On January 20th, 2022, renowned pianist Haiou Zhang travelled to the C. Bechstein Headquarters in Berlin with a very special and demanding task: select a C. Bechstein D 282 concert grand piano for the Singapore Conference Hall. The Singapore Conference Hall is a music oasis in the bustling city of Singapore and home to the SCO Concert Hall, one of the most advanced concert halls, amongst many other venues. No wonder it was decided to select a C. Bechstein D 282 to fill this venue with music.
The C. Bechstein D 282 concert grand is the king of the C. Bechstein grand pianos. Designed with today´s pianists demand for power and dynamism and the unique, beloved C. Bechstein sound in mind, the D 282 combines skilled craftsmanship, exquisite materials and unparalleled depth of production. Not even the smallest detail is left to chance, another reason why contrary to industry standards even such crucial parts as the hammerheads are made in-house and individually weighted and matched to bring out the maximum potential of each instrument.
Haiou Zhang had the pleasure of having 7 brand new, neatly lined up D 282 concert grands to himself for one whole day. But with no easy task: Selecting the right one for the SCO. As Haiou Zhang states, “every single instrument is like a person”, with it´s own individual character. No wonder, having in mind that each instrument takes over 500 hours to be completed and needs the personal attention of highly skilled craftsmen, who share a part of their own personality with each instrument.
After intense playing of all instruments, Haiou Zhang was finally able to narrow the selection down to the instrument he found to be the most suitable for the SCH. “I always need an extremely wide range – colorings, emotions and possibilities and the D 282 goes over my expectations” says Haiou Zhang, noting the difficulty to find the one instrument that “has a little bit more to tell on stage”.
The C. Bechstein craftsmen have now readied the instrument for delivery and a highly skilled C. Bechstein technician will be delivering the instrument and applying the final touches on location, before Haiou Zhang takes the stage in Singapore to inaugurate the new grand piano on May 14th.
More about the concert
