Kawai Piano US – Proudly Made in America.

  Voted “Acoustic Piano Line of the Year” five times by the industry magazine MMR, (Musical Merchandise Review). Renowned for their expressive tone and dynamic range that allow pianists to communicate with ease, this Kawai piano plays expressively, accurately and smoothly – like a warm knife through butter. The tone of the Kawai model 601-T console piano is European-inspired and mellow; not nearly as bright as some other Japanese manufacturers, though this model was built in their US factory in California. Many classical musicians own a Kawai piano as a low-cost alternative to an expensive Steinway & Sons or European model. A growing number of colleges and universities are becoming All Kawai schools, including our own New Mexico State University in Las Cruces. Having quality instruments to play in their studies is a strong selling point for most music students and in the competition between schools, this helps increase that school’s enrollment. Low-maintenance pianos like the Kawai are also an incentive for a school with an eye on their Music Department’s budget and its recurring costs.

This piano is an economical well-built instrument that will offer decades of reliable enjoyment. Structurally it is sound and aesthetically in very good condition. Its condition is attributable to the modest amount of playing time it has received. It has lived here in Albuquerque for its entire life, so it is happily acclimated and well-adjusted to our unique climate. The Kawai model 601-T console piano is well-regarded and known to be reliable and virtually maintenance free. We had to do very little in the way of service in our piano restoration shop, tightening of the action screws, setting the strings, some minor regulating and then a concert tuning. The finish is a traditional American style satin lacquer American walnut finish. The cabinet style is Italian Provincial and features carved and fluted legs. The music rack is stylish and there is a sturdy music desk designed for heavy music books or long musical scores. The middle pedal is a mute rail for quiet play or practice. The original matching bench with storage is included. We also include professional first-floor, local delivery.

Playing this keyboard is as smooth as a warm knife through butter.

Carved and detailed Italian Provincial legs with fluting.

Built in the Kawai US factory in the Los Angeles, California area.

Steinway & Sons Living Room Grand Piano.

  A Steinway is built to be your last piano or an excellent reason to buy your last piano first. Few things you will buy in your lifetime will serve you so long, give you so much pleasure and at the same time maintain its value. A Steinway is a lasting investment. The Steinway model L ebony grand piano is a piano that offers abundant volume yet needs little more space than the smaller models. This instrument was purchased originally in 1982 at the Albuquerque Steinway & Sons authorized dealership, Riedling Music. It lived in a lovely home in Santa Fe surrounded by fine art and furnishings for many years, then came to us eight years ago and we placed it in another lovely home. The second owner is relocating now and sadly, can’t take the piano with them to the east coast so we are offering it for sale. Alexander Boggs is the owner of 88 Keys Piano Warehouse. He is a Steinway & Sons certified technician and has trained at the factory in New York twice and has also been the sole tech to service this piano for well over a decade. Alexander would be honored to continue his service with the next owner after the complimentary home tuning takes place. It is in excellent condition – structurally and aesthetically, and we will be happy to offer a two-year warranty. Because it has lived its entire life in this unique climate it is happily acclimated and well-adjusted. The new owner will enjoy decades of musical joy and gratification with this stately Steinway & Sons piano.

“Strive always to improve the piano.” Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg

This model L features the classic “Steinway sound”, having a strong, singing treble with a clear bell-like tone, a resonant tenor mid-range and a robust bass, rich in high harmonics. It radiates plenty of tonal cover with richness, depth and power. It is due to their combination of harmonics that distinguishes a Steinway from other piano makers. The duration of tone (sustain time) is lengthy, enabling legato phrases to be performed more musically. The dynamic range of volume is wide, allowing the pianist to play more expressively and emotively with feeling. The tone quality (timbre) is neither overly mellow and dull or overly bright and tinny. The mid-treble where most of the melodies are played is lively and “sings”, and doesn’t disappear under the background of an accompaniment. It has the raw power that most pianos aspire to but not the brash “loudness” that often results. And these are, above all, the reasons why only a Steinway sounds and performs like a Steinway.

2022 model O MSRP – $95,800.

2021 model O MSRP – $90,300.

2020 model O MSRP – $87,600.

