Well, I promised I'd fulfill the traditional obligation of posting pics for all of you who have helped us so much in making an educated buying decision on our new piano. Following are a few pictures of our new Mason & Hamlin BB that was delivered yesterday. The piano is currently a bit more in the middle of the room than it's likely to end up, as we don't have good caster cups currently and are a bit afraid to put it directly on the wood floors without them....

From approximately the front door of our house:


Gratuitous keyboard shot - note The Entertainer for ABF study group:


Everyone likes these shots of the guts:


Another one:


Finally, a shot from above. The ceilings in the room are about 20 feet. We're likely to tweak the position somewhat. The piano in this shot looks bigger than it should since the top is open. It doesn't take up as much of the room as it appears. Much kudos to my wife in picking out the nice rug....


Anyway, that's it. I'm really excited about the piano. It sounds beautiful, even before being tuned. We're having a Dampp-chaser installed in the next week or so, and will have our first tuning a few weeks later. I've been playing as much as I can before our daughters go to bed, and have been pleasantly surprised how fast it's coming back to me. Inspired by the Adult Beginner's Forum, I started working today on the original version of The Entertainer, and was very pleased with my progress. Fun fun.... Thank you all for all of the wonderful help and expertise, my wife and I are really overjoyed with our new piano.

-Matt

Matt- that last pic looked like a view from heaven! My goodness that is a beauty! Enjoy your new family member!

Matt

VERY NICE....congrats on your new M&H...you are now obligated to work on recording and posting for all to hear...

Looks great, may you have many, many hours of enjoyment.

side note...update your profile with make of piano and post, post, post and you can't stay up ALL NIGHT PLAYING either, it will be there in the morning...

Very nice Matt! Thanks much for sharing the pictures (and good luck with The Entertainer!).

WOW

I'm so happy for you. M&H BB is one of the very best. Congrats!

Fantastic! That is a real beauty. In your PM you mentioned how big it was. I think you could fit a much bigger piano in that space.

Enjoy it!
Brent

PS: You showed great restraint posting only 5 photos. Digital cameras are the devil.

Congratulations.
Quite nice.
I love the photos, especially the juicy insides.
That's a great room that the piano's in.

P.S. You seem to have left out any details regarding the smell of the piano. How would you describe it?

brojek.

Tres Elegante!

Congratulations and have a lifetime of wonderful music with your BB. Nice room and pictures.

K

YERY COOL !!!!

I'll bet that BB sounds like a million bucks with those high ceilings.

I do private parties.....

You could probably put a Young-Chang in there and it would sound good !

I'd love to hear my D in there....really do it justice.

Congrats......

Enjoy...... DF

Congratulations on the new piano!

She is very elegant in her new space. Enjoy.

Matt!

Congratulations to you and your wife on such a beautiful piano! Many years of happy playing!

Best Regards,
Nick

A beauty!

In the wall near the tail of the piano, there appears what may be a heating vent. If air is blowing towards the piano, I strongly suggest an undercover for the D-C system.

--Cy--

Thanks all. I definitely need to keep the practice up to make it sound as good as it looks.

Cy-
If you're talking about that grill-looking thing that is under the windown on the wall, that's actually a speaker. Similarly, the vent you see on the wall under the piano in the first picture is an input vent for the furnace, nothing blowing out there. The only place there's air blowing in the area is from a vent on the floor, pretty much centered under the window, definitely not blowing directly on the piano.
-Matt

Great pictures and nice positioning right in the entrance of the house... Must be a nice home if the entrance is already looking like that! Enjoy your baby!

Congrats! It must sound glorious in that space. The BB is one of the best pianos out there.

What a perfect space for the piano! And I agree, the rug is beautiful and suits the piano well.

As someone who also chafes under a "can only play while the kids are awake" curfew, I say it's time to let the kids stay up until midnight, don't you agree?

Congratulations Matt on your new piano! The M&H looks wonderful in your home.

John

Beautiful Piano, and a great room.

Try and find yourself some European style glass casters.

Friends of mine in Berlin found some old antique ones that are six sided, very elegant and are supposed to improve the sound,...not that you need any of that with 20ft ceilings and a new M & H.

It looks (and sounds I bet) terrific.

Congratulations!

Skyblanche

Nice!

I'd love to try the new action on BBs ...

Congratulations Matt, looks beautiful!

I love the room, and the overhead shot.
Have you seen this video on the making of a M&H grand? http://www.pianoworld.com/how-a-piano-is-made.html

You'll have to join us for a Mason & Hamlin factory tour some time.

Best,

Frank B.

Break out the wine/champagne and lets PARTYYYY

Thanks all. I'm getting closer on the caster cups and think I might go with brass ones to match the casters. They also look like the won't raise the level of the piano as much as some of the wooden ones out there.

Monica- yes, I'm wrestling with the whole bedtime issue, I'm going to give it a little time before I start keeping the kids up later, but I definitely want both my wife and I to have a chance to play regularly.

Frank- I believe I did see that video, if it's the same one that was posted on youtube.

What a beautiful piano and setting! Congratulations!!

Sophia

A beautiful piano indeed! And the photos really capture the mood for the instrument. May you experience the joy of playing the piano every moment you sit at the keyboard. Cheers!

- Mark

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...The ultimate joy in music is the joy of playing the piano...

I am so happy for you!
Your piano is beautiful! Your pics are great! Nothing like the sound of a new piano!
Ebony is classy and timeless!
Do you mind if I ask..How you posted your pics?

MJinMN - beautiful piano and beautiful setting. Let us know how Joplin et al get along on it - midnight is maybe about the right time to play Joplin, n'estce pas?

hobo 57,who started the ABF study group, recently announced that he got a new old Steinway but -ahem- hasn't yet posted the pictures - youhoo!

But the two of you are certainly adding some class over there.

Cathy