Of some of my first memories, I remember a fascination with the piano in our dining room. I was 4 or 5 years old.

 

It was a Schumann upright piano built in the early 1900s. The sound was beautiful. I was curious to know  how pressing a key could produce such a sound.

 

My parents exposed us to so much music that I couldn't help but love music. My father used to take regular trips to the Woolworth store to buy records.  Typically a record could cost as much as $10. but for $1... or even 3/$1 could be found. We had hundreds of recordings. Mostly classical, jazz, and folk music. It was like having an orchestra in our home.  

 

I started studying piano when I was 7. I was a fairly diligent student and advanced little by little. After high school, I made the decision to study piano at the university. At some point in my college years, I had a chance to play on a Mason & Hamlin grand. It had a feel and sound that I'd never experienced before. I planned to have one someday.

 

About 20 years ago I bought a baby grand Mason & Hamlin. It had such a pretty sound.  I used it to learn quite a few masterpieces and to teach on. I also performed on it and had many musician friends play on it.

 

Then I bought this present RBB in 2004.  I bought this piano with the desire to own a 7 foot long M&H. At the time I wasn't that familiar with reproducing pianos. I was told that this  piano was an Ampico (reproducing) model and had the potential if rebuilt, to have the great pianists of the past 'play' it. The mechanism was non-functional when I purchased it. I always thought: “someday when I have the time and resources available, I would like to restore the player for this piano.”

 

In the meantime, I had the piano internally regulated to the point where the play-ability of this piano was fantastic. I played for many hours on this incredible piano. The sound, the feel, the dynamic possibilities were amazing.

 

In 2014, the opportunity arose to restore the piano.  After searching for several months, I came upon Craig Brougher who is a uniquely qualified restorer of these instruments.  I had talked with quite a few other restorers of these instruments. Many were also highly recommended. Craig seemed to talk sensibly. He also had a engineering background and understands materials and sound from pure science. He would answer any question I put forth and patiently and intelligently expain his methods and ideas. Craig explained that he replaces all parts in the player mechanism with new materials. Some restorers "restore" the leather and fabric, without replacing it.

 

Some of the  restorers that I considered for doing the work,  stated that replacing the leather and fabric and old materials is not always necessary. Craig explained why that reasoning is a guarantee to failure within a year or two. He is a perfectionist of the highest order and won't settle for anything that won't last as long as the original work done in 1925.!!