Piano playing in apartments

Hi, I have been lurking this group for about two days and have read that a number of you all are apartment/condo dwellers. I am curious to know if playing your piano(s) in your close communities has created any problems for your from complaining tenants(about disturbing them)?

Welcome, Maristella! I think the majority of cases that I've seen or in which I have been involved depended entirely upon the neighbors in question. There seems to be a large class of people for whom the neighbor's playing and practicing causes no particular issues. Of course, on the other hand, there are occasionally the neighbors from hell who will not be satisfied until either the piano or its owner are gone. There is almost nothing that can be done to placate these people, and in extreme situations, I would recommend that the pianist seek guidance from the landlord or condo association.

Some buildings/associations may have specific rules that apply to the playing of musical instruments (I once had a lease that expressly forbade vocal instruction!). In certain cases I have heard of landlords and or associations requiring that playing/practicing be restricted to certain hours of the day. And then, there is the worst of all possible scenarios, in which the landlord is dead set against piano playing. I would always suggest a pianist to consult with the landlord or condo association before signing anything to make sure that the building is at least partially friendly towards one's piano playing and practicing. And for those people who currently reside in a building but do not yet have a piano, my advice is to ask one's neighbors, landlord and/or association if having an acoustic piano will cause any ill will or other problems BEFORE buying a piano.

You may want to move first!

Kindest regards,

Welcome to the group Maristella!

I live in Manhattan, and my piano playing has caused no complaints. I put a couple of large pieces of cardboard in between my upright's soundboard and the wall, and stuff a comforter (i.e. 'duvet' if you're from the UK) in there as well for good measure. The sound is reduced somewhat, and no one in my building has even mentioned my piano playing.

My piano teacher also lives in an apartment, an even smaller one - and he has a grand! His grand is much more muted than my upright though. He put lots of towels and books all around his piano, and got some special vibration absorbing thingees to put under the grand's legs. Again, no complaints - though he must have many students coming to play regularly.

I am thinking if you don't mind a slightly muted piano, no matter what neighbors you have, if your apartment is not especially sound conducive (e.g. non-concrete walls, lots of windows you like keeping open), noise complaints should not be an issue.

Regards,

Thanks for your advice and suggestions!

Thanks for the info. I plan to contact the neighbors/landlords to find out if they can actually hear me practicing. If not, I think I'll upgrade to a better piano than the old one I have right

I have an upright acoustic piano for my regular practicing, but when I want to practice after my daughter has gone to sleep, I use my electronic keyboard because I can plug a set of headphones into it. In Japan, (where I lived for ten years), all of the top-end clavinovas and keyboards have this feature. Even if it won't necessarily disturb someone, hearing an eight-year old practicing 'Chopsticks,' over and over, gets to be a real drain on one's sanity. <G>

Cheers,

having lived in apartments the last several years, I have simply just had to adapt to using digital pianos and synths.

i am thinking of getting a p80, because the action is superb

currently i use a trton le and a fatar 900 with a korg sg rack.

the plus side is, playing a real piano in the middle of the night would be unacceptable anyway

Hi Maristella,

As people have mentioned in other threads, communication is very

Try out a Kawai MP 9500 (or 9000) for an even better action and sound (IMO).

Bye, Christof