Steinway

[Bob Luderer]

Interesting "rant"  You are of course comparing the price of a new Steinway
to the price of a used (abused) Steinway.  Remember apples to apples.  You
should look at the cost of *that* instrument new to truly test whether or
not the instrument held its value.  My *reconditioned* 1927 M cost my
parents $2,500 in 1965. (probably paid too much for it) I was recently
offered $14,000 for the instrument, which requires some work (as the list
knows) due to playing it too frequently :>() I'd say that the instrument
held its value relatively well.  

HOWEVER one should not be purchasing a Steinway as an investment.  One
should purchase a Steinway because they like the way it plays.
Unfortunately the darn things are sooooooo expensive (new ebony  M is 37,500
list) that most *normal* people can't afford to buy them!  HENCE the strong
secondary market.  It is all about supply and demand.  Are they worth it?
I've played many different instruments, If you find an excellent example of
each, so far, Steinway is worth it.  (Although I played a Bosendorfer that
came really close!)



> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Farrell" <mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com>
> To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
> Sent: Sunday, July 29, 2001 7:44 AM
> Subject: Re: Steinway
>
>
> > Maybe the bottom line in my rant was that you take a Steinway that costs
> > between $35,000 and $90,000 today (model M through D). Take the same
model
> > that is 70 or 80 years old, and it is worth $5,000 to $10,000. Take a
> Story
> > & Clark (or any other Brand X) that costs - how much - maybe priced like
a
> > Kawai or so - $15,000 for a six-foot black (oops - ebony!) grand. What
> would
> > a 75 year old Sorry lil' Cluck be worth today - maybe $2,000 (I realize
> > zero, but you know as well as I that if the keys make some piano-related
> > noise, someone will buy it - A Diamond in the Rough!). So which piano
> holds
> > its value better, one that looses $80,000 in value, or one that looses
> > $13,000? Or let's stick with the six-foot example - one that looses
> $40,000
> > in value or one that looses $13,000? Don't get me wrong - I would rather
> > play a Steinway for 75 years rather than the cheaper piano - but we are
> > considering a money investment here, not how nice a piano plays or
sounds
> > (or at least the ones that sneak out of NY with non-reverse-crown
> > soundboards).
> >
> > I think the point is that no piano is a good long-term investment of
money
> > with the intention to grow your money. So why advertise it as such?
Unless
> > of course you are willing to make a profit at any cost. It may well be a
> > better investment than a porterhouse steak (in the long term), but
> > advertisement of it being a quality investment of money is BS. I have
> heard
> > the story many times, and I know well that many, many folks read that
junk
> > and believe it. You can call them dumb, but just like Ed McMann, et. al.
> > selling sweepstakes tickets to old folks that use their life savings to
> > order $5,000 magazine subscriptions and then fly to Tampa to claim their
> > non-existent winnings, it is just plain unethical. Just because an
> > advertisement does not tell an outright lie, it is not necessarily
> truthful.
> > They are simply preying on folks that are not piano knowledgeable, and
> that
> > stinks.
> >
> > Terry Farrell
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Steve Grattan" <lostchordclinic@ameritech.net>
> > To: <mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com>
> > Sent: Saturday, July 28, 2001 1:35 PM
> > Subject: Steinway
> >
> >
> > > Hi,  I looked up a new Steinway in the 1991 Ancott Directory and the B
> was
> > > $37,040.00 and the D was
> > > 56,040.00.  Both are ebony prices.
> > >
> > > Steve Grattan, Associate
> > > Lost Chord Clinic
> > > 1602 Griswold Street
> > > Port Huron, MI 48060
> > > lostchordclinic@ameritech.net
> > >
> > >
> >
>