Piano constructor and builder David Klavins walks to his new creation, the M470i vertical concert grand piano, with a height of 4,70 meters, at the new "Lativa" concert hall in Ventspils, Latvia, on July 23, 2019. - Setting new musical heights, German-born innovator David Klavins has crafted what is believed to be the world's largest vertical piano that sits in a concert hall in Latvia. The piano is around three storeys above the audience. To reach the keys, pianists face a long uphill climb up a steep flight of steel stairs. (Photo by Ilmars ZNOTINS / AFP)
A man born in Germany decided to bring a musical instrument to a new height, the innovator made the world’s largest grand piano.
The grand piano is one of a kind, it is attached high on the wall and has been used in the New Concert Hall in Latvia.
In order to play the grand piano, the pianist is required to climb a steep flight of steel stairs to the balcony of the grand piano.
The piano is made by David Klavins. Its new standard new model, the 470i Vertical Concert Grand Piano, has strings that are 4.7 meters long.
The 470i is currently installed at a new concert hall in the Baltic Seaside Port in Latvia.
Klavins said that some of its strings are almost 5 meters.
Klavins added, “The most suitable music for this instrument would be all the very expressive works, for example, Rachmaninoff, Scriabin, but also Beethoven’s sonatas would sound totally different on this instrument.”
He added, “Since I was 16 years old and dropped out of school to become a piano restoration apprentice, I have been trying to explore new designs and principles, which deviate from the 140-year-old construction of the traditional grand piano.”
Klavins made his first-ever vertical piano in 1985.
Klavins also described how unique his 470i Vertical Concert Grand Piano is.
He said, “Traditional pianos are meant to be transported in and out of the concert venues, but my vertical design has to be mounted on the building’s structure.”
He added, “The size of the piano and length of strings do not set records for a record’s sake. The idea is to create the best imaginable sound for all the performers and listeners who come to this particular hall.”
After the 470i Vertical Concert Grand Piano was used for the first time on Friday, many composers and performers from the country want to play the piano.
Miks Magone, the creative head of the New Concert Hall, said, “Composers and performers from all around are interested in playing the new Klavins piano, which will open new avenues of artistic expression for them.”