Sykes & Sons
Just before the official lockdown my partner (Sam) and I had just finished moving into our first home together and as we both play, a piano was just absolutely essential. Now we had our own space, buying a piano was the next logical step.
We set a budget aside and started looking around at what was on offer. We did visit a few showrooms and we almost bought a piano each time, but there was always something that didn’t make the piano just perfect and it was mainly due to the fact that we have different ideas of how a piano should sound. It is just a matter of personal preference and different playing styles but finding a tone that suited us both was becoming more and more challenging and at times I did honestly just want to give up.
I found Sykes & Sons while looking around and we both spotted a piano on the website that seemed to be the right colour, the right size and from the description it sounded like it could have just been a good match, but it was over budget and after having a late night talk about it we decided that it was too expensive. Then lockdown came, so we couldn’t view any pianos any way, but it didn’t stop us from looking online.
After another late night chat, we said that it seems like good quality and we will go to see it when they reopened. Well it seems like everyone had the same idea because when they reopened and I called, Macauley explained that many people have been waiting to go in and almost every piano they have had been put on reserve.
I asked him to let me know if the people who had reserved the piano we were interested in changed their mind and to give me call. He took my number and after a few days, he called to tell me it has sold that morning.
Back to square one again.
Macauley asked what it was we were looking for in a piano and I explained that it would be shared between us and how we have different opinions on how a piano should sound and how that made it difficult. He seemed really relaxed and just said “Leave it with me” and asked if he could call if he found something he thought would be a good match.
After about a week, he called and explained that there was a piano coming in that he thought would be good and asked if we would like to see it when reconditioning was done.
He described it and it sounded good (it was the same model as the piano we were initially interested in), but when I asked about the tone he just said that he had all my requirements and he would do his best to make sure it suited us both. I doubted it, in all honesty I didn’t think it was possible, but I trusted his experience.
Two weeks later, the piano was done and ready to view. When we got there, we were introduced to what is now our little Knight K20. Sam played it first and she gave me a nod of approval. It sounded great for her playing style, but I didn’t like the tone. I didn’t have much confidence but I sat down to play and the piano was like a totally different instrument. I can not explain how that is possible but the piano seems to respond to us individually in a way.
When I asked how that is done, Macauley showed us the notebook where he had written down everything we had talked about on the phone and explained it was all in the “voicing”. He had taken every detail, even things I forgot we even discussed and he really did take it all on board. How it’s done I don’t know, but Macauley had found the perfect balance.
When Sam plays the piano the tone is bright and loud. When I play it how I play (which is soft) the tone is warm and mellow, but it is still rich and colourful both ways.
We both love the piano and we do compete with each other for playing time. Maybe two pianos in different rooms would have been better, but this piano perfectly suits us both. If we do decide to get another one, you can guarantee that we will go to Sykes & Sons.
Wee honestly can not thank you enough for everything you have done for us. The pianos is just perfect and we couldn’t be happier with it.
Emily and Sam xxx