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The Piano Shop on the Left Bank Discovering a Forgotten Passion in a Paris Atelier Thad Carhart 8601300241777 Books

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The Piano Shop on the Left Bank Discovering a Forgotten Passion in a Paris Atelier Thad Carhart 8601300241777 Books

In Thad Carhart's engaging memoir, "The Piano Shop on the Left Bank" (2001), Carhart, an American writer who lives in Paris, describes how his love for the piano was rekindled upon finding a quaint piano repair shop in Paris and its eccentric owner, Luc. At one point after Carhart purchases a used piano from Luc, a baby grand made by a defunct manufacturer called Stingl, Carhart learns that he needs to make a repair to the instrument's pedal mechanism. Luc encourages Carhart to do the repair himself and instructs him how. When the repair is not fully successful and Carhart returns to Luc for more advice, Luc delivers the line that is the title of this review. In the double-entendre, Luc was reminding his customer of the need to avoid too much tension in the pedal mechanism if it is to work properly. But the advice, and the words "play", "soul" and "machine" are at the heart of this book and speak volumes about the piano and about music. How has a large, heavy and clumsy instrument become the way to capture music, beauty and passion in the hearts of many pianists and music-lovers?

Carhart's story begins when he chances upon the piano shop and makes the acquaintance of its owners. He soon decides to take up the piano again, which he had studied as a child years before, and purchases the used Stingl baby grand. We learn a great deal about the author, about Luc and his circle, and about Paris and its customs as the Carhart's story undfolds.

But mostly we learn about the piano and its magic and about music. There are chapters in the book where the author recollects his youthful music lessons and the piano teachers he finds in Paris after beginning to play again. There are fascinating chapters involving the manufacture and tuning of the instrument, the way the mechanism works, and lore about past and present manufacturers of the piano in France, the United States, Germany, Japan, and elsewhere. An excellent chapter near the end of the book describes the manufacture of the Fazoli piano, probably the most expensive and best piano now made, in Italy. Carhart describes the schola cantorum, a small private music school in Paris where Claude Debussy once taught and where the author enrolled his children for music lessons. During one of the most enjoyable scenes of the book, an elderly tradesman at Luc's shop sits at the keyboard and enthralls his listeners with the performance of a Scarlatti sonata. In addition to Luc and Carhart, a host of characters come to life, including the alcoholic tuner Jos, Luc's ladyfriend, Mathilde, Carhart's teacher Anna, and the pianists Gygory Sebok and Peter Feuchtwangler who appear in the book as leaders of master classes. Luc himself, part hard-headed businessman and part lover of the piano, falls in love successively with many of the instruments that come through his shop, Steinways, Erards, Pleyels, Gaveaus, and others. As Luc evocatively says at the end of the book, "You can never have too many dream pianos".

I studied piano as a child, stopped during college and law school, and returned to the instrument when I went out on my own. I haven't left it since then. I took lessons for an initial few years and then, regrettably, have tried to learn the instrument by myself. The piano has meant a great deal to me over the years.

This book will appeal to any serious student of the piano or to lovers of the inexhaustible literature of the instrument. The book will also make a wonderful and unsual gift to those on your list who love or who work with the piano.

Robin Friedman


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The Piano Shop on the Left Bank Discovering a Forgotten Passion in a Paris Atelier Thad Carhart 8601300241777 Books Reviews

The Piano Shop on the Left Bank, to me was a return to a love forgotten. It is the story of a man who accidentally finds a friend and in the process, rekindles a love of the piano and the beautiful music it produces. A lot of information and history of the piano is included, but the real story in the romance one has with this amazing instrument.
I studied piano as a youngster, but life got busy and I somehow left it behind. Reading this book, however, has renewed my interest and I have returned to the piano nearly sixty years later. I did not lose all of what I had learned and studying once again has renewed my passion. Thanks, Thad, for writing this beautiful book.
Interesting to boring.Nothing to entice me to continue reading. Informative if you want to learn about piano's inner workings, beginnings, general history.
For anyone who has ever been attached to a piano--that lumbering piece of furniture that becomes whatever you make of it--this is a must-read. I was influenced in my love of pianos by my mother, who talked for years about saving up for a Wurlitzer spinet, and she did it! It was her pride and joy. It was my babysitter during summers alone at home when there really wasn't anything else to do.

