Guess the brand of the piano!

http://www.box.net/shared/fi6jdhjel0

Cheers!

It's not that difficult . . .

Guessing any piano out of the whole spectrum of options is always difficult, given the vagueries of recording equipment, venue, etc.

It's a lot easier when the choice is limited to two options. We had a "Guess the Grotrian" thread a while back in which an old Kawai was compared to a new Grotrian (same room, same pianist, same equipment). I believe 80% got it correct, but that still leaves 20% who didn't.

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and suggest that this is indeed a Steinway, and perhaps a Hamburg. I would be surprised (but not shocked, given my arguments above) if it were a Kawai or Yamaha.

You may find it "not that difficult", but given the very mediocre quality of the recording, I find it hard to tell. It's hard to determine which are the tonal characteristics of the piano, and what the poor quality of the recording has added or detracted from the original sound.

Regards,

Yes, I agree that the recording quality is bad, and it is indeed a Yamaha, the one that Glenn Gould recorded the 1981 Goldbergs on. The most wonderful Yamaha I have ever played. Very effortless to control.

David thanks for the recording. Gould was one of the immortals and I will never tire of hearing his playing. OK so please flesh out your statement. What do you mean that it was effortless to control? Does that mean that it had a very light action? Does that mean that a variation in dynamics was easily achievable? Maybe the action was "buttery" and felt like a well oiled machine?

How did you get to play that Yamaha? Its sound is very crisp in the 1981 recording.

I know his CD318 is occasionally allowed by staff to let serious pianists play it at an Ontario museum.