New Grand Piano Takes Center Stage
Thirteen Paradise Valley Estates residents were aware that the community’s two pianos — a Baldwin and a Kimball — in the Community Center were in need of tuning and repair. There were also concerns from members of the PVE Chorale and the professional musicians who have performed at PVE about the sound quality of the pianos.
That’s when a 1992 grand piano created by the Yamaha Corporation came across our path.
The Yamaha Corporation was originally named Nippon Gakki, which, translated, means “Japan musical instruments.” It was changed to Yamaha Corporation in 1987. In 1887, Torakusu Yamaha created his own version of the reed organ before starting his own business in Hamasatsu. A year later, he founded Japan’s first manufacturer of Western musical instruments the Yamaha Organ Manufacturing Company.
The company’s first concert grand piano was built in 1967. It was in celebration of its 100th anniversary in 1987 that the firm’s corporate name was changed to Yamaha Corporation. Today, the Yamaha Corporation is the largest manufacturer of musical instruments in the world. The company is known for their care and attention to detail in their pianos.
Upon learning of the availability of the piano at a local music store, a crew of musical-minded residents went to look at the piano and to determine if the sound and quality would meet the PVE standards. According to the music store’s owner, this piano was purchased as a piece of furniture and was hardly ever played. The condition of the felts (pads) confirmed that fact. The piano appears new although it was manufactured in Hamamatsu, Japan in 1992.
With our interest piqued, the PVE chorale director and pianist also went to the music store to inspect the Yamaha Piano. Everyone agreed. The Yamaha was a very fine instrument and would support PVE’s need for a performance instrument of high quality.
As a result, this group of highly motivated residents gathered a total of nearly $12,000.00 to purchase this beautiful and great sounding Yamaha Grand Piano.
