This is a rather dumb question but...
I have a Schimmel Konzert grand piano. My husband and I would like to consider moving to a downtown high rise in my retirement. I am of an age these things are in consideration. If I lived in a high rise, would my neighbors hear me and complain? I play couple 1 to 2 hours every day. How does it work in a concrete high rise?

There must be a lot of city dwellers with grand pianos on this forum.

Of course you can! Many of us, myself included, tune in high-rise condos and apartments. Anything of relatively new construction will probably have been designed to minimize noises to and from other units. Just make sure your piano will fit in the elevator before you sign on the dotted line!

I did not word that well. What I really want to know is how does piano playing work in terms of neighbor relations? Do you play a lot? Does the sound carry enough to get complaint from neighbors?

Do you live in a concrete building?

What do you look for in construction quality?

One place to start might be by asking the building's management, or, if possible, by arranging a tour of the premises at a time when people will be home and doing things like watching television, etc--- try to see for yourself how much sound leakage is evident in the corridors, etc. Or, you might informally survey residents who are coming and going in the lobby, and ask them about noise problems from their neighbors.

I would imagine that in a modern high-rise with concrete-and-steel construction you would probably be fine. But I think it's a smart move to try to find out first. If noise is a problem, the neighbors would probably not be shy about telling you--- not that I would classify your piano playing as 'noise'--- certainly not.

There are ordinary measures most of us take to spare our neighbors--- carpeting, playing at hours when they won't be disturbed, etc. Also, if your prospective close neighbors in the new building are fanatics about silence and are frequent complainers, the management is probably well aware of it.

I don't live in a high-rise, but several of my neighbors are musicians. The sound is just audible outside their residences, but not disturbing. I hope this works out for you.

Of course you can have a grand piano in an apartment building--many people do! As long as you comply with building rules and are considerate about not playing too late at night or too early in the morning, you will be fine. And, as Beethoven986 says, check the elevator size, especially if the building is old. People in apartment buildings have to be flexible with each other, given that people living in them do things like raise children, cook, watch TV, have parties, host guests, etc. As long as everyone is considerate, everyone should be entitled to live their own lives. At least that is what I think.

If you are considering a condominium, take a close look at the strata by-laws for anything regarding noise: restrictions, limitations, and rights of the residents to play music during reasonable hours.

Of course you can have a piano in a concrete high rise. On a warm day if windows are opened, your neighbors could hear you, but for the most part, it doesn't bother them if your windows are closed.

There are also strategies for doing some soundproofing, and not necessarily at great expense. Many threads about this over the years.

Carpeting and good underpad (versus wood floor) is one basic idea.

Assuming the building is not specifically a retirement community, most of your neighbors will not be home between 9 AM and 5 PM. Since you will move there after retirement, you could do your playing between during those hours and avoid many potential problems.

This, combined with other advice on this thread, you just might be able to avoid all problems.

Check out this post: http://www.pianoworld.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/1994403/Searchpage/2/Main/138992/Words/floor/Search/true/Re:%20Got%20my%20grand%20up%20to%20the%2036t.html#Post1994403

Check out this post: [url=http://www.pianoworld.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/1994403/Searchpage/2/Main/138992/Words/floor/Search/true/Re:%20Got%20my%20grand%20up%20to%20the%2036t.html#Post1994403][/url]