Because my mother's mother was a strict music teacher, and because my mother was a very shy child, her mother would not teacher her to play because she couldn't be brave enough to count out loud. Her mother being over-strict, mine refused to push me. And of course, I wish she would have. But the piano was my playmate, and I slowly worked my way through a few inappropriately difficult pieces over the summers. I have never become an accomplished player, but I do love playing "at" piano on this one that is more than I ever deserved.

Carhart's story resonates with those of us who's hearts have bonded with a piano. Pianos are ridiculously complex and delicate or sturdy, whichever way they are personally inclined. They can be had for almost no money when somebody needs to get rid of a piano. I paid $300 for the piano in 1969, and probably $3000 in moving and tuning over the years. My 1920s Blasius & Sons upright grand, which I've had for 48 years, has been moved, stored, and moved at least 10 times. It is a trouper, and it can still be tuned to concert pitch.

It is about to become the property of the local ragtime festival, and I can't wait to hear its destiny fulfilled by being played by worthy musicians. I will be standing around awaiting their praise as if it were an only child. I will strive to be rational. This piano is also a favorite of our 11-yr-old grandson, who is against the notion of moving it on. I have campaigned the notion of "stewardship," saying that this piano is bigger than the two of us and that it has a destiny to fulfill. Together, we recorded our names and dates inside the lid yesterday, inspired by Carhart's story. Thank you, Thad! I am buying several copies to share with friends.
In Thad Carhart's engaging memoir, "The Piano Shop on the Left Bank" (2001), Carhart, an American writer who lives in Paris, describes how his love for the piano was rekindled upon finding a quaint piano repair shop in Paris and its eccentric owner, Luc. At one point after Carhart purchases a used piano from Luc, a baby grand made by a defunct manufacturer called Stingl, Carhart learns that he needs to make a repair to the instrument's pedal mechanism. Luc encourages Carhart to do the repair himself and instructs him how. When the repair is not fully successful and Carhart returns to Luc for more advice, Luc delivers the line that is the title of this review. In the double-entendre, Luc was reminding his customer of the need to avoid too much tension in the pedal mechanism if it is to work properly. But the advice, and the words "play", "soul" and "machine" are at the heart of this book and speak volumes about the piano and about music. How has a large, heavy and clumsy instrument become the way to capture music, beauty and passion in the hearts of many pianists and music-lovers?

Carhart's story begins when he chances upon the piano shop and makes the acquaintance of its owners. He soon decides to take up the piano again, which he had studied as a child years before, and purchases the used Stingl baby grand. We learn a great deal about the author, about Luc and his circle, and about Paris and its customs as the Carhart's story undfolds.

But mostly we learn about the piano and its magic and about music. There are chapters in the book where the author recollects his youthful music lessons and the piano teachers he finds in Paris after beginning to play again. There are fascinating chapters involving the manufacture and tuning of the instrument, the way the mechanism works, and lore about past and present manufacturers of the piano in France, the United States, Germany, Japan, and elsewhere. An excellent chapter near the end of the book describes the manufacture of the Fazoli piano, probably the most expensive and best piano now made, in Italy. Carhart describes the schola cantorum, a small private music school in Paris where Claude Debussy once taught and where the author enrolled his children for music lessons. During one of the most enjoyable scenes of the book, an elderly tradesman at Luc's shop sits at the keyboard and enthralls his listeners with the performance of a Scarlatti sonata. In addition to Luc and Carhart, a host of characters come to life, including the alcoholic tuner Jos, Luc's ladyfriend, Mathilde, Carhart's teacher Anna, and the pianists Gygory Sebok and Peter Feuchtwangler who appear in the book as leaders of master classes. Luc himself, part hard-headed businessman and part lover of the piano, falls in love successively with many of the instruments that come through his shop, Steinways, Erards, Pleyels, Gaveaus, and others. As Luc evocatively says at the end of the book, "You can never have too many dream pianos".

I studied piano as a child, stopped during college and law school, and returned to the instrument when I went out on my own. I haven't left it since then. I took lessons for an initial few years and then, regrettably, have tried to learn the instrument by myself. The piano has meant a great deal to me over the years.

This book will appeal to any serious student of the piano or to lovers of the inexhaustible literature of the instrument. The book will also make a wonderful and unsual gift to those on your list who love or who work with the piano.

Robin Friedman