Restore Andrea The Piano!!

 
She's talkin' about me!
She's talkin' about me!
My pianist owner is talkin' about me, Andrea The Piano!

The complete text of what she says is below!

Or,  
you can just click here 
and Donate To My Restoration Project Now!

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I’d like to introduce you all to
Andrea The Piano.

Andrea is an antique Steinway & Sons
square grand piano.
dated at 1872,
making her 143 years old.
She was crafted in New York
by the most skilled of old world artisans

Andrea the Piano is made of Brazilian rosewood.
Because it is endangered
import & export of rosewood,
either as lumber or as a finished product,
is prohibited
from most countries in the world
including the Unites States.

As such,
Andrea The Piano
is an American made beauty
that will never leave the United States of America.       
                                   
This piano has many hand carved features,
such as the legs, music rack and pedal.
She also features hand stenciling inside.

And while we have no documented proof of this,
we firmly believe that Henry Steinway himself
chose the wood that would later become Andrea The Piano.
It takes a full year to craft a Steinway Piano,
but before that,
it takes 2 years to dry and prepare the wood.
Andrea the Piano is dated at 1872,                   
which means artisans started crafting her in 1871.
But the wood for this magnificent piano
would have been chosen in 1869
to being the 2 year preparation process.
Henry Steinway died in 1871.
So then,
it is altogether possible
that he chose the wood himself
for Andrea The Piano
though he would not live to see the finished piano.

Andrea The Piano
is one of many instruments
in The Little Piano House,
located in the beautiful city
of Wyandotte, MI.
This little house
is a music, art & piano studio.
There are actually 2 artists
that utilize studio space
in the Little piano house,
one whose artwork is featured in River's Edge Gallery
in the beautiful city of Wyandotte, MI
And of course,
Students arrive to learn the art of piano.

And so,
Andrea The Piano is housed
with several pieces of artwork,
with several electronic instruments
and a few antique reed organs.

This is NOT a piano
behind glass or a red velvet ribbon
in a museum with a
“do not touch” sign.
On the contrary,
we welcome pianists,
young and old
to enjoy this magnificent piano.

This piano is need of much restoration work
and we ask for your help and support
to bring her back to full glory.
There aren’t many qualified and trained
to do the all the work needed.
Indeed, just to bring her to The Little House
required piano movers knowledgeable
about such Victorian era instruments.
As such,
a full restoration will be quite costly.
She will need to travel out of state
to have complete restoration work done.

Just to give you an idea
of how much detail is required. . .

Did you know that each key on a piano
has over 50 pieces?

Multiply that by 88 keys
and we are speaking of well over 4,000 parts
that must be restored, repaired, or replaced.
And that is just for the piano keys alone.

Who am I?
My name is Rubi
and I am one of the owners of Andrea The Piano
and of the little house
that houses Andrea.

I am no stranger to music
in Metro Detroit and Downriver.
I’ve been working in church music ministry for years.
Perhaps you’ve been a member
of one of the many children’s choirs I’ve directed over the years.
Or maybe you were a member of one of the adult choirs
that participated in special events,
like this group that had the opportunity
to sing in Mexico City.
Perhaps I was the musician for your wedding
or your child’s first communion.
Perhaps you had me as a piano teacher
in Detroit
at COMPAS Center of music & performing arts
or at Garage Cultural / The Cultural Garage,
Or maybe even at the Little House.

Maybe it’s because I’ve accompanied you as a musician
during life’s special moments.
Maybe it’s because you have a love for music.
Maybe it’s because you treasure antiques.
Maybe it’s because you appreciate works of art.
Maybe it’s because you live in or near Wyandotte, MI
and would love to help in a local project.
Maybe you’re one of Andrea’s Twitter followers
have enjoyed her wit, humor, and wisdom.

Whatever the reason
I’m asking you to help us
Restore Andrea.

Piano Parts

A piano has more than 12,00 parts,
I believe it's more like 12, 116 for a modern day Steinway Grand Piano.
The action for 1 key alone is more than 57 parts.
So, for 88 keys that's 4,500 parts.. . . just for the keys!

It's no small wonder my restoration work
will take a full year to complete!

Post by The Friends of Steinway Mansion.

