When the decades-old Baldwin grand piano at Chesterton High School was beyond repair, Music Director Tom Schnabel feared the school would either have to wait years for a replacement, or worse, have no replacement at all.
Then Bob Urschel, a local business owner, donated his Steinway and Sons 9-foot concert grand piano to the students.
Schnabel said the donation was both generous and timely.
“Our Baldwin concert grand piano that we’ve had for many many decades was in disrepair and it wasn’t worth putting money into. There just wasn’t money for a new one,” Schnabel said. “Then around spring break this year, I got a call from our local guy, Ken Orgel, asking if I wanted to look at a used piano, so I met him and we went to Valparaiso and met Bob Urschel.”
He says that Urschel needed to find a home for his old piano in order to replace it with a new one.
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“Urschel had the piano. He was going to be a concert pianist. That’s what he wanted to do coming out of college, but he went into the family business,” Schabel said. “His love for music never died and in 1995 he bought a Steinway.”
When Urschel offered the piano to Chesterton High School, Schnabel said he was in disbelief.
“He said, ‘Would you like my old one,’ and I looked around to see if I was on ‘Candid Camera.’ He had his delivery guys come to move the instrument to Chesterton High School last April. The timing was perfect,” Schnabel said.
And, Schnabel, said,
“The consensus is, it is the finest piano out there. It’s a quality instrument and they only make a few thousand a year. This model has a very projected, bright sound. It in-your-face in a tough, muscular way.”
To debut the Steinway, Chesterton High School will host a two-night event Sept. 30 and Oct 1.
The first performance at 7 p.m. Sept. 30 in the CHS auditorium features a student recital of 27 students from grades 3 through 12 who auditioned for the opportunity. The event is free and open to the public.
The second performance at 7 p.m. Oct. 1 is the Steinway dedication concert featuring an orchestra of Northwest Indiana professional musicians including 10 top players from the CHS orchestra accompanying Nicole Lee, Valparaiso University professsor of piano, performing the Beethoven Emperor Concerto. The event will be guest conducted by Troy Webdell, a CHS graduate and conductor of the South Shore Orchestra. The second half of the evening will feature the Jeff Brown Trio, tickets are $10 for adults, K-12 students free.
Heather Augustyn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.