Nearly every popular genre of music includes a piano as one of its main instruments. Rock, disco, country, pop and of course classical music all embrace the piano. It seems to add just the right touch.

While the best option is always a new piano, the most practical option for many people is to find a piano for sale at a piano flea market. A piano flea market not only ensures you of acquiring one of the most beloved, endearing instruments, it allows you to do that on a budget. The selection of used pianos is always vast. The endearing benefits of owning that piano purchased at a piano flea market will be realized as soon as you bring it home.

At Cooper Piano, we truly understand the universal popularity of pianos and firmly believe in the soul-stirring effect music has on the human spirit. We’ve been understanding and believing for over 100 years.

Fourth generation owners, Blake and Jolie, know that a quality piano is a once in a lifetime purchase. They recognize the importance of imparting correct, helpful information, ensuring the customer discovers all he should know about pianos and purchasing one. It’s Blake’s and Jolie’s goal to educate the customer so that each piano purchase is completed in an easy, efficient process. It is their commitment that each customer is more than satisfied; each customer is happy with their piano purchase. Their proud credo is "Build a better world through music education."

Cooper Piano has always maintained a loving relationship with their customers. Customers appreciate the way Blake, Jolie and the entire staff treat them with respect and dignity. There’s never any high-pressure sales and there’s always help available for any questions or concerns that may arise.

Remembering the last house party you attended where somebody played a piano, would you say it added an element of camaraderie to the affair? Did others join in to sing along? Did you add your voice to the party? Was it one of the most memorable parties ever? Did it make you wish you had one?    

When I realized I had a chance to own my very own grand piano, I was little naïve about the challenges of finding the appropriate place for it in my home. The considerations went way beyond just finding the space for it to fit; I had to make sure it was protected from harmful conditions that exist in many of the places I had thought would be ideal.

My Dilemma

You see, originally envisioned putting it right by my big plate glass window in the living room so that I could look out over the lawn while I was practicing my chops and have it become a natural a centerpiece for musical get-togethers. What I discovered with a little research was exposure to direct sunlight is one of the worst things I could do for my piano. The constantly changing temperatures on both the soundboard and the body mess up the tuning and ultimately damage the instrument. I tried to envision keeping the drapes closed at the right times of day but knew that I’d quickly forget this daily task and wind up doing damage to my beautiful new piano.

Once I realized my ideal placement wasn’t going to work, I started looking for other places where it wouldn’t be exposed to direct sunlight. That’s when I found out that grand pianos should not be situated over or below air conditioning and heating vents or near a fireplace or radiator because they can also create temperature variation that cause the same kind of damage as sunlight. I also can’t put it in a humid room like a basement or against an exterior wall that changes temperature all day.  

The Perfect Solution

The hunt for the ideal place for my new baby grand was eventually narrowed down to a few choice locations in my house with the right conditions. After rearranging furniture in my mind, I saw how I could position it along an interior shared wall in the living room and still have the required 300 square feet of space needed to access it easily. I also happy to report that with just a little creative angling,  I can see the lawn out the plate glass window from my piano bench and my new grand piano is still beautifully positioned for parties and sing-a-longs. So glad I did my homework and found the perfect solution to my dilemma!

Keybed
The keybed is the piece of wood that supports the keyboard. The keybed must be perfectly straight so each key has the same action. If keybeds warp or sag, the quality begins to suffer. Keybeds should be made from solid wood or multi-ply hardwood.

Treble Wire Sizes
Piano wires make the magic happen. There are bass and treble wires. Quality pianos have both whole and one-half treble wire sizes in order to achieve uniform tension and even tuning and even tone.

Maple Action
The essential function of the piano action components is to translate each key depression into the rapid motion of the hammer to create sound by striking the strings. These piano features are often crafted from maple, a strong yet flexible wood that resists warping and so lasts longer.

Stapled Hammers
The piano hammers are actually constructed first as one long hammer the piano craftsman later cuts into multiple hammers. The high-quality felt that wraps around the maple hammer mold with wire or staples. Stapled hammers keep their shape longer and are more durable, so they provide a good, strong tone longer.

Cast Iron Frame
A piano’s cast iron frame, sometimes called the plate or harp. The frames sustain the intense tension created by the strings. You want to find frames made from the highest quality cast iron to achieve maximum strength and maximum stability, which minimizes maintenance.

Solid Reputation
When it comes to pianos, reputations are well-earned and well-deserved. Piano companies that consistently deliver high quality piano features and deliver top-notch instruments quickly earn a good reputation. Brand names don’t always matter, but when it comes to pianos, reputation counts for a lot.

The piano experts at Cooper music believe we can build a better world through music education, including educating consumers on how to recognize the benefits and advantages of piano features. Buying a piano is a once in a lifetime purchase. Choosing a quality piano should be clear and simple, not confusing, so you end up with the instrument you deserve.

This blog post will focus on some key piano features and the hallmarks of great piano construction so you can determine a high quality piano from a lesser quality instrument.

