The room that is straight in the front door has a "normal" flat ceiling, some texture on it, carpeted, is about 8 feet high, with dimensions of about 12' by 15'. Part of that space has a "pony wall" (a short wall with upright decorative supports) along the length of the room, and separates the room from a parallel hall from the front door to a larger living room.

The larger living room is a step down (not a problem for my piano mover, but once its in place, I don't want to try to move it back up a step myself, hence this question). That room has a cathedral ceiling, 13.5' at the height. I'll have tile on the floor, and the ceiling is textured. The room has great wood panels (not to be confused with panelling!) all around. It's about 15' x 20' and has a dining room that opens off of one side of it, no door, just a 12 foot opening into an L off of the living room.

Which is likely to sound better accoustically? The bigger room, with the sloped ceiling that bounces sound around, or the smaller more boxy room? If it weren't for that step, I could push the thing around on my own and try it out. But I really hate to make the piano guy push it all over the place if I have an inkling of what might work best from the first.

Maggie

I suspect that the Great Room with tile is going to echo, bounce and you will lose a lot of sound.

Peter.

A room where the door can be closed, would be my ideal- to give privacy for the person practising as well as to make the rest of the house more peaceful. This of course depends on who else uses the house- if you have the house to yourself it's unlikely to be a consideration.

Acoustically, a lot depends on how the piano sounds- my mum's piano is quite quiet and a carpeted room makes it quieter, while the piano I've just got is rather loud (and out of tune...) so the more furnishings the better!

All the best in your new house, and enjoy playing.

Noreen

I'm inclined to go with Noreen's suggestions. I would consider practicality more than sound. The best pianist I know has her grand piano in a small entry way with a tile floor. Unless you have your own private concert hall, I'm not sure that acoustics really make that much difference.

Once when Hubby and I were still students he was the night watchman in a building that had the best acoustical auditorium on campus. Often the Steinway grand stayed there and I got to "pretend"!

Another friend asked for advice on the placement of a grand piano in her living room. She wanted to be able to stand in her kitchen and see her son's face as he played the piano. The only rule I know for a grand is that it should be with the nose in the corner (or next to the wall) not vice versa, (but I've seen this rule broken with beautiful full length windows). The only "rule" I know for an upright is the inside wall rule.

I grew up with the piano and the television in the same room, and it was a no-win situation. I couldn't play over the television as long as someone could simply turn the tv up louder. I hated it, and the house was very noisy this way. With these two rooms I can simply choose which one works best for the piano and put the tv in the other. This is a loud piano.

The small room next to the door wouldn't end up with stuff being left on the piano because it would be inside that small wall. (Since the piano is upright, when the keyboard is closed the hinged lid is sloped so nothing much would stay put there even if it were near the door). My Dad told me that his aunt Elsie used to play this piano all of the time. His uncle Eddie built the bench (because Elsie was Rubenesque and needed a substantial bench. The thing weighs a ton).

Mary, I have some photos around of John Dwyer beaming with said grandchildren on his lap and leaning adoringly against his knees. They didn't get enough exposure back then to know what to make of a singing grandfather on his few visits, but now they love the tapes they have of his singing. I haven't been as diligent as my parents were with music lessons, but we intend to do so when we get moved and can comfortably reach the piano (it has had furniture stacked in the way of playing it for years). When I was growing up and taking piano lessons I remember occasions when I'd be practicing in the living room, making the same mistake, and after a while Dad would shout from the kitchen "It's a G!"

My kids have their heads screwed on straight. They do watch television and play on the computer, but not to the exclusion of all else. They have too many other things to entertain themselves with, and they'll enjoy finally getting to learn to play the piano. I'm really looking forward to getting to play when I want, and I hope my enjoyment will rub off of them.

Maggie

Lovely.

I've always had an adversarial relationship with televisons. Banishing ours to some dark corner sounds like a great choice. And I guess that anyone who doesn't want to listen to the piano can go to their bedroom and they have a door that shuts. (I haven't painted them closed so far, anyway!).

Maybe next week I'll be starting a thread called "New Houses are Money Pits." I've got to take some time off to tile and paint. No way I'm going to get all of this done on evenings and weekends. But when it's ready, the piano will be somewhere in a place of honor.

Maggie