Stuart & Sons: Sydney launch of the 8 Octave 2.2m grand

[Simon Bedak]

Dear List

Last night I attended the launch of a Stuart & Sons 8 octave 2.2m grand,
newly acquired by the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust which
commissioned the manufacture of three of these instruments. A recital of
two hours took place at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. There were
three of the instruments on the stage throughout the evening. From the
program, the highlight for me was a premiere performance of Chu Wang
Hua's "Three Fantasies on Chinese Folk Melodies" which, unlike other
offerings, didn't attempt to play arrangements for all of the three new
pianos at once, nor ride the sustain pedal hard into creating mashes of
sound. Regrettably, it seemed to me any chance of hearing what
subtleties a single Stuart & Sons was like (which I believed to be the
reason for the concert taking place) seemed somehow lost to the
excitement of having the launch. Not a single work on the program
contained the stillness an intent ear might eagerly learn from. That
said, I really do look forward to hearing the machine tackle different
arrangements in the future. 

The most memorable and wonderful moment of the night came at the end
when one of the pianists silenced the applause and invited Mr Wayne
Stuart onto the stage. http://www.stuartandsons.com/ Simultaneously, Mr
Stuart brought his piano factory workers along with him and about a
dozen young men took their place under the burning lights to receiving
genuine and warm applause. In turn, they grinned, laughed and marvelled
at the fuss without being embarrassed about the hoopla. 
It was a remarkable moment. 
I had the thought that in this country, in any other age it's a fair bet
that each of them  would've been shaping surfboards rather being
manufacturers of full 8 octave 2.2m grands. 

Cheers

Simon Bedak
Sydney, Australia