Piano Performance Museum at the Doctorow Center for the Arts
Now on display: The Diane Estrin Miniature Piano Museum. A unusual collection of miniature pianos that mimic our larger collection of instrumental pianos. The Piano Performance Museum is open to the public on Fridays and Saturdays from 11am to 3pm by appointment only.
A destination unlike any other in the United States, the Catskill Mountain Foundation's Piano Performance Museum offers a unique glimpse into the development of pianos in Europe and America over the past four centuries.
The Steven E. Greenstein collection includes early and modern keyboard instruments including European historic pianos, as well as American pianos built in the 18th and 19th centuries. The collection shows the development of the instrument from the small piano forte, built for use in private homes and salons, to the modern piano, built for large concert halls. The collection also includes tuning tools and repair kits, some 200 years old, leather-wrapped with a place for each tool; tuning forks, hammers—everything that would allow a technician to bring a piano back to maximum performance standards.
Group Tours are available by appointment throughout the year, on weekdays and weekends, with docents or with professional concert artists providing mini-concerts on the historic instruments. Tours can be tailored to your interests. Call 518-263-2036 for more information.
