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I was sorting through old photos today and came across a picture of the old upright I learned on and thought it would be fun to share the progression of pianos I've owned, up to my new Yamaha.

First is this Thayer. My grandparents bought it for my mom when she was young. When I was 7, we moved into a house that had space for a piano, so my mom and dad moved it from Portland to Boise (450 miles) in the back of a truck. In January. It never had anything more than basic tunings and was pretty rough. But it's the only piano I had for over 20 years and I loved it.


When I moved away from home and to Portland, the Thayer came with me (back where it started from). By that time, it was in sorry shape and I was barely playing anymore because I was so frustrated with the piano. At some point, it finally occurred to me that I could buy a better piano. I ended up trading in the Thayer on a refurbished 5'4" Cable Nelson from 1925. It was a great little piano and inspired me to start playing more. A lot more. Incidentally, I was living in a small apartment, less than 600 sq ft, and I had no problem fitting a grand in the space.


Then a few years after buying my house, I decided I wanted something slightly larger and ended up with the 1927 Mason & Hamlin A, which eventually ended in heartbreak (I won't rehash details here since there's like a 7 page post all about it).


And now my new Yamaha, which I expect to have for a good long time, at least until I'm ready to move to a 7 footer.

Cassia, I really like your post. It shows such a nice progression over time. There seem to be a lot of posts by people who are starting out and really worked up about choosing the right piano to take them all the way through their piano journey. I keep wanting to tell them, choosing a spouse, that's a lifetime commitment, choosing a piano, not so much.

A very interesting bit of history, Cassia! I'll bet your playing ability has improved/progressed along the way as well.

I think I have shared my piano adventures here on PW often. When I would get rid of one piano and get another, I'd share it here on PW. Like you, I love the piano(s) I have now, and even if I spent a fortune on something better, it wouldn't be head and shoulders better than what I have now.

Thanks for sharing your piano history!

Rick

Hi Cassia,

Wonderful story of deepening love and dedication! From Walt Whitman comes the line, "I have loved them, loved them all." A grand piano in <600 squ. ft. is an inspiration to us all on the power of our infatuations.

Not to revisit old wounds, but could you provide a link here to the seven-page chronicle of the demise of the M&H? Thanks.

Perfect with my morning coffee. Thanks for sharing.

I can also see a carpet progression.

Thanks everyone! I'm glad you enjoyed.

SoundThumb - I totally agree! Especially with so many really beautiful pianos out there, it can be hard to decide "this piano! This is the perfect piano for me!" And not everyone can afford one of those really beautiful pianos. That Thayer wouldn't have passed anyone's tech inspection, but I progressed from beginner to advanced on it. If all someone can afford is a free piano from Craigslist, they can make it work for them if they're a motivated learner.

Rick - I've read some of your piano stories and I love them! Someday, I hope to have enough space for multiple pianos, just like you. And yes, I've noticed my ability has progressed with each piano. The Yamaha is really going to help me refine some aspects of my playing.

agraffe - here's the link to my thread about the M&H and how I ended up with the Yamaha (it's only 5 pages, not 7 like I thought): Decisions, decisions . No worries about revisiting old wounds, it was a tough decision but I made the right decision. And I love that Walt Whitman quote, very apropos.

Bosendorff - ha! I noticed that when I was posting the thread yesterday. I hadn't quite realized until then that a new piano somehow translated to a new rug. When I move to a 7' tier 1 piano, maybe I'll also end up with a hand-woven Persian rug.

This was fun to see, thanks for sharing! And I also enjoyed the rug progression