Very well written story of both the making of a Steinway piano and also of the company itself. ( )

An engaging and compelling read. The book originated in a series the author wrote for The New York Times and, as such, it is aimed at a general reader. In this era of Ikea, fast foods, and mass clothing chains, few people have any exposure to professional craftsmen -- and with one exception all the characters in this book are men.

Barron's narrative is as much about the people who work at Steinway & Sons as it is about the creation of K0862. Most ended up at the Steinway factory in a roundabout way, but once there they have remained for years. Barron is skillful at sketching them for us and showing why they are good at what they do.

A musical instrument results from a complex interplay of physics, aesthetics, and technical prowess. This interplay is glimpsed but not really examined in the book. There is, for example, no discussion of why a piano sounds different from other keyboard instruments; and certainly nothing about the challenging compromises that have been necessary to enable something that weighs more than half a tonne to sing at all. Because Barron doesn't specify the aggregate tension of the strings, for example, it's not clear from his account why the development of the cast iron plate was so important.

The restrictions of a large-circulation daily newspaper may explain the absence of technical detail, but the book would benefit, I think, from some drawings or sketches of at least the action.

Despite the lengthy development process of the text and its previous publication, there are surprising errors. One hundred thirty thousand board feet of lumber will not frame 30,000 houses, but more like eight or ten (page 88). Johann Sebastian Bach did not say, in 1776, that there is nothing remarkable about playing the piano since if you hit the right keys at the right time the instrument plays itself (page 154). By 1776 he had been in his grave for more than a quarter century, and the remark, if he made it at all, was said about the pipe organ. How could Barron, who spent more than a year inhabiting the world of the concert piano, think for a moment the comment could describe playing that instrument? And how could he, on page 157, write that as soon as the hammer strikes, the damper falls back, deadening the string?

So read this book to enjoy a story about a process, a culture, and a history. Don't pick it up to learn anything much about the piano. ( )

I have played piano since the age of seven and have had the pleasure of shopping for a Steinway for my place of business. This look inside the business was illuminating and entertaining. ( )

Piano: The Making of a Steinway Concert Grand is written by a New York Times reporter James Barron (who does such a splendid job on the NYT podcast Mon-Fri). Barron writes with precision, humor, and sensitivity at several levels: the history of the Steinway family, the history of a particular piano being created, the sociology and real estate history of New York over time, and about the fascinating people who perform all the tasks that create the instrument. His treatment of the workers and Steinway family members is as sensitive and caring as his treatment of the book's subject, the K0862, aka the CD-60. By the book’s end, the piano is real and engaging to the reader, leading to the suspense of its final destination and use.