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Hi all,

I just wanted to share a video of two tremendous musicians, my colleague Hugh Sung and Mitchell Newman. Mitchell has had a career playing with the LA Philharmonic and is now living in the Philadelphia area. Hugh is... well he is Hugh.

They recorded the Massanet Meditation using our Centennial Steinway #123 (built in 1876). I think many here will enjoy the video:





Thank you Hugh and Mitchell.

I was so interested in hearing the piano, I barely listened to the violin haha. I like my Mason BB but it can't compare to that D. (And Hugh is also a better pianist than me haha.)

I was so interested in hearing the piano, I barely listened to the violin haha. I like my Mason BB but it can't compare to that D. (And Hugh is also a better pianist than me haha.)

Rich:

It's remarkable that a piano approaching 150 years of age can still be made to sound that - well, I won't so youthful but certainly warm and mellow.

The performance was so beautifully done; it brought tears to my eyes. Thank you and Hugh and Mitchell.

Regards,

Wonderful performance by Hugh and Mitchell. The Steinway sounded lovely. Really enjoyed it.

Rich

Really great performance by Hugh and Mitchell! That Steinway is also a marvelous instrument. Well, it's also nice to see Hugh again. Haven't seen him for a while on the youtube channel

That is just delightful.

Thank you for posting Rich.

Beautiful!

Bravo, very beautiful! Thank you very much for posting it.

Lovely, thank you.

They both played beautifully.

Very nice and nice sounding piano although I would have liked the balance to bring the piano out a bit more.

So beautiful--what a treat and the piano is magnificent!

What a lovely, lovely performance! That piano sounds just wonderful! (Also, I have to say it, I love that music desk!!)

So, who are the Watanabes that they get this amazing gift for their anniversary? How lucky!!!

Hugh is doing a beautiful performance and really brings out the capability of the Steinway. Mitchell is great on the violin. Perhaps a Christmas album with Hugh on a big Bosendorfer?

Beautiful playing. Is that Steinway rebuilt?

Most enjoyable. Thank you for the clip!

The piano has quite a story Wzkit1. It is a Centennial Steinway that was built in 1876. The Centennial model consists of 424 pianos that were completed beginning in 1875 and ending a few years after the United States Centennial. The model was designed to be shown at The Centennial Exhibition that took place here in Philadelphia and it competed against other manufacturers for a medal, which it won.

These pianos incorporated ideas borrowed from other manufacturers along with ideas from Theodore Steinway and his engineers themselves. They introduced ideas like bent rims, a return bridge, front duplexes, an 88 note keyboard, the modern cupola plate, among other things. I have been lucky enough to see over a dozen of this model over my career (I know techs who have seen many more than that) and there are differences that can be seen almost from piano to piano. It must have been an exciting time to be involved with pianos.

Anyway, yes the piano was completely rebuilt in our facility. As you might already know, Jason Andino, the manager of our production. is a second generation "bellyman" who put 14 years in at the New York Steinway factory before joining us- and whose father put over 20 years there as a bellyman as well. This instrument was a challenge from every angle, because everything is a bit different than a 20th C. piano. There are many places where a builder can make a mistake, assuming you want to be as faithful as possible to the original touch and tone, which we did.

The beautiful part of this instrument is that, even though it is a concert grand piano, it is 8'9", not 9', and the large halls of the 20th C had not yet been built, so the goal was not as much for a huge size of tone, but for colors. That is evident in this piano. There are so many pastel shades between ppp and p that I do not normally hear in new pianos of this brand.

Anyway, thank you for asking. For those within striking distance who would like to check out this piano, it is located in our Cherry Hill location in a separate space from the rest of our stock. We welcome anyone who would like to try a bit of piano history to call me and stop by. From my perspective, this piano makes me feel like I have one foot in the 19th C and one foot in the 20th C when I play it.

Hope you keep both feet in the 21st century.

Rich, thanks so much for sharing. This was my Dad's favorite piece. On my 60th birthday, 15 years ago, we had a little recital in our home with one of our professional violin friends playing the Meditation in memory of my Dad. Beautiful playing by Mitch and Hugh - brings back wonderful memories.