Lately, I am coming up with some really incredible pianos as candidates to be my personal piano. For those of you, the few, the brave, antique fans, look at this ancient Chickering I have my eye on. So very pretty.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/BrowsePhotos.jsp?Upost_signin=Welcome.jsp%3F&collid=66828399506.452464665406.1242732043668&page=1&sort_order=0&navfolderid=0&folderid=0&ownerid=0

Does this link come through? It's beautiful. Straight strung (is that really bad?), 85 note (who cares, right?), all wooden action, over hanging dampers (I know I know, I have learned something from reading all these posts).

But it is amazingly tight for a piano of this age. I can't even figure out how old it is - I searched everywhere for a serial number. 1880s? Run away screaming???

Gabriella, again

I'll add to that. Metal aggraffes for the whole piano, neat, right? But is it true that I should avoid a Chickering that is straight strung?

Gabriella, the real question is what exactly do you want from this piano? This is not considered to be a modern piano, not just because of the age, but because of the inherent designs. As a predecessor to the modern grand (I assume it is a grand, but am unable to access the album) there will be sonic weaknesses and likely action weaknesses as well. It will not play or sound like a modern piano with which you may have more familiarity. This is more akin to a museum piece, rather than something with which you will make music daily. As to the straight strung thing, understand that there is a sweet spot on the soundboard that can better be exploited by an overstrung design. You can effectively get a bigger sound from a smaller piano with an optimally located bass bridge which straight stringing will not afford. The bridge will be located too close to the edge of the board. The modern piano was developmental, like other commodities. A Model T Ford is a car and can be used for transport, but I doubt that any of us would want to use it for daily transportation. A Victrola will happily play records, but is not something that we would like to listen to for music reproduction ever day. And so it is with this piano. It can be optimized with a good tech and lots of money, but it will never serve in the way a modern instrument can. Which gets us back to my initial question. What do you want from this piano?

I think you need to fix your link; it says the link is no longer valid.

Hi, Gabriella,

I just encountered your threads today, and I am quite interested in seeing some pictures of this Chickering.

You can use Picasa Web Albums if you have a gmail account.

www.picasaweb.google.com

I'll see what I can do about pictures. Thanks for the input. I should mention that I am talking about an upright. A small upright at that, coming in at 54 inches wideI want to play this piano, but with beautiful carvings on a rosewood case. Very very pretty.

I want to play the piano. And I want my children to learn on it. And I want my guests, many of whom play way way way better than I do, to be satisfied by it. I'm worried my aesthetics will continue to clash with my quest for an instrument, and I don't know how to solve this problem I guess I need to keep looking until I find a truly worthy candidate for quality work work inside.

I fear this may not be it, though I don't know nearly enough about the design of pianos to evaluate how well it could be made to play.

Gabriella

All uprights are about the same width.

Chickering uprights are trouble. Their actions are proprietary, so parts are difficult to find or adapt. If something goes wrong with them, you may be out of luck.

If you want a reliable piano in an old case, look for a new Steinway K. It could be cheaper in the long run. If you insist on an old piano, find somebody to work on it first to advise you.

Well, I did the Picasaweb and had a lot of trouble with my upload, so if you'd like to see it at the Kodak gallery send me an email and I'll give you the address and password. Gabriella

Problem with a tech always advising is that it's getting expensive! I've had 3 of them professionally evaluated so far and while I'm getting a bit of an education and find this fascinating, I still have no piano! At this point, I need to find a piano that I can take a leap of faith on. I can tell a few things at this point, but know nothing about things like - for example - why a straight strung Chickering won't make for a good instrument that's pleasurable to play.

If hiring the right tech is too expensive, you cannot afford what you want. Be realistic!

Gabriela, BDB makes good points, but it does depend on what you want out of the piano, too. I had a Gaveau upright from the 1850s with 85 keys and I believe it was straight strung. It was (and is) gorgeous, but some of the upper notes were slipping and there might have been a crack in the pinblock. I ended up giving it to an economics professor to keep because I was moving away. After a number of years the piano became his by default and his friends convinced him to get it professionally restored. This was 20 years ago and the cost was something like $2500 or so at that time.

Anyway, to get back to what I was saying. Before the piano was worked on, I did know that something was amiss with the upper register. I got used to it, more or less, and did have a good time every time I played it. The point I am trying to make is that if you like the piano and if it functions well enough to get pleasure from it, then it could be a good experience - at least in the short term. I regret that my Gaveau had to go away, even with its faults. But even though I'd like a perfect piano, I don't require it. It's up to you to decide if this piano fills enough of your requirements to make it a good idea to get it. IT could be a great adventure and learning experience, or it could be a frustrating one.

Gabriella, perhaps you didn't notice, but I sent you a PM.

David

No, David - I can't find it!

The "run-away-from-antiques" crowd needs to be heeded, but so do your own preferences. I haven't been able to view the pictures, but I do think a beautiful case is worth more than many here seem to allow. Maybe more importantly, what kind(s) of pianos are you accustomed to? Personally, I've played a lot of beat-up old uprights (and small grands) over the years, and I have a certain soft spot in my heart and ears for them.

So I'd ask myself, will I be happy owning a piano that sounds like some old hulk in a church or saloon or school (if this sounds pejorative, you've prob. answered the question already), or must I have a "race-tuned" new or rebuilt one? Conversely, would I miss beautiful cabinetry if I could have perfect sound and touch instead? Do I play a lot of hymns, pop songs, jazz standards, other things that might sound pretty good on a clunker, or do I want to hone the finer points of Chopin, Ravel, Rachmaninoff, Bach, et al, whose depths can best be plumbed with a high-precision instrument?