music practise rooms

sosumi
Mon, 29 Mar 2010 17:09:41 +0000

Being a current freshman at Carleton, a probable music major, and someone with an almost complete goal of playing all the pianos on campus, I felt I should respond to this.

Like you, I also have a decent upright Kawai at home, but when I go home to it, I miss the pianos we have here. Overall, the pianos are in good shape, with most being on the better side of “average” condition. If I’m not mistaken, all the pianos - save a few derelicts that are just awful - are tuned before the start of each of the three terms.

Which music building was your son playing piano in? If he was in the Concert Hall (the large, kind of modern rectangular building next to the chapel), that’s probably why he was having difficulties finding a good piano. Since the practice rooms there are used most frequently by instrumental musicians, as opposed to pianists or voice students, the pianos in the basement of the Concert Hall aren’t as nice as the ones in the Old Music Hall. There are a few less-than-ideal pianos down there - perhaps he just had bad luck and stumbled upon them.

As for the better pianos on campus, all of the pianos in Old Music Hall are in good shape. Of note, there’s a fairly bright Yamaha C3 grand on the second floor that’s good for pop or jazz playing, two Kawai grands on the third floor which play quite like the Yamaha but less bright, and a preponderance of Steinway Model M grands of various ages throughout the building (the best ones are in 305 and 306).

In basement of the Concert Hall, there’s an absolutely amazing Steinway Model B 6’ 10" grand in the Orchestra / Band rehearsal room, my personal favorite piano to practice on on campus. As for performance pianos, we have three Steinway Model D 9 foot concert grands - one from 1970, one from the 1980s, and one that was just refurbished and purchased this year. It goes without saying these are the best pianos on campus, but they’re usually kept locked in the Concert Hall. There’s also a older Bösendorfer in the chapel which has a fairly light response and semi-bright tone which is fun to play given the ringing acoustics of the chapel.

I hope this helps! If you or your son have any questions relating to the pianos, Music Department, or just life at Carleton in general, feel free to message me.