How Concert Pianists Choose Their Instrument

Aug 25

7 min read

When a concert pianist is given the opportunity to choose between several grand pianos, the decision is rarely as simple as selecting a preferred brand.

The pianist is choosing a partner for one particular performance.

An instrument that feels perfect for Ravel may not be the pianist’s first choice for Brahms. A piano that projects magnificently in a large hall may feel excessive in an intimate salon. And two instruments of exactly the same make and model can inspire completely different reactions.

Professional piano selection is therefore not about finding the objectively “best” piano in the room. It is about finding the instrument that gives the pianist the greatest artistic possibilities for the music, the acoustic and the occasion.

The Brand Is Only the Beginning

Most experienced pianists develop preferences over time. Some are naturally drawn to Steinway, others to Bösendorfer, Fazioli, Yamaha, Shigeru Kawai or another maker.

These preferences matter, but they rarely tell the whole story.

Pianos are acoustic instruments built largely from natural materials. Wood varies. Hammers develop differently. Actions are regulated differently. Instruments age, settle and respond to their environments in individual ways.

This means that two concert grands carrying the same model designation can differ noticeably in:

tonal colour;
resistance of the action;
dynamic range;
projection;
sustain;
clarity;
bass response;
character of the treble.

A pianist who chooses only according to the name on the fallboard risks overlooking the instrument that may actually suit the performance better.

The Repertoire Changes the Decision

The programme is one of the most important factors in piano selection.

A pianist performing Mozart may prioritise transparency, articulation and control at low dynamic levels.

For Debussy or Ravel, the ability to produce a wide spectrum of colour may become more important.

A programme centred around Liszt, Rachmaninoff or Prokofiev may demand greater projection, power and stability under intensive playing.

For chamber music, the pianist may deliberately choose an instrument that blends naturally with strings or winds rather than one that dominates them.

The question is therefore not simply:

Which piano sounds best?

It is:

Which piano gives this music the greatest expressive possibilities?

Pianists Listen for Colour, Not Just Beauty

A beautiful tone is not enough for a great concert instrument.

Professional pianists need variety.

An instrument that produces one consistently attractive sound can become limiting. The pianist must be able to create different colours according to touch, register, harmony and musical context.

A strong concert instrument might allow the player to move between:

warmth and brilliance;
intimacy and projection;
transparency and density;
softness without loss of clarity;
power without harshness.

The pianist is not searching for a piano that already sounds beautiful on its own.

They are searching for one that allows them to create the sound they imagine.

Touch Can Decide Everything

Sometimes the decisive factor is not the sound at all.

It is the action.

The pianist needs to feel that the instrument responds directly and predictably to extremely small differences in touch.

They may test:

very soft attacks;
rapid repetition;
repeated chords;
trills;
large dynamic changes;
legato control;
balance between individual voices.

Some pianists prefer greater resistance because it gives them something to work against. Others favour a lighter, faster action.

Again, there is no universal ideal.

A well-regulated action should offer control. How that control should feel remains deeply personal.

Pianissimo Is Often More Revealing Than Fortissimo

A powerful concert grand can impress immediately.

Professional pianists, however, often learn more about an instrument by playing quietly.

Producing a loud sound is comparatively easy. Producing an extremely soft note that still speaks clearly and reliably requires much greater precision from both the pianist and the action.

A pianist may therefore test whether the instrument can:

respond at the edge of audibility;
repeat reliably at low dynamics;
sustain a melodic line without forcing;
distinguish several dynamic layers within the same texture.

The ability to whisper can reveal as much about a concert piano as the ability to fill a hall.

Projection Is Different from Loudness

A concert piano needs to reach the audience, but sheer volume is not the same as projection.

An instrument can feel overwhelmingly loud beside the keyboard yet lose definition several metres away. Another may feel less aggressive to the pianist but carry remarkably clearly through a hall.

Projection depends on the interaction between:

the piano;
the room;
the stage;
the lid position;
the repertoire;
the audience configuration.

This is one reason pianists sometimes ask another person to play while they walk into the hall and listen from the audience.

The sound experienced from the bench is not necessarily the sound heard in the last row.

The Room Is Part of the Instrument

A piano cannot be selected independently of its acoustic environment.

The same instrument may sound dramatically different in:

a dry recording studio;
a resonant concert hall;
a historic salon;
a highly reflective modern interior.

A naturally brilliant piano may become overwhelming in a lively acoustic. A darker instrument may gain extraordinary richness in the same space.