Case Construction
The piano case houses all the inner workings. But, since it is made from natural materials, it’s subject to damage. A five-ply case construction will guarantee the case does not warp and crack over time. These cases are more stable and require nearly zero upkeep. 

Pedals
Grand pianos with brass pedals have two advantages. First, brass is more durable than other materials and so the pedals are less likely to break. Secondly, brass is simply more attractive than other options. 

Finishes
Pianos are large pieces of furniture, in addition to being an instrument, and so the final finish matters. A genuine lacquer finish is much more durable and easy to touch up. A lacquer finish is also the standard in fine furniture finishes and this finish on a piano acknowledges the investment you made. 

Back Frame
The back frame is one of the most important piano features because it supports the cast iron frame and keeps the piano from warping and twisting from the high tension of the strings. The best back frames use dovetail joints to create a strong frame, which also helps in tuning stability.

Pinblock
The pinblock holds the tuning pins and so this piece of wood has to be strong enough to withstand as much as 40,000 pounds of tension. A four-ply pinblock is stronger and indicates the pinblock is constructed with more wood and less glue and will grip the pins tighter and for longer.

Ribs or Braces
Ribs attach to the bottom of the soundboard. They stiffen and strengthen the soundboard without making it too rigid. Notched ribs more fully support the soundboard and help the soundboard retain more resonant tonal qualities. 

Understanding the key piano features of this amazing instrument will help you become a better consumer of pianos and understand your own instrument better. In the next  post, learn about keybeds and why reputable companies are worth the cost.  

From the average player to the expert, Yamaha pianos have an excellent reputation among their users. There are many reasons that Yamaha pianos are a consistent choice among the best players. Here are five.

Quality: Yamaha has a reputation and long-standing track record for building only the best pianos. When you’re looking for quality you can’t beat the quality of Yamaha.

Variety: A piano is an investment most people make only once. But people will get pianos at various points in their lives for a variety of reasons. While the quality remains from model to model, the variety of pianos available from Yamaha is really quite striking.

Musical range: Yamaha has built up a reputation for having many of the finest pianos; the range of products available from Yamaha is second to none. Yamaha pianos come in digital pianos, stage pianos, synthesizers, portable pianos, workstations, upright pianos, hybrid pianos, Disklaiver pianos, grand pianos, premium, high quality pianos and more. Yamaha even has a SILENT piano which allows the pianist to turn off the sound and play their piano with digital reproduction through high-quality stereo headphones.

Beauty: Yamaha has been building pianos for a long time. It’s with this track record of building only the best instruments that Yamaha has created some of the most visually striking pianos for their lineup. It’s not just the most expensive pianos which are the nicest to look at either. There are some very inexpensive pianos which are still, quite beautiful.

Yamaha Brand: One of the biggest caveats to why the best musicians play Yamaha pianos has to do with the implicit quality in the Yamaha name itself. Yamaha has done much through the years in their consistent building of only the best instruments so the Yamaha brand is one of the things which stands alone and leaves quite an impression. While brand loyalty is often one of those misnomers which is just blindly placed on a product; not so for Yamaha. It’s their attention to detail and amazing track-record that Yamaha has built a following worthy of the gravitas thrust on it.

There are many pianos you can buy; cautious consumers take their time in investigating the brand and model piano before making a purchase. Time and again though many of the best pianists have pored over the evidence and return to the Yamaha brand for their quality and value. 

In this blog series, we would like to share how Cooper became a business of piano experts and some of this expertise. Follow the this series and you’ll learn our company’s history and how you, too, can recognize the hallmarks of a great piano.

Back in 1906, Jonathan Cooper founded the business Cooper Brothers, Inc. in Pennsylvania where he put his knowledge of woodworking into crafting and selling pump organs. As business grew, Cooper added additional services including selling and restoring pianos. The business continued to grow and evolve as the times and the market shifted. Eventually, the company moved to Atlanta.

During the Great Depression and again in World War II, many people turned to Cooper for piano restoration allowing the company to develop a reputation as a premier restorer of superbly crafted antique pianos. Cooper Music is now largest piano restorer in the Southeast.

The business expanded greatly in the 1970s and 1980s but combined all it’s stores into one large showroom in the 1990s offering new pianos, piano restoration, classes, rentals and a concert hall. The staff members at Cooper Music are experts in all pianos. The showroom in Atlanta carries about 30 brands of pianos including the top names in pianos like Schimmel and Steinway.

But it is the experience with and reputation for piano restoration that makes Cooper the piano expert business it is today. Restoration through Cooper is more than a cosmetic make over. Our expert piano technicians can restore or replace the original soundboard and pin block using the most exacting standards and the finest materials.

Cooper Music did not become piano experts over night. It took decades of dedication to the piano industry and fine attention to the craftsmanship and standards of this delicate and powerful instrument. Over the next few blog posts, we will share with you what 106 years of piano expertise have taught us with the goal of educating others about what makes a great piano great. Joins us as we explore this amazing instrument.