The instrument of the Immortals.

All models of Steinway and Sons grand pianos offer a Diaphragmatic Soundboard™ (Patented 1936) where during manufacturing, far more fine Sitka spruce is left on the floor than actually makes it into the soundboard. The craftsmen expertly locate the very best cuts and discard the rest. The Steinway wood-buyer travels across the country to the mills and with an expert eye, selects the very best lumber himself. The soundboard is considered to be the soul of the piano. They also feature the Hexagrip Pinblock™ (Patented 1963). They are constructed by laminating seven layers of Canadian hardrock maple in a staggered grain formation. Each subsequent layer of the lamination offsets the grain angle by 45 to 90 degrees. The result is an even distribution of grain direction throughout the pinblock. This ensures that at least one layer has its grain directly in line with the stress acting on the pin. This technique allows the tuner to place the pin in the exact optimal location for a true “Concert Tuning”. That is the secret to how Steinway’s are able to maintain their world-renowned sound far beyond their last tuning.

The grands also feature the Steinway patented Accelerated Action™ (Patented 1936), enhancing the action to respond to the touch instead of being forced into action. Laboratory tests have proven that the keys on a Steinway can repeat 13% more quickly than any other piano. The same features that allow this faster repeat also provide a much more sensitive, responsive keyboard, an aspect that can be appreciated even by beginning pianists. The keys are made of Bavarian spruce. The quarter-sawn maple action parts are mounted on a Steinway Metallic Action Frame™ (Patented 1868 and 1875), which consists of a seamless brass tube with rosette-shaped contours, force fitted with maple dowels and brass hangers to assure the stability of the regulation. The Steinway grand also features the true Sostenuto™ pedal (Patented 1874). It is the middle pedal and it allows the pianists to determine which keys they want to resonate and sound, and those they want to dampen and not sound.

The early history of Steinway & Sons is fascinating and is intimately connected to the history of New York City.

Kawai 5’-10” Living Room Grand Piano.

  A pleasing fusion of clarity and complexity, European-inspired and mellow. This is undoubtedly why Steinway & Sons chose this factory to build their high-end Boston line of pianos. Renowned for their expressive tone and dynamic range that allow pianists to communicate with ease, this Kawai model KG-2C Grand Piano plays expressively, accurately and smoothly – like a warm knife through butter. The KG-series of pianos were immensely popular for Kawai here in the US and Canada. They were built in the main factory in Hamamatsu, Japan. The KG-series was re-branded to the RX-series later on and those were also a big hit. The inevitable comparison to Yamaha pianos discloses that the Kawai usually provides more piano for the money. They are normally 2-inches longer for the same model in the line. For instance, in this case the comparable model of Yamaha is only 5′-8″ in length. The additional length enhances the deep bass response and builds a little more foundation.

Since 1992, Steinway & Sons has had the Kawai factory in Japan build their very fine Boston line of pianos.

This piano was purchased new in Albuquerque at the long-time Kawai and Steinway & Sons representative, Riedling Music in 1977. It is in excellent condition; structurally and aesthetically. The cabinetry is a warm walnut with a traditional satin finish. We had to do very little in the way of service – mainly a concert tuning and some minor regulating. The previous owner had loved this piano, and they had serviced it faithfully, but they couldn’t take it with them in a move. The original duet bench with storage is included. The middle pedal has a true Sostenuto function. Local first-floor delivery is included.

The tone is European-inspired and mellow; not nearly as bright as some other Japanese manufactured models. Many serious pianists purchase the Kawai KG-series because of their tonal similarities to vastly more expensive Steinway models and the inability to afford them. It has a warmth that is very pleasant. The duration of tone is lengthy and lends itself to classical music. The treble has a nice singing quality. The bass response is excellent given the size of the scale. The overall tone quality is balanced across the compass of the keyboard.

The KG-2C was one of the largest selling pianos in the US at the time.

Hepplewhite designer cabinetry styling.

