What is your favorite piano brand?

Michael It turns out a concert grand isn’t necessarily appreciably louder than a smaller grand. Bösendorfer demonstrated this to me with their very powerful 170VC model, which fully held its own when compared back to back with their bigger models! (The 280VC, though, was specially designed for maximum projection in large halls.) Steinway, Bechstein and Fazioli also have smaller grands that sound very powerful indeed—really more than sufficient for any living space. To me, their small grands may even be their biggest achievements since they seem to defy the laws of physics.

The difference in larger grands is more in the bass, similar to the way making a loudspeaker bigger doesn’t necessarily make it louder but tends to allow it to reproduce deeper bass frequencies more cleanly.

That said, concert grands do tend to have greater dynamic range, though mostly I personally like to take advantage of the dynamic potential on the softer end of the scale. The key levers are longer in a larger grand, which generally gives you more flexibility in controlling softer dynamics.

I fully share your enthusiasm for the Bösendorfer Imperial. (Full disclosure: I’m on their artist roster and am the fortunate, very satisfied owner of an Imperial! It gives me goosebumps from the sheer beauty of sound every single day. Even my wrong notes sound beautiful!) Most of the time I practice louder passages much softer. This protects my hearing and also helps to prevent building tension into my playing. (As a professional musician, I do a lot to protect my hearing since it’s a tool I need to rely on every bit as much as my piano.)

Also, I had my piano voiced more for a living room than a concert hall. Higher-end pianos are designed to give technicians maximum flexibility when it comes to voicing, from very warm to very bright, so this is something you can have adjusted to the room and your personal taste.

Albert thanks for sharing your experience and expertise. I'm curious, when you practice on your Big Bösi at home, do you keep the lid down, or perhaps select a shorter prop stick?

Can an expert technician with Bösendorfer experience voice the hammers down so they are simply more quiet (dialed down from 11 to 5), but still preserve the original timbre and perceived responsiveness and lightness of the action?

My fantasy is that such an instrument with longer key levers will (compared to my Hamburg Steinway B) greatly facilitate my progress in control and expressiveness beyond my current intermediate skill level, without demanding that my technique be revised to handle any increased weightiness or inertia imposed by a concert grand. Do you think that is realistic?

Michael Wow, you own a Hamburg Steinway B? Enjoy! That's a high-end instrument for professionals, so honestly I doubt the action of a concert grand would make a night and day difference when it comes to developing your skills. (If only it were that easy!)

There is of course some difference in the action due to longer levers, but to me the B is an ideal size that I for one could be perfectly happy with. The action is also sensitive enough and the dynamic range sufficient to allow you to develop a fully professional technique and range. If you get another piano for your living space, it should probably be because you love its sound and feel and individual character, regardless of its size.

An expert technician can indeed voice down the hammers to sculpt the sound. I've heard very impressive work voicing Bösendorfers, Steinways and Faziolis so they sound good in living rooms. Maybe dialing it down from 11 to 7 is more realistic?

In any case, just because dynamic potential is there doesn’t mean you have to use all of it in your living room, any more than you’d race down the street at 200 mph if you owned a 911 GT3! (Someone would have to call 911 if I owned a 911!)

I do practice on the Imperial with the lid all the way down and open it up when recording. Otherwise it would indeed be truly overwhelming!

Maybe Dominic Cheli can share his thoughts and experiences if he has a chance? You asked him after all... didn't mean to interject except to share your glowing enthusiasm for the Imperial!

Albert Your interjections have been phenomenally helpful, informative and entertaining! Thank you for them!

It is difficult to accept that having a concert grand piano will not transform me instantaneously into a grand concert pianist.

My totally rebuilt Hamburg B supposedly dates from shortly before 1920--hard to reconcile that with the Great War, but perhaps contributing to its explosive sound.