...is playing old pianos

I have this thing for old pianos, and if I can choose between electric and acoustic pianos, I choose the latter with no hesitation. The feeling of the keys, the sound, the feel, everything is just better with an acoustic piano.

This piano belongs to dad and Annica, and it's my favorite piano so far of all the pianos I've played (which is actually quite many if you think of all the practice rooms I've been in at the Folk School in Härnösand, and the College in Young Harris, and the numerous churches I've visited and played in).

It's a Square Piano, with the strings going from right to left, laying down. It is not full sized, as you can see, and I think it actually has real ivory on the keys, since it's very, very old. The keys are so light, and a little thinner than modern pianos, which makes it very easy to play on. It only has one pedal, a sustain. I'm not sure of the year it was built, just that it's old and had been standing in a barn for a lot of years, before the owners before us decided to restore it. When we bought it, it was playable, but it got out of tune as soon as the weather changed. Nowadays, after some more work of the fantastic John Beck, it holds better but it is still almost always a little out of tune.

I think that's why I love it though. Because it is not perfectly tuned, but it has such a clear sound, like magic. And then the look of it, of course. Because it truly is a beauty!