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A rhapsody visits St. Cloud
By Beth Kern
 Media Credit: Ching Fung Al Mesna, manager of the Piano Department of Schmitt Music, plays the Rhapsody Art-Case Piano, in the display room at Schmitt Music.
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Sunday, the St. Cloud Symphony Orchestra will perform George Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue" with the Rhapsody Art-Case Piano at the Paramount theater, commemorating, in more than one way, the 1920s and the pop culture of that day.
Jazz was the beginning of the modern music industry. Along with Louis Armstrong and Billie Holiday was George Gershwin, pianist and composer extraordinaire. His most famous work, "Rhapsody in Blue," was featured in Fantasia 2000 and is the featured theme of the Rhapsody Piano.
The piano is worth $175,000. It is a baby in terms of age for pianos because in 20 years it will be estimated to be worth around $500,000.
"A typical Steinway averages an appreciation of 20 percent a year," said Cindy DeVries, a Schmitt Music employee.
The Schmitt Music store will have the piano until Friday, when it will be moved to the Paramount for the concert. Schmitt Music encourages the public to try out the piano or sit and listen to others play. Many people are scared to touch this magnificent instrument with the fear that they will damage it.
"I'll probably wreck something, so I'll leave it up to guy who plays this Sunday," said Karl Beranek, an SCSU senior.
The Rhapsody Art-Case Piano was built by Steinway & Sons.
"Ninety-nine percent of concert artists play on Steinways," said Al Mesna, manager of the piano and keyboard department of Schmitt Music, the sole distributor of Steinway pianos in Minnesota.
"Steinway still makes its pianos by hand," Mesna said. "It takes a year to build one. They make 3,000 a year."
On the inside, art-case pianos are the same as ebony case pianos, but outside, the cases are works of art.
In 1998, Steinway decided to produce a series of pianos in honor of George Gershwin.�The Rhapsody piano is number 12 in a series of 24.
The Rhapsody Piano was designed by Frank Pollaro, who chose to use curly maple wood stained blue for the case itself. Over 400 mother-of-pearl stars stud the entire case at random and are inset flawlessly into the wood so there are no disruptions in the finish. The stars are varying sizes, giving the illusion of a piece of moonless sky over a city, New York City. Strips of mother-of-pearl criss-cross the legs of the piano and bench like searchlights at a gala opening.
"It seemed only natural to have this piano studded in stars," Pollaro said. "To me, the stars represent Broadway, America, and most importantly, the shining star that Gershwin was to music."
The craftsmanship of this work of art doesn't stop with the stars and spotlights. The wood of the lid fans out from one point on the hinge with varying shades of blue adding to the illusion of a partially cloudy night sky. The music stand is a carved silhouette of the New York skyline as it appeared in 1998, complete with a reflection of the skyline in the Hudson River. Two roses adorn the ends of the stands.
"This piano's been all around the world," Mesna said. "And these roses haven't been broken off."
In addition to mother-of-pearl inlay, the Steinway & Sons logo, centered over middle C, is made of ivory brought to the United States before the ivory trade was outlawed.
"When I heard about it (the Rhapsody Piano)," Mesna said, "I thought it'd be cool if we could get this piano. But, when I called Steinway to ask about it, they said we couldn't get it. It had been all around the world and needed refurbishing." But by October, things were arranged and the Rhapsody was coming to St. Cloud - also its first time in Minnesota.
"We sent out postcards to all the music teachers, the band directors, piano teachers in the area, inviting them to bring their students over to play on it and take pictures," Mesna said.
At the Tuesday meeting of the St. Cloud Rotary Club, SCSU student Tony Bui of Dortmont, Germany played the Rhapsody for the club and customers on hand. This demonstrated what concert pianist Peter Orth said of Steinway & Sons pianos, "I use the Steinway for a pure simple reason: it sings."
"(It brings) the feeling of omnipotence," said concert pianist Joseph Kalichstein. "You are an orchestra, a singer, a string quartet - that is what it is like to play a great Steinway."
The Rhapsody Piano is a masterpiece, inside and out, musically and artistically.
"People will be talking about this for years to come," Mesna said.
Staff Writer Brandon Siem contributed to this story.
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