Old uprights worth saving?

[Alpha88x@aol.com]

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Greetings,

              Upom leaving piano tech school, I had this very same idea: to 
restore Turn- of-the-century uprights for folks who appreciate the Victorian 
decor, with all the curly cues in the ornate wood working. A guy named Tom Moyer 
in the Reading-Lebanon area does such work. I have changed my mind about this 
business, because the market is probably very small.

              However, I own one such piano. Her name is Becky.  I am 
actually planning a "turn of the century room" in my next home. I plan to restore my 
old Becker Brother's upright (1903) from the furniture part all the way to new 
hammers. The soundboard is excellent. One knocks on it and it 
echoes/resonates 'like the dickens'. The bridges are really good too, and the aprons are in 
total contact with the soundboard. Becky may need new hammers and felts all 
over and possibly new tuning pins, a size larger. I would call this an extensive 
reconditioning, but not a rebuild. Becky would be worth it. She helped me 
through college and the cabinet is very Victorian ( ornate/curly que-ish). Her 
booming sound is great on the Beethoven!

                I would name it a noble cause to restore these turn of the 
century uprights. This is a part of true Americana; it reminds us of when almost 
every medium sized town in North Americia had the little piano manufacturer. 
Think of them all...Girard, Becker Bros, Jannisen, Cable Nelson, Reinhard, the 
list goes on and on! (Yes, Canada was manufacturing their uprights in their 
mid-size towns too, as well as Toronto...likened to New York for us)  If you 
can find good candidate pianos, do the work and then market the piano at the 
correct place to get the desired appreciative customer... its a go. Why not? 

Julia Gottchall, 
Reading, PA 

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