A different sort of piano store experience
Beth, Amber & I stopped by a different piano store on the way back from a trip to the mall.
This time, the salesman didn't seem unduly interested in selling me a piano right now, though he did point out several times that renting a piano was a good deal.
But I learned something: He explained how a lot of the difference between pianos is in how well the mechanism allows notes to be played differently: A good mechanism makes it easy to be piano, or forte, or play staccato, etc. There are differences in sound too, of course.
He was of the opinion that the high-end electronic pianos performed better than lower-end acoustic pianos, but not as well as a really good piano. He showed us one that used actual wood keys and piano-like mechanisms for input. It felt and sounded pretty good: I could probably tell the difference between that and the electronic piano my parents have. Whether that's worth a few thousand dollars is an interesting question: It certainly isn't at our current level.
This time, the salesman didn't seem unduly interested in selling me a piano right now, though he did point out several times that renting a piano was a good deal.
But I learned something: He explained how a lot of the difference between pianos is in how well the mechanism allows notes to be played differently: A good mechanism makes it easy to be piano, or forte, or play staccato, etc. There are differences in sound too, of course.
He was of the opinion that the high-end electronic pianos performed better than lower-end acoustic pianos, but not as well as a really good piano. He showed us one that used actual wood keys and piano-like mechanisms for input. It felt and sounded pretty good: I could probably tell the difference between that and the electronic piano my parents have. Whether that's worth a few thousand dollars is an interesting question: It certainly isn't at our current level.