The Lost Pianos of Siberia by travel writer Sophy Roberts is April's book of the month on RNZ Concert Mornings.
This wonderful tale of tracking various instruments across the wilds of Russia has inspired RNZ Concert listeners to share these stories of their own special pianos:
Thürmer piano farewell Photo: courtesy of Chloe Beaumont-Field
The much-moved Thürmer
One piano followed Chloe to many addresses
"The piano I will always hold fond memories of, is the one my husband bought for me, not long after we had married in Sydney and moved into our first home. It was a beautiful, old upright piano made by Thürmer of Bochum, Germany. From Sydney we moved to Perth, and of course my piano took the journey across the Nullabor Plains in the huge removal truck. During the years that my husband was alive, we renovated four homes and thus each time we sold and moved house our beautiful piano came too.
I made the very hard decision to sell my Thürmer before moving overseas. I often wonder where it is now. It had such a lovely tone, that I hope someone, somewhere is enjoying it as I did". - Chloe
Yes, but only if a piano comes too
In the mid 1980s, Mike got a job based in the Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea. His wife Helen agreed to the move with their young family, but only if they could have a piano.
"I said 'the place is full of missionaries, there will be plenty of pianos there'.
And so there were, BUT no one was selling! In the end, we had to order a new piano from a shop in Lae, PNG's second largest city, on the coast some three-hours' drive away. They had to order it from Port Moresby, who ordered it from Japan. It was shipped to Port Moresby, flown to Lae, and driven up into our home in the Highlands on the back of a rice delivery truck, before being carried into the house by six strong local helpers.
Six years later we shipped it back to NZ with our belongings and our lovely Yamaha U1A is still with us in Gisborne today, 28 years later, and played most days." Mike
The piano that rose from the ashes
Brian Swale's 99-year old Brewster piano Photo: Brian Swale
Brian Swale's mother was gifted this piano in 1921. Brian went on to inherit it, only to nearly lose it in a house fire.
"After many moves I settled in Central Otago, where I still live (with the piano). However - about five years ago we had a severe house fire. While the fire did not reach the piano, there was some damage to it from water and molten aluminum dripping from above. The insurance people asked me for permission to throw it away - and I turned down that offer. Their reasoning was that pianos are a dime a dozen, and who would want a wreck like that?
"Before the house was demolished, I went upstairs to retrieve all that I could of property, and to my amazement, when I checked a storage cupboard, a booklet fell at my feet. It was the hire-purchase payment book between my grandmother and Chas Begg & Co. Ltd, from whom she had bought the piano. Superstitious me - I took that as being some kind of omen. I subsequently spent some hundreds of dollars having the woodwork restored by a local German craftsman, and re-tuned by a piano tuner who visits this region periodically.
"At 99 years old, it is still in great condition, despite its adventures". - Brian Swale
The War time piano
Anne's family was asked to mind a full-size grand piano during The Blitz
"We lived just south of London throughout WWII in the only house in our road not evacuated (my father was a fire-fighter on the Thames, fighting warehouse fires from a launch on the river.) We were looking after a lovely full-size grand piano for some friends who'd been evacuated and couldn't take it with them. I remember going to sleep listening to my mother playing it every night.
"We children had our beds down in the living room, so that we could quickly be rushed to the air-raid shelter in the garden when the siren went. One rainy night two soldiers came down our drive to shelter in our porch by a window at the end of the piano. Mum invited them in and they stood by the end of the piano, all dripping wet with their helmets on and guns over their shoulders. The piano survived the war undamaged - in spite of our windows and ceilings being blown out seven times. I believe I have had a love of music ever since those days". - Anne
From Beethoven to Wellington via the piano
Bechstein pianos formerly played by Paul Schramm Photo: Rex Croucher
Lynette's first music teacher had a photo of his teacher Austrian pianist Paul Schramm on the piano
"He would proudly relate that Paul Schramm had learned from Leschetizky, who had learned
from Czerny, a pupil of Beethoven ! ...Fifty years later I was
visiting Wellington with my friend, who took me to her slightly
eccentric cousin's home where he had his lounge full of grand pianos;
and two of them were Bechsteins which had belonged to Paul Schramm!!" - Lynette
The Bechstein in the wardrobe
Cath toured the Bechstein factory in Berlin in 1988 and found the original listing of her family piano.
"It was a gift from my grandfather to my grandmother upon their marriage. During the 1914-18 war, it was stored in a large wardrobe as there was much anti-German behaviour at that time, and they were afraid it would be attacked. It was found to have some borer infestation, but that was later treated successfully.
"It has survived many moves - first, from London to New Plymouth, then to Wellington in about 1925 and in 1939 was gifted to my mother when she took up residence in Christchurch shortly after she married my Dad.
"From my conception I heard Mum playing Chopin & Beethoven (and more) almost daily on this beautiful instrument. I thought everyone had a piano and a mother who played it!" - Cath
The restored Broadwood
1824 Broadwood fortepiano Photo: John Barritt
John gave this piano a second chance
"The piano I have is an 1824 Broadwood square fortepiano. It came to me by chance five years ago when I saw it was advertised on an antique dealers' website. After some discussion, I found it had been with one family in the South Island and prior to this had possible connections to Larnach Castle in Dunedin.The piano was complete but totally unplayable. I purchased it and had it sent to Auckland to the only early piano restorer I could trust to restore it.
"Four months later this beautiful instrument arrived to my home in New Plymouth. It played beautifully with new strings, regulation and total refurbishment both inside and out including a new wooden pedal and block that had been missing.
"I had also found out from writing to Broadwood a total history [of the instrument] from making, through to its first homes in Edinburgh, prior to being sent to New Zealand.
"I play the piano everyday, it loves Schubert, Mozart and Clementi with a bit of Dussek." - John
Deconstructing the piano
Kelvin's brother had worked as an apprentice to the great piano makers Steinway
"In the 90's [and back in New Zealand] he rented a small and remote cottage in the Waitakeres, and took his baby grand with him. With no road access, he had to totally disassemble the piano to get it up the bush track to the two-roomed coastal cottage. The only space available for it was an upstairs attic, so he then took all the bits up the very narrow staircase. The frame he had to rope up and through a 'modified' dormer window and then reassemble the piano in the attic. It was there for many years.
To hear a classical piece wafting out into the bush was a surprise and a delight when we visited him those many years ago. Kelvin
The Sames piano handed down
Sames piano Photo: Ewen Sutherland
"The first musical instrument I played/learnt on was my mother's Sames piano. She bought it after WWII with money she borrowed from her brothers. My grandmother used to teach piano and so my mother learnt to play. When I was in primary school, she started to teach me. From there, I went on to pass University Entrance music and learn the flute.
I inherited the piano and have had it in my home since and now my niece's children are learning on it." - Ewen
A lifetime piano
Suzanne's first piano came into her life when she was six years old
"It was not long after the trauma of losing my father on a distant battlefield. It was love at first sight and this piano became the focus of my life. It was a truly beautiful instrument, a Heintzman upright grand. Heintzmans were described as "the Steinway of Canadian pianos". My mother gave me a few informal lessons, but piano studies began in earnest when I was seven and I lived, breathed, thought, dreamt and felt music from then on.
This wonderful piano took me through my years of university music study (I was fortunate enough to live at home when a student), and through my piano diploma too. It was a great grief to me to be forced to say goodbye to it when I married and moved away. My mother was unable to keep the piano when she downsized, so it was sold. I have the most wonderful and abiding memories of that Heintzman, which set my feet on the musical pathway which was destined to last my whole lifetime." Suzanne