  The classic heritage of 18th-century England is gracefully preserved in this superb adaptation of the style and embodiment of a master designer. Aside from its qualities as a musical instrument you will appreciate this Hobart M Cable spinet piano for its sheer beauty as an object. The furniture cabinet is finished in a light American cherry wood, and it represents the highest level of cabinetry available. Even the original, matching bench is a work of art. They are both in flawless condition, structurally and aesthetically. The piano was built in the Story & Clark piano factory in Grand Haven, Michigan; the heart of “Furniture Country” due to its numerous furniture factories. Logging and lumber mills thrived there due to the vast forests of diverse timber in the area which included the northern US and Canada. Hardwoods and softwoods were plentiful. A piano is constructed with various and different species of wood, depending on the need or function, whether it be strength, flexibility, density, beauty, uniformity of grain, etc. so the location was an advantage. Today, Story & Clark still exists, and they build America’s very best player-piano systems.

The piano has lived in Albuquerque for decades and it is happily acclimated and well-adjusted to our unique climate, so it ought to provide decades more of musical enjoyment to the new owner. There is minimal wear for its age on the hammers and damper felts, plus the other moving action and trapwork parts. All of the tuning pins are tight so it will hold its tuning. Loose tuning pins are a common problem in our dry and arid climate, and they are costly to repair and can be aggravating for the psyche. It spent two weeks in our restoration shop and received the normal tunings and pitch-raises, minor action regulations and thorough cleaning of the interior. We will be happy to offer a two-year warranty, in-home tuning and professional local, first-floor delivery.

Shown with the two-piece Boston-style fallboard protecting the keys.

Steinway & Sons 5’-7” Studio Grand Piano.

 This Steinway & Sons grand piano is one of the finest musical instruments in human history, and it was built by the 3rd-generation Steinway family in New York City. Steinway & Sons is the piano that every other is judged by. It is handcrafted and took a full year to build. The Steinway company has held nearly all of the important patents in the industry and the family has always participated in all of the significant operations of the factory. Steinway is nearly exclusively responsible for improving and modernizing piano manufacturing throughout the 19^th and 20^th centuries. In the world of musical instruments, there are pianos – and then there are Steinway & Sons. They enjoy a reputation second to none. Historically, the Steinway model M grand piano is their most popular model and its medium size makes it an excellent home instrument. It isn’t a secret that pre-owned Steinway & Sons pianos that have been restored are the biggest competition to the sale of exorbitantly priced brand new models.

The white Natural keys are authentic ivory and original. The black Sharp keys are lacquered wood and not plastic. We refurbished the core of the instrument and refinished it in a classic ebonized lacquer finish with a red mahogany-wood music rack, fallboard above the keys and inner rim inside the case. The company has a long history dating back into the 19th-century of creating Art-case pianos like this one. The nation’s White-house has a very intricate and regal one with large American Bald-eagles representing the three legs. A quick Google search will reveal pictures of that piano.

The Steinway & Sons grand piano action, with its 12,116 individual parts is the vanguard of piano actions. Steinway held most of the patents issued to piano manufacturers for action improvements including the exclusive “Accelerated Action”, which increases the speed of repetition. The patented Tubular Metallic action frame maintains proper alignment of the thousands of action parts. A grand piano-action regulation requires 14 separate adjustments per key. Our talented 88 Keys piano-technicians who work in our restoration shop have been busy and the piano-action has been well-regulated and ready now for concert performances.

This model M features the classic “Steinway sound”, having a strong, singing treble with a clear bell-like tone, a resonant tenor mid-range and a robust bass, rich in high harmonics. It radiates plenty of tonal cover with richness, depth and power. It is due to their combination of harmonics that distinguishes a Steinway from other piano makers. The duration of tone (sustain time) is lengthy, enabling legato phrases to be performed more musically. The dynamic range of volume is wide, allowing the pianist to play more expressively and emotively with feeling. The tone quality (timbre) is neither overly mellow and dull or overly bright and tinny. The mid-treble where most of the melodies are played is lively and “sings”, and doesn’t disappear under the background of an accompaniment. It has the raw power that most pianos aspire to but not the brash “loudness” that often results. And these are, above all, the reasons why only a Steinway sounds and performs like a Steinway.

The inner rim is finished in red mahogany. Come in and behold its beauty!

Excellent condition structurally and aesthetically.