尋琴記

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尋琴記9:Metroplex Piano

Mason & Hamlin整個尋琴記系列的文章可以在這裡找到:<尋琴記系列>

今天是美國的勞動節,所以我們全家去Metroplex Piano在Keller的門市部走了一趟。Metroplex Piano是我們本地的Yamaha代理商,他們另外還代理Mason & Hamlin, Bosendorfer, Seiler, Pramberger, 和Knabe。Metroplex Piano總共有三家門市,一家在Dallas,一家在Plano,一家在Keller。接待我們的業務員叫做Hale Ryan。

Metroplex Piano的網站上說他們目前要整修所有的店面,因此所有的鋼琴都要出清。我在去之前先打聽了一下他們有沒有Yamaha C2X,結果他們只有Keller的分店有,所以我這次去主要是要試試Yamaha C2X。

到了店裡,我們先試了兩台重建的Steinway:一台1918年的Steinway O和一台不知年份的Steinway M。說實在的,除了看起來舊舊的,彈起來並沒有讓我有什麼特別的感覺。

這時,業務員請我們去試試他最喜歡的一台琴,走過去一看原來是一台新的Mason & Hamlin AA。當我一彈下去我就愛上這台琴了。他的觸鍵非常的平順,從ppp到fff都可以很輕易的表現出來。他的高音的sustain非常的好聽,就像人家說的有一種像是在唱歌的感覺,音色非常的美。不可否認,這是我到目前為止彈過最好的一台琴,但是他的價位超過我的預算太多(SMP $64,191)。

Yamaha CF4之後我們又試了店裡的兩台Bosendofer(型號我不記得,反正我也買不起),一台Yamaha CFX(沒有讓我驚艷的感覺,也許是調整得不好)。這幾台都是給演奏廳用的大琴,我們也不可能買回來放在家裡。然後我們又試彈了一台Yamaha CF4,WOW!又是一台讓我驚艷的鋼琴。它的觸鍵也是非常的平順,而且它沒有Yamaha以前那種刺耳的高音,而是飽滿而又音色優美的高音。我好喜歡這台琴,但是它的定價嚇死人(SMP $105,599,沒錯,你沒有看錯,是十萬美金,快要可以買兩台Mason & Hamlin AA了)。

當然,我也試了店裡的Yamaha C2X和GC2。只是彈了Mason & Hamlin AA和Yamaha CF4之後就覺得C2x和GC2從觸鍵到音色都非常的遜色。業務員跟我說C2X可以給我的最低價錢是$32,000(不含稅),而GC2最低只能賣我$22,000不含稅。如果這是我所能拿到的最低價,那我寧可買中國製的鋼琴。也許有一天等我發了的時候我可以買Yamaha CF4或是Mason & Hamlin AA。

最後在走之前我們試了店裡的一台Pramberger PS-185 ($15,790)和Seiler ED-186($26,998)。Pramberger的聲音還不錯,讓我想起我們家之前的Perzina GP-175,當然跟Mason & Hamlin AA和Yamaha CF4沒得比,但是價位不同嘛!Seiler的聲音很濁,很不好聽,我本來對Seiler有很高的期望,現在看來是出局了。當然,這兩台是我比較有可能買得起的鋼琴,但是它們並沒有讓我驚艷的感覺,所以我們決定下次再到別的店裡看看。

回家的路上我老婆跟我說她還是比較喜歡亮面(polished)的鋼琴,她不喜歡satin處理的鋼琴。我把它記在這裡免得忘記。

A Few Thoughts on Piano Business

Music Business Card整個尋琴記系列的文章可以在這裡找到:<尋琴記系列>

After spending several months shopping for a piano in the U.S., I have come to the conclusion that the piano business needs some changes. I am not an expert in business management, but maybe my observation can spark new thinking in this business.

First, I found the piano business lagging behind other industries in utilizing the Internet and new technologies for business purposes. Yes, most piano dealers and distributors have a website, but many of them look like they were built in 1990’s. I have seen broken links and pictures on most of piano companies’ web sites. Of course, I have learned not to judge the quality of a piano brand and piano dealership based on its website, but I do wonder if there is a connection.

