It took me a ridiculously long time, but I have my very own piano at last!

The time was finally right, now that we no longer live in a student flat, or a leaky mouldy cottage, or literally up a hundred steps. :p

Our online searches led us to an apprentice piano tuner who happened to be restoring an old German piano, and was willing to sell it for a very reasonable price. Apparently the piano had been water-damaged and completely unplayable, but after restoration it looks and sounds lovely. It has a nice 'round' tone and nice clear bass notes, and it's louder than the English pianos I've played in the past. There's still a little bit of sanding and beeswax-polishing left to do, which I'll tackle myself.

Click to enlarge!

I spy four spots where the candle-holders were attached...

Lots of nice Art Nouveau-style decoration :)

It's been a long wait - since I moved away to uni in early 1999, I've been relying on an electric keyboard, which has been fine for getting me through singing practice and (back in the day) uni assignments. But for playing piano music I need the real thing, inconvenient though that is...

I did my Grade 8 piano exam during my break year before uni, and my playing has been getting steadily rustier ever since, although I'm sure the decline has been slowed by holiday piano-binges at Mum & Dad's. Hopefully now I can get some of my fluency back. I actually practised scales today! Voluntarily! 'Teenage Me' would be astounded. ;)