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Home of the one and only Fandrich Vertical Action that plays like a grand.
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"The first time I played on your piano with the new [FVA] action, I found it an amazing experience - it was difficult to believe I was not playing on a grand piano. I could see that I was sitting in front of an upright instrument, but the sensitivity to the touch and its capability of giving many degrees of shading and tone coloring were astonishing. Even grand pianos, unless they are the finest, do not respond with the gradations of tone that this upright can give. Recalling the poor pianos often found in practice rooms throughout many music schools and colleges, I cannot help thinking what a boon this piano would be to many aspiring young musicians. In homes also, this piano will greatly help student pianists to develop sensitivity to tone and touch. If a student has a good piano which responds to the various types of touch, gives different tone colors, and lets him know when he has gotten the touch right, he is going to develop greater control and skill in less time. I feel this invention will prove a blessing to all students and their teachers."

-- Michiko Morita Miyamoto



"The Fandrich upright is nothing short of magnificent. My personal feelings are confirmed by two of my teachers: One, from Russia and classically trained, told me without a doubt it is the best touch of any upright piano she has ever played. The other, an excellent jazz player with 34 years experience, told me it had the best touch he had ever played also. He even joked that he'd pay me to come teach me on my piano if he could play for a few minutes after the lessons! I searched all the brands available today, and flew up to Darrell and Heather's studio in Stanwood, Washington for a test playing. I'm not a great player, but I was pretty serious about getting a quality instrument and wanted to check out what all the "Fandrich commotion" was about. Since ordering the piano, they have been to my house twice to check up on it and tune it for me. Imagine that! It was like having Steinway himself come to my home to make sure my piano met his expectations! Their attentiveness to their product has really been unparalleled, and I believe Darrell is a living technical genius. Nice people, too."

-- Gregory Strom



At the July 2002 International Piano Technician Guild Convention in Chicago, IL there were 106 exhibits, including virtually all of the piano manufacturers. We happened to be in the booth next to the 7' Bosendorfer with our Fandrich & Sons Model 165HGS 5'5" grand piano and one of our Model 126V uprights. Besides having at least 6 dealers tell us they would buy our pianos at our current prices and mark them up almost double if we would let them become Fandrich & Sons dealers, we heard the following comments:

Regarding the Model 126V, as always, "This is the best upright piano I have ever played, the tone is so even and clear, the action is amazing!"

Regarding the 5'5" Model 165HGS, "This is the best action of any of the pianos here. It is so controllable, even at the quietest levels of play." "The tone of your grand is more even than the Bosendorfer [to be fair, the Bosendorfer had been delivered to the convention right out of the box]. "This piano has more heart than the 9' Bluthner concert grand on the other side of the curtain!" "This is how a treble should sound!".

And over and over, "It's hard to believe this is only a 5'5" grand, it sounds at least as big as a 6'." and also many times "My friend said I had to come and try this piano!"




Go to www.dreams.org/staff/composer/music/piano/ for comments from Jeff Kellem, Mountain View, CA regarding his purchase of a Model 130V.




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"When I started looking for a vertical piano I set out to get a good one. First, I read Larry Fine's book cover to cover. Then I went to 15 piano shops in the San Francisco Bay Area and played about 50 pianos from 14 different piano manufacturers. I also used the Internet to ask questions of registered piano technicians on their opinions of the tuning stability, manufacturing quality, serviceability and general opinions of the pianos I had played. Finally, I retained a consultant, the president of the local piano technician's guild, to supplement my musician's-ear approach to evaluating pianos. He told me not to make a decision before going to see Darrell Fandrich's pianos. By far the single most important factor, however, was my own ears. I played many vertical pianos that were over $20,000 that were uneven across the scale. I played many others that, despite the illustrious name on the fallboard, had part but not all of the tonal qualities I was seeking. Basically, at a premium price I could find brightness and tonal clarity or I could find warmth and richness. But I couldn't find both these qualities in one instrument. Until I visited Darrell Fandrich. I chose the 49" Wilhelm Steinberg vertical piano outfitted with the Fandrich & Sons action. I found this piano to have a superb action, very smooth scale and a sound that integrated the best of the European clarity and American warmth that I had been seeking. I didn't make this decision on price, but I was pleased that the piano that really made my heart sing was less than half the price of what the instruments I was comparing it to sell for. I was also very impressed with the 6'11" Fandrich & Sons grand. I have played many, many Steinway B series grands over the years. (In fact, it has also been 20+ years since I played a really good New York Steinway.) But the Fandrich & Sons grand had it. It had the same kind of singing lyricism as a really good New York Steinway prepped right. I was thrilled. And to think that this piano sells for $26,000! If I had the room in my house for a grand I would have taken the piano home with me right then. My advice to other piano shoppers is that Fandrich & Sons pianos are targeted at a particular segment of piano buying population; Those that:

1. Have good enough ears to recognize a really good instrument when they see it
2. Are driven more by musical considerations than those of status aka 'fallboard fixation'
3. Are not sufficiently wealthy to eliminate price from being an issue to which they pay attention

If you find yourself in the same category as I then you owe it to yourself to try out Fandrich & Sons pianos and let your ears be the judge. I flew all the way from San Francisco and am delighted I did."


-- Terry Tippie
Contact information available upon request.