Second, most piano dealers and distributors’ website provide very limited information on their pianos. In this day and age, I would expect an up-to-date piano inventory on a dealer’s web site but I have never seen one. Furthermore, when dealers post their inventory on the web site, they usually just show a few pictures of the pianos. Isn’t piano a music instrument? Why can’t you take a video of the piano been played and put it on the web site? And while we are on the topic of pictures, how come piano companies only have pictures of polished ebony finish? Why can’t you have pictures of every finish on your web site? Take a look at clothing retail web sites like hm.com, they show you multiple angles of each item and the availability of each size. Can’t piano companies do something like that?

Another problem I have with piano companies’ web site is the lack of detailed specs for the pianos. Some piano companies provide more detailed specs and some provide none. I think it should be the responsibility of the piano dealer to find out everything they can about the piano they are selling and provide them in a standardized format on their web sites. For example, take a look at the Phone Arena – it is a web site about mobile phones. They provide detailed and uniformed specs on every mobile phones you can find in the market and they allow you to compare cell phones side by side. Phone Arena also provides expert reviews and allows users to comment on each phone. Other industries have learned that building a community and social network is the way to attract more business. As a piano dealer, if you have confidence in the quality of your pianos and services, why don’t you let your buyers comment on the pianos you are selling and your services? You can also allow your buyers to post video of them playing the piano on your website. As a piano shopper, I would love to hear what your buyers have to say about the piano they purchased from you and their purchasing experience.

Other than the voice, touch is another important aspect in piano shopping, but it is an aspect that is difficult to show on a website. A shopper really has to go in to a store to experience the touch. However, the cruel fact is that piano dealers provide no information on the touch of their pianos on their web site. None! Zero! Why can’t you measure the touch weight of each piano in your inventory and post it along with other specs? That way, shoppers at least get a sense of the touch weight compared to other pianos in your inventory.

Third, most first time piano shoppers struggle with the correct size of piano for their room. This is a problem facing also by the furniture industry. However, many furniture companies have thought about this and developed online tools to deal with this problem. For example, on Havertys’ web site they provide a Room Planner that you can draw a room and plan the arrangement of furniture pieces. Why can’t piano companies offer something like that?

Lastly, I understand that piano companies are in the business to make money. As fewer people are buying pianos these days, everyone is trying to find new markets. Some are running piano studios on the side and some offer performance avenues. There are two things I think most people are already aware but I will say it again. First, there are a large U.S. population lives in the rural/suburban areas that do not have quick access to piano galleries. Even for those live near or in a big city, most of them do not have access to more than a few piano brands. If you can establish a regional or national network of local piano technicians and movers that will help you deliver the piano and prep the piano at the customer’s home to the customer’s satisfaction, I think you will be able to expand your market beyond your local area. You can, for example, provide an instant quote on your web site regarding the price of shipping to the customer’s home including the service of prepping the piano. I think the more information you can provide to your potential customers and the more convenient the purchasing process is, the more likely you will earn their business. After the sales are done, you should continue engaging your customers by inviting them to post their playing video on your web site or link to your Facebook page so you have a community of piano lovers.

My last last point is about the population shift. We all know that Latino is the fastest growing population in the U.S, but I have not seen a piano company targeting this potential group of customers. I am not exactly sure how you would do it, but it is just a thought.

尋琴記10:鋼琴琴橋裂痕

整個尋琴記系列的文章可以在這裡找到:<尋琴記系列>

最近比較忙,沒有時間去看鋼琴。加上我最近感興趣的兩台琴Brodmann PE-187和Cunningham Parlour Grand目前都沒得看,所以沒有什麼進度。倒是我把之前Weber W-150的照片翻出來看了一下。當初Weber W-150送來的時候我就覺得它的琴橋(bridge)看起來好像怪怪的,似乎有點裂開。不過因為我本來就沒有打算一直留著這一台琴,所以我也沒有太在意。最近我把當時照的照片貼到Piano World的討論區裡面給專家鑑定一下。結果大家一看都說這是非常嚴重的問題。有人說這台琴根本應該要報廢,還有人指出問題的來源是工廠在鋸木材的時候根本就鋸錯了方向。總之,施工品質不良造成產品重大缺失。照片如下:

Weber W150 bridge crack

說實在話我本來對Weber的鋼琴印象很好,還想要把它推薦給想要買平台式三角鋼琴但是預算不多的人。結果現在發現他們工程品質這麼差,看來我是不會再推薦Weber或是Young Chang的鋼琴了。

