazioli F156  is exactly the same as a 6'6" Bosendorfer( Johann strauss millenium limited edition). I was indeed attracted by the stuning handsome outlook of this bosie although its length has a disadvantage in my flat. The assistant play on this bosie and on the >6 feet fazioli (no stock of F156, only shipped after payment, 9-month waiting time) the sound of fazioli is definitely brighter and more outstanding, but I have no idea how her little brother F156 would sound. 

The above two options are the only high-end piano I can consider. There is a huge price gap for other quality brand seiler/ sauter/ petrof/ boston/ yahama....they cost 1/2 to 1/3 less when compared to the above two. I wonder if I may miss some superb piano in the mid-level. Please let me know if you have any suggestion and I will sort that model out. 

M&H, August Forster are not avaible in HK. To complicate the issue further, I have tried the upright steinway(US $38000) and I am very satisfying with the tone and touch. But such a price for an Upright piano really put me off. 

[Axtremus]

Nah...... I'd take a plain vanilla Yamaha C3 (6'1") or a Kawai RX-2 (5'10") or Petrof III (6'4", I think) before I take a Fazioli F-156, much less a Steinway upright, if they all sell at the exact same price. Upright pianos have to content with limits in the action/touch, tiny baby grands have to content with limits in the bass response (fundamental law of physics -- there's only so much you can do trying to generate low frequency bass sound with small pianos). The only reason I'd choose the F-156 would be if I don't play music that needs to go into the lower bass.

Look past the brand names, look past the price tags, and don't assume that there's a direct correlation between performance and price. There are many good, versatile pianos to be had without breaking your bank account.

Over here in the US, if you have to buy European piano, Sauter, Seiler and Schimmel should come in much cheaper than Grotrian size-for-size. So if you MUST have a German piano for whatever reason, Sauter, Seiler, and Schimmel would be your better bets. (Grotrian, you probably have to get a very small one to fit your stated budget and lose the bass.) The Italian Schulze-Pollmann and the French Pleyel pianos should also fall well within your price range (going by US prices), though I don't know if they export to your area at all.

If it doesn't have to be European, Yamaha's S4 and Kawai's Shigeru SK-2 and SK-3 are also possibilities (if you think of the Yamaha C-series and Kawai RX-series as the Toyotas and Hondas, the Yamaha S-series and Shigeru Kawai pianos would be like Lexus).

Forget about Steinway -- I cannot think of any new, decent, Steinway piano in your price range, upright or grand.

Ultimately, play the pianos, really play them, not just plinking a few notes and press down a few chords here and there. Play them and compare (hopefully without pre-conceived notion of which piano "should" be better). Judge the pianos after you play them, not before, not by name or price tag.

If you cannot play very well, taking a friend who can play the piano well to shop with you is also a good idea -- let him/her plays, you judge which piano's sound you like better. And don't feel like there's anything wrong with you if it turns out you like a piano with a lower price tag (regardless of how the salesperson may look at you ) -- piano sound preference is very subjective, more expensive is not necessarily better. If this happens, there is nothing wrong with you; consider yourself lucky that you can buy something you like more and still spend less.

Good luck.