Modern Piano Brands: Yamaha, Kawai, Steinway (and more!)

In Missouri, the piano has a long history. From Sedalia to St. Louis, Scott Joplin to the 1904 World Fair, and beyond, the piano has been, and in many cases retains, some importance as a fixture of the American home and American life. However, within the last generation, a great many piano manufacturers have shuttered their establishments, and many familiar makers, such as Baldwin, Kimball, Wurlitzer, Knabe, Everett, and others, are either defunct or exist only as stickers pasted over a generic product made in a remote factory location.

In the year of this writing, in the state of Missouri, there are three major competitors remaining in the market of new piano sales that retain sales locations in the state, that is, the Japanese piano corporations Yamaha and Kawai, and the German/American Steinway Co.. These three makers have something in common that has allowed them to thrive where others have sunk, among other differences, and that is that they all invest heavily into the quality of their products.

Where they differ is a bit trickier to define without resorting to technical definitions, but when talking with clients, I will sometimes reach to the automotive industry for metaphor and compare Yamaha and Kawai loosely with Honda and Toyota, by happy coincidence two japanese auto brands that also offer quality products, and combine both relative affordability with reliability.

Yamaha has arguably stronger brand recognition of the two japanese piano concerns, and many people already associate Yamaha with quality motorcycles and other motor vehicles, as well as brass and other musical instruments. Yamaha pianos are priced above Kawai and below Steinway, being additionally known for the high quality of their premier 9-foot concert grand, the Yamaha CFX. The Disklavier player piano system is also unique to Yamaha and boasts some powerful recording and playback features.

Yamaha sells upright pianos in the B- and U-series, (examples being the B1 or U1). The B series are the smaller of the two lines, and are geared toward institutional use, such as music school practice rooms, and young families. The U-series are a bit larger, and represent the high end of the price range, and are geared more toward serious students and venues where space may be more limited.

As for grands, the common lines are the GB and GC series, and the C series, with another, less commonly seen line, the SX, straddling the line between the full-fledged CFX 9 foot and the iconic C series, and used for smaller stages than would support a CFX. The GB and GC pianos differ mostly in terms of their length, varying between 5´0 ft and 5´8 ft, and represent the intro line of Yamaha grands. The Yamaha C-Series are premium home and studio grand pianos and are wonderful instruments, fairly commonly seen in churches and universities.

Kawai, the Honda to Yamaha´s Toyota, differs perhaps from Yamaha in that it isn´t as generally well-known outside the world of pianos, at least in the USA. Kawai pianos tend to be priced right under their Yamaha equivalents, and for years have been quietly popping up in homes, churches and schools around the country. Since 1999, Kawai has sold handmade world-class premium grand pianos under the moniker “Shigeru Kawai” that have offered premium features at comparatively aggressive prices, and their other lines of grand pianos, the GX and GL pianos, match up roughly with the Yamaha C and GB/GC lines, respectively.

For that matter, the Kawai K-series uprights compare roughly with the Yamaha U series, and shorter Kawai pianos such as the 506 to the B series.

This is not to trivialize the differences between Yamaha and Kawai pianos, there are pros and cons to the approach of each maker to the specifics of each line of pianos, as each tries to strike a balance between reliability and affordability, as well as stand out from one another, in what I like to imagine is a sort of brotherly rivalry. Who is winning? I think the winners are those of us who get to play on both!

To further extend the car metaphor, let's compare Steinway to Jaguar. Premium, with many high-quality offerings, at top-notch prices, coupled with strong marketing, a white glove sales experience, and a bit of “foreign” flair.  

Steinway has had, for many years, a heavy presence on concert stages in America, to the point where it has been considered, for years, to be nearly quintessential to them. Steinway pianos are, by comparison to the Japanese piano makers, higher in price, and utilize premium materials in their construction. This commitment to making Steinway synonymous with quality has led the company to eschew making lower-priced Steinway lines, focusing instead on maintaining the quality of their premium ones. The Steinway D is the iconic concert stage piano for Steinway, and the Steinway M their most iconic home piano. The Steinway player piano system, Spirio, is also the top of its class, something also reflected in its price tag.

For piano buyers who want to buy Steinway but aren't ready to commit to a Steinway price tag, the company does source moderately priced pianos that they sell under other names, for example, Boston, Essex, and Henry F Miller. Boston Pianos are made by Kawai under contract with Steinway, and are a common upright sold out of Steinway stores for use in churches, schools, and practice rooms.

Steinway, as one of the last American piano makers, represents a legacy of the tradition of the American piano spanning more than one hundred and fifty years. Yamaha and Kawai have both well over a hundred years in the piano business as well. In order to support the continued existence of the wonderful musical instrument that is the piano, it is important to support local music stores that supply them. If you have any questions about pianos from these companies, please reach out to us at Vanguard and we can help connect you to a salesperson from the local dealers. With our community support, we hope they last another hundred years, and more!