尋琴記11:Dallas/Keller試琴

Shigeru Kawai整個尋琴記系列的文章可以在這裡找到:<尋琴記系列>

今天趁著去Dallas辦事順便到Collora Piano和Metroplex Piano Keller走了一趟。這裡記錄一下我今天比較有印象的幾台琴。

先去的是Collora Piano。我首先試了Ritmuller GH-188R和其他幾台比較小一點的Ritmuller平台三角鋼琴。Ritmuller和Pearl River是我們幾個月前開始找鋼琴的時候最先試彈的幾台琴。當時我跟我老婆的感覺是Ritmuller聲音不錯但是觸鍵太輕。經過這幾個月我們陸陸續續的試彈了不下幾十台琴,今天再回去彈Ritmuller,我不再覺得它的觸鍵太輕,但是它的音色卻讓我覺得頗反感。我個人喜歡比較mellow的音色。Ritmuller的音色算是mellow但是有點悶悶的感覺。我很不喜歡這種悶悶的感覺。之前在Piano Gallery彈過一台Samick也是這種感覺,非常不喜歡。看來Ritmuller是要從我的名單上剔除了。

然後我試了一台Wilhelm Schimmel W-180。Schimmel是德國品牌,他們的Wilhelm Schimmel系列鋼琴是在波蘭組裝的。店員說這台琴的價格大約是美金兩萬七左右。彈完Ritmuller之後再彈這台琴有種耳目一新的感覺,聲音很清新,不錯,但是兩萬七有點超出我的預算。

Wilhelm Schimmel Piano然後我試了一台重建(rebuild)的Steinway M。才彈了幾個音我就清楚的發現Steinway跟剛剛的Wilhelm Schimmel W-180差別在哪裡。Wilhelm Schimmel W-180的聲音聽起來很清新但是色彩很單薄,Steinway的聲音聽起來色彩很豐富。我不知道要怎麼樣形容這種感覺,我只能說Wilhelm Schimmel W-180的聲音讓我覺得像是一位16歲的少女,很清秀但是缺少一種成熟的魅力。而Steinway的聲音讓我覺得像是28歲的輕熟女,有了一點人生的歷練,很美但是又不會太豔麗、太老氣。只可惜這台Steinway外表太舊我老婆是不會接受的。

然後我試了店了一台Shigeru Kawai,這是Kawai最高級的鋼琴,它在網路上的風評極高。在彈完Steinway之後彈Shigeru Kawai,我覺得Shigeru Kawai的音色還是比不上Steinway來的豐富。但是Shigeru Kawai的觸鍵是我這幾個月試過的琴裡面最最棒的一台。它的觸鍵既不太重也不太輕,彈起來好平順,真的好好彈。如果我可以結合這台Shigeru Kawai的觸鍵和Steinway的音色,那將是我心目中最理想的鋼琴。

之後我又試彈了一台重建的Mason & Hamlin A和兩台重建的Mason & Hamlin AA。我很喜歡Mason & Hamlin的琴,雖然他的音色沒有Steinway那麼美,觸鍵沒有Shigeru Kawai那麼平順,但是Mason & Hamlin就是合我的胃口,特別是Mason & Hamlin AA。我對於A的感覺其實還好,但是我真的很喜歡AA,可惜我都買不起,重建的我還是買不起。

Pramberger PianoCollora Piano的店裡還有好些不錯的琴像是Schimmel和Estonia,但是因為我下午還要回去學校開會,因此我必須趕著離開。

離開Collora Piano之後我驅車前往Metroplex Piano Keller。上次去Metroplex Piano Keller的時候跟店裡的鋼琴銷售員聊得頗開心,後來他跟我說有一台Pramberger JP-208要我去試一試。Pramberger鋼琴以前是Young Chang的品牌,後來Joseph Pramberger過世之後Pramberger的品牌被Samick買下來,但是Pramberger的鋼琴設計仍然屬於Young Chang。Pramberger JP-208是Pramberger最高等級Platinum Series的鋼琴。按照Larry Fine的分級,J.P. Pramberger (Platinum)是和Yamaha C/CX系列同一個等級的鋼琴,算是很好的鋼琴。但是很奇怪的是網路上關於Pramberger JP-208的評論非常非常稀少。大部分關於Pramberger的討論都提到Young Chang生產的Pramberger聲音非常的好,但是自從Samick接手Pramberger之後就很少人再討論Pramberger了。

