KawaiKG-2C

Kawai KG-2C — a Japanese-built grand, 178 cm long, in wood veneer polished to a high gloss.

It is meant for advanced players working at a grand action at home, for teaching, and for rooms where somebody now and then plays to an audience.

The KG series is Kawai's classic grand line, and it earned its standing over decades in schools and studios. 178 cm gives more bass string length than a shorter grand and stays well short of concert scale; it is the size you can work with in an ordinary living room. Then there is the action: the hammer falls back under its own weight, which is why a grand repeats faster and more surely than an upright. Three pedals: the right lifts the dampers, the left shifts the action, and on a grand the middle one is the sostenuto, holding only those notes whose keys are down at the moment you take it.

The veneer is polished to a high gloss and the grain stays visible. Gloss shows dust and fingerprints more plainly than a satin surface; a soft dry cloth is all it needs, and furniture polish is not wanted.

At 178 × 146 cm the grand covers a good 2.6 m², plus room to sit and for the open lid. Taken apart — legs and lyre off — it goes through an ordinary door, and the 310 kg is work for movers. Not by the radiator, not in the sun: swings in humidity put any instrument out of tune. If you practise late in the evening and have neighbours, an acoustic grand can have a Silent System fitted, and you play on through headphones.