     -Andrea,
          The Piano

 

So, You Wanna Know What Makes Andrea The Piano So Special???

So, what's my story?
People have been asking.
I hope you don't mind
if I repeat myself a little with this blog post.
But my story bears repeating!

My pianist owner
was in search of a piano.
Now,
she is a church musician and choir director.

She is also a piano teacher.
She has taught both at
COMPAS - Center of Music and Performing Arts Southwest
and at Garage Cultural,
both located in the City of Detroit.
She started teaching her niece from home
and then some church friends asked her for lessons,
and well,
she soon found herself in need of a piano.

Now, mind you,
she has several electronic keyboards.
But nothing is quite like a piano.





She is also the proud owner

of an antique Vose Baby Grand piano,

which was actually gifted to her.
But she needed another piano
to teach from in her studio,
away from the goings on of the household.

She quickly decided
that she didn't want a spinet piano.
After owning a baby grand piano
the small sound of a spinet just wouldn't do.
She decided on an old upright piano.
So many uneducated folk
are just giving those pianos away on Craigslist
and on the piano adoption website.

Ugh!
Most of those old uprights
have their original ivory keys.
Ivory hasn't been used on pianos since the 1970s.
And the new ivory laws (as of Feb. 2014)
means you can't import or export ivory from the U.S.
Giving away pianos with original ivory keys?
My pianist owner would take them all
if she had the space and resources
to repair/restore them all!!!

But even more,
the sound of an old upright piano
is absolutely phenomenal.
How this modern world
got all into those crummy little
61-key electronic evil no-name keyboards
is totally beyond me.
Well, you can learn some music
from those little things, that's true.
But an upright piano,
well, the sound is beyond comparison.
The music made from an upright piano
is simply heaven.

My pianist owner wanted an upright.

But then it occurred to her
that the Little Piano House
is a little house.
Uprights are rather wide.
An upright piano, in all likelihood,
would not fit through the door of the little house.
Removing the door from the hinges
might get it in the door,
but the door to the room would be another story.
No, an upright piano
wouldn't make it through that narrow door at all.

So,
she deiced on a square grand piano.
Now,
although a square grand piano is much, much larger
(I am 7-ft. long)
they are disassembled for a move
and reassembled at their new location.
She even posted a photo on her facebook page
of a restored Steinway Square Grand Piano
and stated in her wall post,
that for no logical reason
she wanted one.
(really, a spinet piano
would have been the logical choice!)
Little did she know at that time
that I was looking for a new home.

OK.
This  makes me special to her.
But I'm special for more reasons
than her love of music and pianos.

I am made of Brazilian Rosewood,
which is endangered.
In fact,
rosewood cannot be import or exported
from just about every country in the world.
It is protected because it is endangered.
Many musical instruments
were made from Brazilian Rosewood
back in the day.
We just sound so good made of this wood.

I also have my original ivory keys.
So, this adds value
and a bit of something special to me
as a piano.

I was built in 1872.
Now,
it takes a year to create a Steinway,
even now in modern times.
It takes a year
to create a Steinway piano.
So,
what this means
is that work on me started in 1871.

But,
with the process Steinway uses,
then as now,
it take a year to prepare the wood.
So,
what this means
is that the wood chosen
that would later become me,
Andrea The Piano,
was chosen in 1870.

Henry Steinway died in 1871.
Now,
there is no way to prove or document this,
but it is very probable that Henry Steinway himself
hand picked the wood that would later become
Andrea The Piano.

 

All the world knows

that there is no better piano
than a Steinway.
And I have been graced
to bear the Steinway name.
I have been graced
with the Steinway touch.

I am an American made beauty,
hand crafted by old world artisans
in New York.

I made my way from New York to Chicago
via horse and wagon.
I would later make another trek
via horse and wagon
to a farm in Lapeer, MI.

Then there was a gentleman in Pleasant Ridge, MI
who sought me out as gift
for his lovely wife.
I traveled form Lapeer to Pleasant Ridge
in the back of a pick-up truck
cushioned by mattresses and blankets.

