A night to remember

COLIN SMITH

WORK OF ART: Nelson School of Music manager Frances McElhinney admires the school's new Steinway concert grand piano.

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In a factory in Hamburg, 30 grand pianos stood in a room. Only three had their lids up. The rest had been played and discarded. London-based piano maestro Piers Lane sat at each of the three remaining instruments, playing them for a short while for a small but attentive audience of two. When he had finished playing the last one, he looked up and asked the couple which they preferred. "The final one," they answered.

"I was thinking the same thing," said Lane.

That Steinway piano has now been shipped to the Nelson School of Music, where it sits on the stage as a constant reminder of the generosity of Murray and Jocelyn Sturgeon.

The piano has arrived but it has yet to have a decent concert outing. That is why this Friday, Michael Houstoun, Dame Malvina Major, Diedre Irons, Tim Beveridge and emerging artists John-Paul Muir and Daniel Hayles will provide Nelson with a night to remember.

"This will be a highlight in Nelson's history," says school manager Frances McElhinney. "Seldom will you have the opportunity to hear New Zealand's most talented performers playing on a new Steinway concert grand piano in an acoustic auditorium hailed as one of the finest in the southern hemisphere."

The craftsmanship of Steinway pianos is world-renowned, and because they are individually handcrafted, each one is an original work of art. Nelson's work of art was chosen by the Sturgeons and by Lane specifically for the school of music auditorium.

"We were welcomed to the Steinway factory and saw the traditional way that the pianos are crafted," Mr Sturgeon says. "We joined Piers in the selection room when he had narrowed the process down to the final three. Being part of the selection is one of the most memorable experiences I have ever had."

He says that while many people bequeath money in their wills to organisations they support, he and Jocelyn decided to make the gift of the Steinway as something they could enjoy themselves, along with all the other music lovers of Nelson.

The Steinway was delivered early in February and came with the unenviable task of lifting the crated treasure, weighing 480 kilograms, on to the stage. Because of the heritage status of the building, a forklift could not be used, but the Tasman Makos were happy to lend a hand to lift the piano into place.

"Now it is time for the music lovers of Nelson to enjoy the beautiful tones of this exquisite instrument, and I can't think of a more memorable way than to hear it being played by New Zealand's best," Ms McElhinney says.

• Steinway Gala Concert at the Nelson School of Music, this Friday at 8pm. Featuring Michael Houstoun, Dame Malvina Major, Diedre Irons, Tim Beveridge and other emerging artists. Tickets at the NSOM on 035489477 or at www.nsom.ac.nz.

- © Fairfax NZ News