How to Select a Piano

Choosing a piano requires a great amount of care, since a piano is a costly instrument. Spend some time looking and evaluating, possibly with the help of an expert friend.

Difficulty: Moderately challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Grand Piano
• Upright Piano

1. Order and read sales brochures from different piano manufacturers.

2. Go to a reputable manufacturer or dealer and compare the looks and sounds of different models.

3. Take along a pianist or piano expert and have him or her evaluate the instrument if you don't feel confident in your own knowledge.

4. Have a secondhand instrument inspected by an expert. The costs of restoring a neglected instrument may be excessive, and only an expert will be able to judge that.

5. Look out for defects like rusty strings, warped hammers or dampers, a cracked soundboard, moth-ridden felts, pedals that stick and rattle, stiff action (the way the keys respond to your touch) and worn-out ivory keys.

6. Consider a five-year purchase plan instead of paying cash.

7. Consider renting a piano. Most dealers will give credit if you decide to purchase the piano at the end of the rental period.

8. Inquire about using a piano at a church or school, possibly for a small donation.

Tips & Warnings

• Pianos come in several shapes and sizes. Grand pianos with horizontal strings are much more expensive than uprights and will not fit into small rooms. Upright pianos vary in size.
• The tone of large uprights compares favorably with small grands, but small uprights tend to have a weaker tone.
• Good uprights are usually overstrung. That is, the strings are crossed diagonally to make the bass strings longer and fuller in sound.