A Piano for Hancher

I read an interesting story in the Cedar Rapids Gazette this morning  about six Hancher representatives visiting Steinway to pick out a new piano for the new building.  The piano will be on display at West Music until it moves next fall.  I can't play a piano, but I like to listen to piano music and I have always been intrigued by the construction of such a large, complex instrument.  As part of our Music is the Word series we showed a couple of documentaries in November about piano construction, both of the DVDs are available in our collection.

Pianomania,  tells the story of a  Steinway & Sons' chief technician and master tuner in Vienna.  He pairs his world-class instruments with world-class pianists, juggling the demands of both the pianist and piano.  Note by Note follows the manufacture of one Steinway piano -- one year, 12,000 parts and 50 employees.

The Library is a great place to find documentaries that are not available online.  Enjoy learning about pianos ... or anything else you are interested in.  Documentaries are located on the second floor.