1905 Erard Grand Piano

BEFORE

Prior to restoration, the old finish is dull and faded. The elaborate gold gilt accents are dirty and worn with the patina tarnished and yellowed. The interior mechanisms are worn and the strings are unable to be tuned, rendering the instrument virtually unusable.

AFTER

A painstaking and historically accurate frame-off restoration makes the instrument virtually new in every way. The finish and gold gilt accents have a rich, brilliant patina. The instrument once again plays and sounds like the concert quality instrument it was meant to be.

Scroll down to see the piano restoration process!

About this piano: This beautiful Erard grand piano would have been one of the finest and most expensive instruments money could buy in 1902. This piano is such a rare and sought after piece that it has been transported around the world two different times! Originally sold new in Europe, this piano was imported to The United States many years ago by a previous owner where it was used primarily as a stunning piece of furniture. The piano lived in a coastal home where it was exposed to humidity and salty air for decades. Despite years of neglect and deterioration, the piano was still very restorable and was an ideal candidate for restoration and preservation.

European-built grand pianos made this early are of non-standard design, and parts are not readily available for them through standard piano supply companies. The conventional piano industry discourages restoration and preservation of instruments like this one simply because parts are not readily available and most experienced piano technicians have no idea how to restore them! At The Antique Piano Shop, we specialize in rare and obscure pianos like this one. We are set up to manufacture these obscure and obsolete parts in our workshop. Our team was able to restore the instrument, both inside and out, to like-new condition. While much of the interior (strings, hammers, felts, etc.) had to be replaced with custom-made new parts, the original cabinet, harp, and old-growth wood soundboard were painstakingly restored with historical accuracy which allowed us to maintain the original soul of the instrument.

At 116 years old, the piano embarked on its second trip around the world. We sold the instrument to one of the largest museums in Asia so that it could be prominently displayed and appreciated by the public. Our team is proud to have been a part of saving this amazing piano and transforming it back to the stunning performance quality instrument it was originally built to be!

Scroll down to see the piano restoration process!

Piano Restoration Process:

Assessment & Disassembly

Decades of moisture and salt air have led the old finish dull and faded. The elaborate gold gilt accents are dirty and worn with the patina tarnished and yellowed. The cabinet and interior mechanisms are carefully disassembled, labeled and recorded. Our expert team assesses the instrument in order to determine what parts will have to be ordered and what parts will have to be custom-made in our shop.

Piano Restoration Process:

Cabinet Repair & Refinishing

When the piano was disassembled, the structural part of the cabinet began coming apart after years of moisture exposure. The entire cabinet is repaired and re-glued in order to ensure structural integrity. The old finish is carefully removed, exposing the bare wood. Much of the delicately carved trim is broken or missing, and all pieces are painstakingly repaired and replaced. The cabinet is sealed and multiple coats of mahogany stain and lacquer are applied, each coat being carefully sanded in order to achieve clarify and luster. The elaborate trim is re-gilded in brilliant gold, making the instrument look factory-new once agin!

Piano Restoration Process:

Soundboard Repair & Re-Stringing

The old brittle strings were dirty and brittle so the piano was unable to be tuned. The old strings are removed from the piano with each individual string being carefully measured for diameter and size so that a correct stringing scale can be created for the instrument. The cast-iron harp is removed which exposes multiple cracks and splits in the old-growth wood soundboard. Rather than replace the soundboard, our team decided to restore the original old-growth wood soundboard in order to maintain the original voice and heart of the instrument. The harp is re-gilded with brilliant gold lacquer and a new pin block was made for long-term tuning stability. The new strings were installed and the piano looks like brand new inside!

Piano Restoration Process:

Action & Keyboard Restoration

The patented designs used on antique European-built pianos were very different than their American counterparts. Today, parts and materials for these instruments are generally unavailable, requiring us to manufacture these obscure parts "in house" on a case-by-case basis. Our ability to manufacture these parts gives our shop the unique ability to restore these obscure instruments with historical accuracy.

Although this piano came to us in poor condition, the keyboard and action assembly was in surprisingly good, restorable condition. The ivory and ebony keyboard was restored to perfection. The interior action assembly was painstakingly restored with a historical perspective in mind, making the piano play like it did when it was a new instrument.

PHOTOS OF PIANO

AFTER COMPLETE RESTORATION

SEE AND HEAR THE FULLY RESTORED PIANO!

Learn more about restoring your heirloom instrument!

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Antique Piano Shop, Inc.,
1158 Lane Drive,
Friendsville, TN 37737

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