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| Passion Investments: Antiques |
Rich Resonance
Wendy Lyons Sunshine
09/01/2005
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Restoration Keys
After playing his teacher’s 1924 Steinway grand, John
Loudermilk got the itch. With some careful searching and assistance from his
teacher, who had worked in piano showrooms, he unearthed an unpolished gem.
Other potential buyers had dismissed the 1927 Steinway for its antique green
finish, but that meant opportunity for Loudermilk. “It is a great-sounding
piano,” he says of the nearly 6-foot Model L. “The minute I touched the keys on
this piano, I said, ‘Oh my god.’ ”
Loudermilk paid $13,500 for the green
Steinway, and about $8,000 more to restore it to pristine condition. He had the
cabinet stripped and refinished to a lustrous mahogany with pronounced wood
grain, the plastic keytops replaced with ivory and some interior repairs made.
After refurbishing, the piano appraised at $35,000. “It’s absolutely gorgeous,”
he gushes.
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| EACH STEINWAY Heirloom Collection piano bears a
medallion on the inside rim that signifies it was refurbished at Steinway’s
Factory Restoration Center. | Potential buyers are often confused, however, by restorers who
espouse different, sometimes conflicting, philosophies about the best approach
to working on vintage pianos. Some feel it is critical that a piano be
historically accurate inside and out, so they will recondition and retain
original parts when at all possible. This tends to be the less expensive route.
Others, including Steinway, see no reason to overlook technological advances
that have arisen since a vintage piano was built. Restorers from this school are
more likely to rebuild a piano, putting in a new sound board and new key action
components.
Piano restoration is a complex and demanding craft, requiring
precise care and maintenance of hundreds of tightly integrated parts. Collectors
commonly seek specialists for specific tasks. Thomas Rourk is a registered piano
technician in Carlisle, Mass., whose particular expertise is ivory keyboards.
“For someone who is interested in historical accuracy and ultimate playability
of the instrument, ivory becomes very important,” Rourk says.
Rourk uses
vintage ivory tusks considered legal under the Convention on International Trade
in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna, and charges between $3,500 and
$5,500 to custom-craft keytops for a piano; other ivory restorers stockpile and
use salvaged keytops.
“If an art case or just a rosewood case from 1900 is
set with a plastic keyboard, in my opinion it really cheapens the piano,” Rourk
says. He believes the expense of ivory is never lost. “If you’re looking at a
Steinway C from 1896 with a carved case, something which is a good demonstration
of its period, visually the presence of an ivory keyboard will enhance the value
at least twice as much as the cost of the ivory.”
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