Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum "The piano is a thing of the past"

"The piano is a thing of the past,"

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They said that when radios became popular!

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But here are some more piano soiree's...

I read figures of the electric guitar market over the last 30 years a while a go, and the tendency is the same for guitars. Sales are so much lower now.

Piano is fundamental in so many styles of music ... iyt just cant die

The trouble is a site like this is preaching to the converted. However, the piano shops going bust left, right and centre don;yt get many sales from the converted, because pianos last so long there is minimal repeat business.

The piano is possibly in terminal decline in popular music. It will inevitably persist in classical music but that is bound to be a minority market.

I do not know any parent in the last few years who regards buying a piano for the family as remotely aspirational. The aficionados (residing here) may value high quality instruments, but I would expect that the sellers of them will not see the piano glory days again in their lifetimes.

"The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated..." Mr. P.I. Anner, Esq.

"As Ye Sow, So Shall Ye Reap"

Those who believe the piano business is dying (or dead) will realize a self fulfilling prophecy.

Those who still believe in the business, and behave accordingly, will continue to succeed.

Sure there will be challenges, always have been.
But businesses that remain proactive will survive and prosper.

I've found at every piano forums party I've attended there are always people who don't play but wish they could.
And many times there are children who are either just learning or expressing an interest.

In other words, there are still plenty of potential piano players/owners out there.

Piano World receives over 10,000 unique visitors a day (333,000+ in Sept). I can guarantee you they are not all "converted". In fact, I'd venture to say the majority of them are looking for information because they've recently become interested in the piano, are thinking of getting a piano, or want to fix one up.


Do you know what the top visited pages are on Piano World?

In this order:

~ The Piano Forums (talk and learn about pianos)
~ Free Piano Music (listings of sheet music sites)
~ Virtual Java Piano (play the piano online)
~ Piano Exchange (used and new pianos for sale)
~ Piano Dealers
~ Piano Tuners
~ Piano Teachers

This out of over 1,000 pages that make up the rest of the site (other than the forums).

I also believe it is up to us (those who already know we like the piano) to share our joy with others, and try to get people interested in playing.

I belong to an organization called AOPA (Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association).
They are constantly prodding members to introduce their friends/family/neighbors/co-workers to the joys of flying.
Current membership is 415,000 and growing.

We should be doing the same thing.

So ... take a friend up in your piano today :-)

Scenes from the Central Virginia party in August, 2008:










http://well-temperedforum.groupee.net/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/2850024535/m/3430081765

lovely to see so many people gathering for piano parties - such a lovely idea

I am sure that the piano industry will survive this current downturn, much as it did with previous ones. The piano (for me at least though I am sure many others) occupies an interesting position as a luxury item that I simply would not be without - take the house, the car etc - just leave me a piano and I will be smiling

I am still optomistic and here's why.

I have only been in Minnesota for about 2-1/2 years and moved into a newer development. There are many families around with young children. In the last two years, two different families came a' calling when I had the windows open and they could hear me playing. Both had children who were taking lessons, practicing on digitals, and were considering an acoustic piano for the kids.

Would I help them pick out an instrument? Certainly!

The shopping was fun, I had a chance to develop new friendships, and the owners of two different piano stores are happy. All of this within only one block. Proud parents, enthusiastic young pianists, and real pianos have become one of the centers of our little neighborhood. Two other kids began lessons this year and have started on digitals. I am sure that will change soon. Those kids are envious of their friends who have "real" pianos.

So, in only a one block stretch of 3rd Street, we have added an RX-2 and a 5'-7" Story & Clark. Both are brand spankin' new pianos. The family who bought the S&K were thrilled to discover that they could actually have a decent grand within their budget.

I think there is still hope for the world.

Marty,

Is the message here...

for us to open our windows while playing?

Guitar is sexier?

I don't know - its kinda hard to have sex on a guitar, but plenty of folks have had sex on a piano!

Seriously, the guitar is mainly a folk instrument. Nothing wrong with that at all - but it doesn't have the versatility of a piano, IMHO.

And remember:
A house without a piano is no home!

Nice pics, plays88. Why aren't tongues wagging about the 'death' of the cello? The French horn?

Bah!

Yes Lilylady,

Throw open the windows and proclaim the Joy of Piano to the whole world!

The piano is, and will continue to be, one of the most versatile instruments out there. I can't imagine a school or a church not having a piano, for instance. Think of a vocal teacher trying to get by with an electric guitar, for that matter!

I suspect that many kids would rather learn the guitar than the piano because that's what's commonly used in today's most popular music, and many adults who want to learn an instrument probably pick up a guitar for the same reason.

I think the cost of a piano really works against it. Many parents want their children to be able to play some musical instrument, but there are a lot of options that are less expensive than the piano. Even for those who want to learn the piano, there's a very high initial cost of actually buying the instrument. This isn't helped, of course, by those dealers who post prices on their pianos that are much higher than what you'd really have to pay to walk out the door (metaphorically speaking) with the piano. I'd be willing to bet that a significant plurality, if not an outright majority, of people walking into a piano store for the first time don't realize that the listed prices are a starting point for negotiation, not the final out-the-door price.

Another factor that works against acoustic pianos is the availability of inexpensive electronic keyboards and digital pianos. In my recent piano shopping, several people have asked why I don't want a digital piano. I can explain the differences in touch and tone between an acoustic piano and a digital piano, but I think most of the people who have asked this question still don't really get my motivation to buy an acoustic piano. It's a bit like the people who go to great lengths to get vinyl records instead of CDs; many people realize that analog recordings can have higher fidelity, but most can't hear the difference.

My own prediction is that acoustic pianos will survive, but the increasing quality of digital pianos and the whims of the buying public will push them into a smaller market share. Eventually acoustic pianos will be almost exclusively the domain of dedicated pianists. At that point I don't know how (or if) the entry-level piano brands will survive.

And then it will be guitar hero!

I had the fortune to grow up in a house with a nice piano, a family full of working musicians, and all the help I could have ever wanted. Leaving home to chase a different calling, I went without a "real" piano for 15 years.

Owning the best of the proline electronic versions during this period never came close to a replacement. Now that I again enjoy a good acoustic intrument, the sound, sense and visual it provides is without equal.

Most unexpected was the quality time I enjoy with my daughter, something completely off my radar when I made the purchase. It saddens me that the HiDef screen is even considered as competition.

Very well put Frank.

This article forgets about the cyclical nature of popularity. I suspect the lute is poised to make a huge comeback.

Don't worry about the demise of the piano - here's why: nearly all Asian families with the means have children who play the piano. There is actually a boon in piano sales and teaching overseas. The rise of the Chinese piano manufacturers is parallel to the unquenchable demand from the newly affluent middle class.

where or where did those guys get the M&H leathers in the pic above?? from a gearhead and a piano lover, that is way cool...

So much enjoy all the photos. Thank you all for sharing them!

I must say that I've been without a piano since I was kid (15 years I'm thinking...), and I've just recently bought one and am playing again.

I have to agree that...the desire is there, it's just the finances that limit so many of us! As is true in a million other areas as well.

A sad story...but a good reminder to share our love for the Piano.

Thank you.