For this reason, piano selection is ultimately a relationship between pianist, instrument, repertoire and room.

Change one of those elements and the ideal choice may change with it.

Pianists Often Test Specific Passages

During a piano selection, experienced performers rarely need to play through an entire programme.

Instead, they may choose passages that reveal particular characteristics of the instrument.

For example:

a lyrical passage to test singing tone;
repeated notes to test repetition;
dense chords to evaluate clarity;
rapid passagework to assess action response;
bass passages to test definition and power;
very soft writing to test control;
climactic sections to understand the piano’s limits.

The pianist is effectively asking the instrument a series of questions.

Its responses determine whether it is the right partner for the performance.

Preparation Can Transform the Choice

The condition in which a pianist first encounters an instrument matters enormously.

A high-quality piano can make a poor first impression if it is:

out of tune;
unevenly regulated;
badly voiced;
fitted with deeply worn hammers;
technically neglected.

Conversely, excellent preparation can reveal qualities that were previously hidden.

This is why the work of the concert technician is so important. Tuning, regulation and voicing do not turn one piano into another; they allow the individual instrument to perform closer to its full potential.

Voicing Can Be Adapted to the Artist and the Hall

For important performances, preparation may go beyond a standard tuning.

A technician can refine the tonal balance through voicing—for example, softening an overly aggressive register, improving consistency between notes or helping the instrument better suit the acoustic.

The aim should not be to impose a generic “concert sound.”

It is to understand what the pianist needs from that particular piano in that particular room.

This dialogue between artist and technician can be one of the most important elements of professional concert preparation.

Familiarity Can Matter More Than Prestige

When several excellent instruments are available, a pianist may choose the one on which they immediately feel comfortable.

That comfort should not be underestimated.

On stage, the artist must concentrate on music—not on compensating for an unpredictable action or discovering how the instrument behaves.

An instrument that feels intuitive can therefore be preferable to another piano that may appear more impressive in isolation.

The best concert piano is often the one that allows the pianist to stop thinking about the piano.

Why Different Pianists Choose Different Pianos

Two world-class pianists can test the same instruments and make completely different choices.

That does not mean one of them is wrong.

Their:

physical technique;
sound ideal;
repertoire;
touch;
experience;
aesthetic preferences

are different.

One pianist may hear possibilities where another hears limitations.

This subjectivity is not a weakness of the piano. It is one of the qualities that makes acoustic instruments fascinating.

A truly exceptional piano does not necessarily appeal to everyone in the same way. It possesses a character strong enough for the right pianist to form a relationship with it.

What Happens When There Is No Choice?

Of course, touring pianists do not always have several instruments waiting for them.

Sometimes there is only one piano.

In that situation, the process changes from selection to adaptation.

The pianist learns the instrument while the technician attempts to prepare it as closely as possible to the artist’s needs.

Experienced performers become remarkably skilled at adapting quickly—changing touch, pedalling and physical approach according to the instrument in front of them.

But when genuine choice is available, selecting the right piano can significantly expand what becomes artistically possible in the performance.

Key Takeaways

Concert pianists choose individual instruments, not brands alone.
The repertoire strongly influences which piano is most suitable.
Tonal variety is often more important than one beautiful sound.
Touch, repetition and pianissimo control can be decisive.
Projection must be evaluated in the room, not only from the keyboard.
Professional preparation can dramatically improve what an instrument is able to offer.
Different pianists can legitimately choose different pianos.
The ideal concert instrument is the one that gives the artist the greatest freedom to realise their musical ideas.

Why VIA?

At VIA – Piano & Arts Center, our understanding of pianos is inseparable from performance.

We work with instruments not only as objects to be sold or serviced, but as tools through which musicians communicate. This means considering sound, touch, regulation, voicing, repertoire and room as parts of the same equation.

Our Concert Salon in Vienna can be booked for recitals, chamber music, recordings and other professional musical projects. Artists are not simply given a room and a piano: they can choose the instrument they want to perform on from the pianos available at VIA, allowing them to select the musical character that best suits their programme.

Professional piano preparation for the performance or recording is part of the service when our Concert Salon is booked. We prepare the selected instrument according to the demands of the repertoire, the artist and the occasion, including the necessary tuning and technical adjustments so that the piano can perform at its best.

This combination of choice of instrument, professional preparation and an intimate performance environment allows artists to approach a concert or recording with the same attention to the piano that they would expect in a professional concert setting.

Whether a piano is being selected for a private owner, a performance or a recording, our objective remains the same: to understand what the musician needs and help the instrument provide it.