And then,
in May 2014,
my current pianist owner came for me.
For the first time in all my years
I was moved by professional piano movers,
people who all they do
is move pianos for a living.
I knew she loved me
when she chose them to come for me.
And mind you,
she was very picky.
She called a gazillion professional movers
before deciding on the ones she chose for me.

And now
I live in The Little Piano House,
thus named
cuz it's a little house full of pianos
(and one antique organ, but that's another story!)

I am not a piano behind glass,
like Daniel, the piano at Greenfield Village
in Dearborn, MI.
Poor thing, like a caged animal.
People just stop and stare.




Even the pianos

at Wyandotte's Historical Museum
have those "do not touch" signs.
I wish they would remove those signs.
If a piano isn't played
they will forget how to be a piano.

A piano does have to be
tuned and maintained, that's true.

But why have a piano that no one can touch or play?
Is she really a piano if she is silenced?

Seasoned musicians
can enjoy me.

The curious can stop by for a visit.
(just contact my pianist owner!)

Young beginner musicians can play me.
Even older beginner musicians can make music with me!
They learn about music history.
They learn about piano history.

What great composers
would have written music
on a square grand piano?

When did they stop making
square grand pianos?

Why did they stop making
square grand pianos?

When and why did they stop using
ivory and rosewood?

Perhaps I do belong in a museum.
But then,
I would only be a photo opp.
And I want to be so much more than that.

It takes a year to create a Steinway.
But before that,
it takes a year to prepare the wood.
One fine day,
when all the funds are in place,
it will take a year to have me fully restored.

It takes 350 hands to create a Steinway.
But you know,
it only takes 2 to make her sing.
And you know,
I'm not picky.
I am just has happy
with those beginner piano students
playing "twinkle little star"
as I am with my pianist owner
working on her Mozart.

If I were in a museum
I would not have any hands at all
making me sing.

In a museum
my music would stop,
most likely, forever.
And that would really be tragic,
wouldn't it?

I am special.
I am an 1872 Steinway & Sons
Square Grand Piano.
I Am
Andrea, The Piano!!

********************************

Andrea, Can You Tell Us What Happens To Pianos As They Age?

Andrea's Piano Strings

What can happen to pianos
after time?

Well,
you're asking the right question
as I am a piano
that is 142 years old!

Many, many things can happen,
even to the finest pianos,
when they age.

As pianos are made of wood,
well,
things can happen.
Some pianos can suffer many dents,dings and scratches
over the years.
Some pianos may need refinishing.
Pianos, such as myself,
can have many ornate moldings.
With time,
some of the moldings may have gotten chipped or damaged.
Some of the moldings
may even be missing.

I have a round stain.
At some point in time
one of my previous pianist owners
kept a house plant on me.
The plant got overwatered,
and,
unfortunately,
so did I.

Elderly pianos may have missing hammers or felts.
I have both of these problems.

Older pianos
may also have ivories
that have yellowed.
Sometimes the ivory
is chipped or cracked.
Some of my ivory is missing.
And some of my ivory
has actually fallen inside.

Now,
it's only older pianos
that actually have ivory keys.
Ivory hasn't been used on a piano keyboard
since 1972,
due to ivory laws.
Since 1972 pianos have plastic keys.

I, however,
have my original ivory keyboard.

And now,
let's talk about strings.
Most modern day pianos
have 88 keys,
though some square grand pianos before me
had 61 keys.
Eighty-eight keys is pretty standard now.
And each key has 3 strings.
The average life for strings and mechanisms
is about 50 years.
Sometimes a string will break
or there are other problems,
but for the most part
we can expect strings to last 50 years.

I have my original strings.
Though out of tune,
I am playable.
My pianist owner
doesn't want to have me tuned
for fear that the excess tension
will cause the strings to break.

Still,
my strings have lasted
almost 3 times longer
that what is normal.
This, indeed,
is yet another testament
as to what a fine instrument
a Steinway piano really is.

But,
alas,
my strings are old.
They need to be replaced,
as do my hammers, felts
and pin block.

I am a very special piano
with very special needs.
Please stop and take a few moments
to think of ways
you can help me
reach my goal
of a complete restoration.
In the weeks to come
I'll be offering several suggestions.
For now, though,
you have some idea
as to what can happen to pianos
as they age.

Historically yours,
Andrea,
The Piano.