These old pianos that no one wants anymore

Have you noticed the number of old pianos being given away on social media? It’s crazy! These instruments made of wood, metal and ivory, which were once a source of happiness in Quebec homes, are doomed to disappear. And woe betide those who try to prolong their life. An obstacle course awaits them.

Line Maisonneuve experienced a real saga when she wanted to offer a piano that she had owned for 35 years. It was a Lindsay dating from 1910. The CW Lindsay & Co. store, which was located on Sainte-Catherine Street at the turn of the 20th century^e century, bought Lesage and Craig pianos and sold them under her name. “Mine belonged in turn to two aunts, Andrée and Jeannette, before I took possession of it,” she told me.

This Montrealer recently sold the duplex where she lived. The transaction was completed in a few days. She had to empty her home quickly. Initially, she wanted to keep her piano and move it to her Eastman residence. Cost of the move: $1,200. “It would have been installed in the sunroom where it is very hot and pianos don’t like heat,” she explains. “It makes the soundboard crack.”

So she advertised on various channels, including Marketplace, that she wanted to offer it for free. But before that, she contacted a technician to make sure it was in good condition. “He told me it could still have its regular maintenance and that it could be tuned.” I should point out that in the past, the instrument had undergone restoration work that cost nearly $2,000.

Line Maisonneuve also communicates with schools, RPAs and community centres. She tries, without success, to contact the organization Pianos publics Montréal, which is responsible for placing these instruments in public places throughout the city. These efforts are unsuccessful. “The more time went by, the more it was a terrible stress,” she tells me.

In desperation, she offers to pay for half the move. Yes, you read that right. “I couldn’t imagine that piano ending up on the sidewalk,” she says. “I wanted someone else to enjoy it.”

In this story, that’s what I find most beautiful. Line Maisonneuve wanted her instrument to be able to make someone else happy. She wanted to offer her piano the continuation of her epic, a bit like that of Red violin by François Girard.

The post she puts on Facebook goes viral. Line receives tons of messages. People ask questions, dangle the idea that they will take it before finally saying that they are not interested. Some suggest to Line Maisonneuve to collect the piano to bring it… “to the scrap ».

“A girl came to our house. She played for 45 minutes. She told me she absolutely wanted it. Eventually, she changed her mind. »

After five weeks of disappointment and frustration, a resident of the neighborhood where Line Maisonneuve lived showed up. He fell in love with the instrument at first sight. The cost of moving from one ground floor to another is set at $400. The operation is epic. “The piano weighs 400 kilos,” explains Line Maisonneuve. There were only two movers. »

The piano that brought sunshine to Line Maisonneuve’s family for decades has finally found a new owner. “One of the movers was Ukrainian and the other Russian,” she says. “I found that symbolic.”

This wave of abandonment of old pianos is not new. Heavy, bulky and requiring proper care, they are often seen as a source of problems.

Isabelle Lamontagne, owner of L’as du piano, has observed this phenomenon for years. Specializing in piano removals, his company regularly recovers these old instruments. Sometimes, we even come across player pianos that once inspired Claude Léveillée.

“Not so long ago/Do you remember the days of puppetry and lace? We were getting drunk on pathos/It was the golden era of nostalgic piano”

Faced with this overabundance of piano donations, an employee of L’as du piano had the idea of ​​creating Piano au following, an organization that collects and offers pianos free of charge (the donor and the new owner must however pay the collection costs and delivery). Isabelle Lamontagne receives a lot of requests. “Our warehouses are full right now,” she said. We even have a waiting list”

I stopped in a piano store a few weeks ago. It’s crazy how technology has evolved. They’re smaller, lighter, and their sound is still surprisingly good. And then, digital keyboards have a feature that makes them a great addition to an apartment. “Yes, I know, you can wear headphones,” says Line Maisonneuve. “But I liked hearing my kids practice on the piano. It created a certain ambiance.”

There was a time when almost every Quebec family had a piano. There was always a child who was more gifted than the others and who became the pianist of the clan. The instrument was a source of joy, a sign of life. All that is disappearing. TikTok has won the battle against For Elise the Beethoven.

I can’t help but make a link between the disappearance of pianos from family homes and the plummeting place of music in our schools. It seems like learning music doesn’t matter anymore.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to sound like an outdated nostalgic. If I were a father, I would probably want my children to take hip-hop dance classes. But I would also want musical instruments lying around the house, even if they are big and bulky.

The presence of a battery would, however, be the subject of a major negotiation.