Kawai: The Poor Man's Steinway
Written: Sep 12 '00 (Updated Sep 12 '00)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Responsive touch, clarity of tone, a very expressive instrument
Cons: Needs frequent tuning (but I've moved frequently)
|
|
|
| frazzledspice's Full Review: Kawai Ge-1a Baby Grand |
When Billy Joel and Elton John went on tour together, they carried along two 8-foot Grand Pianos.
Billy Joel played the Steinway, an appropriate choice for his more lyrical songs, such as Piano Man. A classicist at heart, Joel has retired from the pop music arena to compose serious classical music. An article I read recently said that his compositions have been heard by a limited number of critics and classical musicians. They reported that, although the pieces bear some similarities to Mozart, Beethoven, and other noted composers, they are skillfully crafted and will most likely popularize classical style.
Elton John played the Yamaha, an appropriate choice for his foot-stampin', key-thumpin' favorites such as Crocodile Rock. Elton, too, has taken a sabbatical from performing, having recently composed and produced the Broadway show Aida.
The classicist's choice was a Steinway. The flambouyant stage performer's was a Yamaha. These two are generally considered to be the world's finest pianos. Why didn't I pick either of these when I purchased a new baby grand in 1995?
Why I Didn't Pick a Yamaha
When I purchased my Kawai Baby Grand, I was playing piano in a church that had an 8- foot Yamaha Grand. Although it was a beautiful instrument with a bright, clear sound, I found the piano to have a very unresponsive touch. It was difficult to bring out subtle nuances in dynamics, particularly when playing new pieces every week, sometimes with very little practice time. I have since played in another church that purchased a Yamaha Grand, and have experienced the same stiff touch there.
Why I Didn't Pick a Steinway
I love Steinways, and played a very old Steinway upright every week at the Newman Center, Vermillion, South Dakota. Despite its age (and an "E" key that sometimes continued to sound long after it was released) it was a beautiful piano, responsive and powerful, with a very bright sound. Tickling the very real ivory keys of this piano made me see that a Steinway was constructed to last a lifetime.
I didn't buy a Steinway because I couldn't afford to.
Why I Bought a Kawai
Steinway recently designed a slightly less expensive line of pianos, the Boston line. The piano salesperson told me that these pianos are manufactured to Steinway's specifications at Kawai's factories in Japan.
If Steinway trusts Kawai to manufacture its "Boston by Steinway" series, I felt that I could, too.
The salesperson also described Kawai and Yamaha as similar in quality but better for different purposes. "A Kawai is more of a solo instrument," he said, "while Yamaha is best suited for ensembles." No wonder why the churches purchased Yamahas.
I, however, was looking for a solo instrument with a gentle, responsive touch. I wanted a beautiful piece of furniture that was strong enough to withstand use by piano students without suffering damage.
My polished Ebony Kawai Baby Grand has not only maintained its responsive touch and beautiful finish through scores of piano students, it has also survived three long distance moves in four and one-half years. It has resided in four different living rooms in three different climates--South Dakota, where October snows were still on the ground in April; St. Louis, a temperate climate with warm summers; and Arkansas, where the high temperature didn't dip below 105 degrees from August 1 through Labor Day. Having lived in four different homes, we tried to position it away from windows and direct sunlight, but, since it's 5'1" deep, it hasn't always been possible.
When people visit my home, they always see the piano and say, "It's beautiful." When they hear it played, they say, "It has a beautiful sound."
For a piano that's done a lot of living in its five year lifetime, I think it's standing up pretty well.
Purchased at a University Sale
I purchased my Kawai Baby Grand at a university sale at Webster University, St. Louis, MO. The pianos for sale had all been gently used for a period of about six months, while on loan to local colleges and universities. Although they still had their lifetime warranties, and looked and played as well as brand-new pianos, they were significantly less expensive. My piano cost approximately $8,000 in the spring of 1995.
I always tell my students that university sales are good places to look for gently used pianos. If they are shopping for used pianos at private sales, I recommend that they have the pianos checked out by a piano tuner/technician before they buy it.
In addition, when people want to sell pianos, they frequently tell their piano tuners first. When in the market for a used piano, it's a good idea to ask a piano tuner if he's heard of any for sale. Since he has often worked on the pianos he's recommending, he's a good source of information about the quality and durability of the instrument.
What Makes Kawai So Good
Tone: My Kawai Baby Grand has a beautiful tone from pianissimo to fortissimo, from staccato to legato, from adagio to presto, through the entire range of musical expression.
Touch: The individually-weighted and balanced spruce keys have a very responsive touch, which is good not only for expression but also for young, tentative fingers playing their very first songs. While many modern piano keys are covered with plastic, Kawai's are covered with NEOTEX Synthetic Ivory and Ebony, a cellulose fiber which has a consistent feel over the black and white keys. Plastic-covered keys frequently get slippery, but absorbent NEOTEX-covered keys are immune to perspiration and slipping.
Strength: Kawai's are built to last. The polished ebony piano case has an advanced undersurface, called a phenolic backer, to act as a buffer between the wood and its polyester finish. This backer smooths and evens the wood surface, and seals the wood from humidity, preventing expansion and contraction. Kawai also has a hard-finish music rack which prevents it from being scratched, even when being used by music students, and exposed, perhaps, to spiral-bound books and pencils.
The soundboard is made of solid spruce, which is seasoned and dried before construction. The mahogany hammer mouldings assure strength and durability.
Every Kawai Grand is built to support over forty thousand pounds of string tension.
Beauty: Kawai Baby Grands come in a variety of finishes. I was told never to use polish on my piano's finish, but rather to dust it with a damp cloth, and this has maintained its beauty since I've owned it.
Piano benches can take a pounding from students. I recommend purchasing a bench cover, both for comfort and to preserve the finish of the bench. I purchased a black velour bench cover for about $60 at a music store. The covers come in several sizes, based on the size of the bench, and usually must be special-ordered.
One Complaint
My Kawai does have to be tuned fairly frequently, possibly because of our frequent moves. When it slips out of tune, it tends to slip at the "F" below middle C and the octave beneath it. Most pianos I have played tend to slip out of tune in the high registers first, so hearing frequently played pitches slipping, microtone by microtone, is very disconcerting.
Despite this flaw, when my Kawai is perfectly tuned, it it the most perfect piano choice I could have made.
To learn more about Kawai pianos, visit their website at www.kawaius.com
Recommended:
Yes
|
|
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.