One of the great privileges extended to us by the White House this week for our holiday concert was the use of an historic Steinway concert grand piano. At a ceremony on December 10, 1938, this grand piano was presented to President Franklin D. Roosevelt for the White House by Mr. Theodore Steinway, on behalf of the Steinway family. The 300,000th Steinway piano, it was built to replace another Steinway at the White House – #100,000, a gilded and painted grand piano which had been given in 1903 (now on exhibit in the Smithsonian Institution).
Seeking to create a unique and distinguished “State Piano”, Eric Gugler – a New York architect, friend of the Roosevelts, and White House consultant in the 1930s – chose a square form with simpler lines than the routine double-curve form. The case was made of fine Honduran mahogany. Although it measures seven inches longer than the standard nine-foot Steinway grand, it has identical musical works.
At Mr. Steinway’s suggestion Dunbar Beck, a muralist, executed the gold leaf decoration representing “five musical forms indigenous of America” – a New England barn dance; a lone cowboy playing his guitar; the Virginia reel; two black field hands, one clapping and one dancing; and an Indian ceremonial dance. Albert Stewart, a sculptor, executed the three gilded mahogany legs carved as American eagles.
The piano, typically only used when the President is in attendance, was rolled Tuesday morning from the East Room of the White House to the Grand Foyer for our use. The piano has been played recently by such musical greats as Sir Paul McCartney, Josh Groban and Alisha Keys.
Above is a close-up photo of the piano as well as one featuring Orlando Deanery Boychoir director and accompanist Benjamin Lane taken during Tuesday’s concert.
