Just got back from a quick tour of 3 German manufacturers; Bluthner, Steingraeber and Schimmel. I’ve been wanting to visit these makers (and others) and took advantage of my son’s school break and a (relatively) cheap fare from Delta to fly from JFK to Berlin, rent a car, and spend 4 days driving through cold, […]
The piano world
NAMM Notes part 1
It’s been a busy January. The big annual Musical Instrument Industry trade show NAMM descended on us again, as usual at the Anaheim Convention center outside Los Angeles. I don’t have hard numbers but traffic seemed definitely down…hey, it’s been a tough year and 2008 doesn’t necessarily look any better. The Bosendorfer booth was well […]
Stretching (not Yoga)
I’ve owned a Reyburn Cyber Tuner for the last year. Pretty cool little device and very informative to let you know what is going on when one tunes a piano. I’m far from being one of those egg head electronic tuners that are so common at the conventions, but have gotten a little way into […]
Manufacturer Concert Programs
It appears that not many people really understand the economics, politics and strategy of running a concert program. This happens to be something I know a lot about, maybe more than just about anybody in the country with a few (1 or 2) possible exceptions. I say that graciously without actually believing it. There are […]
Maybe I’ll say one more thing…
I worked for for Bosendorfer during the Kimball years. That, in my opinion, was a much less logical combination than Bosendorfer and Yamaha and there were plenty of jokes (Kimball-dorfers, Bosen-balls). But, in fact, Kimball was a wonderful steward for Bosendorfer, probably a better steward of Bosendorfer than of their own brand. I believe that […]
Yes, Bosendorfer has been sold to Yamaha
Pending approval by the Yamaha board in late December. Then probably a couple months of closing. I’m not going to say much, except that I believe that Yamaha is purchasing Bosendorfer with the best of intentions for preserving an important name in the piano industry and helping them prosper. I believe they will be good stewards […]