Pramberger JP-208是一台6’10″的琴,已經快要接近7呎了。這個大小的鋼琴已經可以放在小的演奏廳裡當演奏琴,我是覺得放在我們家實在太大了一點。網路上一般對於買鋼琴的建議都是越大越好,因為越大的鋼琴在設計上越不需要妥協。我彈了Pramberger JP-208之後覺得還不錯,但是沒有讓我驚艷的感覺。重點是我覺得它太大而且外表是非亮面(satin)處理。我跟我老婆都比較喜歡亮面處理(polished)的鋼琴。銷售員開給我的價錢是美金一萬三千元。說實話,對於一台將近七呎的鋼琴來說,這真是一個低到不能再低的價格,但是我不覺得我老婆會願意買這一台琴。

尋琴記12:Seiler

Seiler ED-186整個尋琴記系列的文章可以在這裡找到:<尋琴記系列>

Seiler是一家歷史悠久的德國鋼琴公司。然而,就像很多其他的歐洲鋼琴公司一樣,在面對為數眾多的亞洲鋼琴競爭下,利潤一點一點的減少。最後在2008年被韓國鋼琴大廠Samick收購。Samick在收購Seiler之後把Seiler的鋼琴分成三個等級。最高級的SE系列維持Seiler原有的設計,並且仍然在Seiler的德國工廠生產。第二級的ED系列使用跟SE系列一樣的設計和歐洲零件,但是組裝是在Samick的印尼工廠。第三級的是Samick新創的品牌Johannes Seiler,也稱GS系列。Johannes Seiler使用的是新的設計和Samick自己製造的零件,組裝則是和ED系列一樣在Samick的印尼工廠。

Larry Fine在他的書中對Seiler的鋼琴評價頗高:Seiler SE系列被放在演奏級鋼琴中的第三級,比Steinway & Sons稍微低一點。其他這個等級的鋼琴還有Bechstein (B), Estonia, August Förster, Haessler/Rönisch, Shigeru Kawai, Mason & Hamlin, Petrof, Schimmel (Konzert/Classic), 和Yamaha (CF)。這個等級的鋼琴是我絕對買不起的,所以不考慮。

Seiler PianoSeiler ED系列被放在介於演奏級和消費者級中間的Intermediate Grade。這個等級的鋼琴包括Yamaha C/CX, Kawai RX/GX, Brodmann (AS), Boston, Wilhelm Schimmel和一些其他少數最高等級的韓國鋼琴。中國製的鋼琴中唯一出現在這個等級的是Perzina的直立式鋼琴(Perzina的三角平台式鋼琴要低一個等級)。

Johannes Seiler則是被放在消費者等級的中間級。其他這個等級的鋼琴還有Weber, Young Chang, Wm. Knabe (Academy), Pramberger (Signature), Yamaha GB, Kawai GM, Essex, Heintzman, Kingsburg, Palatino, Ritmuller (Performance), 和Story & Clark (Signature)。

Seiler的這三個系列的鋼琴中有兩台入選Larry Fine的推薦琴(Staff Picks):Johannes Seiler GS-160 (5’3″, SMP $15,398)和Seiler ED-186 (6’2″, SMP $26,998)。

我們本地的Seiler代理商是Metroplex Piano。上個月我們第一次去Metroplex Piano Keller分店拜訪的時候我注意到店裡有好幾台Seiler和Johannes Seiler。我當時彈了一下Seiler ED-186。不知道為什麼那一台Seiler ED-186的聲音聽起來濁濁的讓我非常不喜歡。因為第一印象差,所以我也就沒有試其他的Seiler。之後我回去店裡試琴的時候試了一下Johannes Seiler GS-160,感覺其實很不錯,沒有上次那種濁濁的感覺。但是,第一印象的影響實在太大,所以我完全沒把Seiler放在我的考慮中。

上個禮拜一,Metroplex Piano Keller的銷售員打電話給我跟我說他的調音師在準備Seiler ED-186,希望準備好之後我可以去試一試。他還提到Seiler獨特的soundboard設計以及德國製造的Renner action。我於是上網做了一些研究,結果發現Seiler在網路上的評價真的很不錯,我甚至沒有看到任何負面的評價。只是不知道為什麼我那天試彈的Seiler ED-186聲音那麼的差。如果它的聲音可以像Larry Fine在他書裡說的那麼好,然後我可以把Seiler ED-186殺到跟Brodmann PE-187和Cunningham Parlour Grand差不多的價錢,那Seiler ED-186將是一個可以考慮的鋼琴。