Yamaha Enthusiast Selects Upright Pianos for Home, School & Church
BUENA PARK, Calif. — Bracket Memorial United Methodist Church was established in 1861 in the quaint community of Peaks Island, just off the Portland, Maine coast. During the summer months, Peaks Island swells to a population of 6,000 but the number of year-round inhabitants is approximately 900 people. One of the latter, Jan Thomas, lives a music-filled life as choir director and organist/pianist at Bracket, choral director and piano teacher at Greely High School in Cumberland, and private piano teacher. A long-time Yamaha piano fan, Thomas selected a new Yamaha U1 for the church and liked it so much she purchased the same model for Greely, where a 16-unit Yamaha piano lab also resides. And, to complete the circle, she owns a Yamaha U3.
Thomas first played a Yamaha piano during graduate school in Canada. "They had a great Yamaha grand in the practice room; it was really responsive, one of my favorite pianos." She remembered the words of the school's piano tuner – telling her Yamaha pianos are extremely well made, hold their tuning and are easy to care for – when it came time to select an upright for the small sanctuary at Bracket Church. A chance meeting between Gerald Teplitzky, sales vice president of Boston Organ and Piano, and one of the church's elders led to an afternoon in the store's showroom. When Teplitzsky recommended a Yamaha upright for its stability, given the church's somewhat temperamental environment, it confirmed Thomas' earlier experiences and made her selection of a Yamaha piano an even easier choice.
"The heat is turned very low in the winter so it can be very dry, and there's very high humidity in summer," she adds. "It's a very 'live' room, so we needed a piano that was responsive without being too much for the space." The church outfitted the U1 with a damp chaser, which Thomas says has worked out beautifully.
In addition to choir rehearsals and regular Sunday services, the Yamaha upright is often pressed into duty for group performances by visiting choirs, weddings, and a big island Christmas celebration.
"It was fun to try out all the pianos at Boston Organ and Piano, and the Yamaha U1 was a perfect choice," says Thomas. "We've had it almost a year now and the quality of our music is just so much better. Music is very important to our congregation and the choir appreciates the Yamaha piano because they were the ones who started the fund to purchase a new instrument."
For more information, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Piano Division, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622, telephone (714) 522-9011, or e-mail infostation@yamaha.com.
 Bracket Memorial United Methodist Church choir director and piano teacher Jan Thomas |
"The heat is turned very low in the winter so it can be very dry, and there's very high humidity in summer," she adds. "It's a very 'live' room, so we needed a piano that was responsive without being too much for the space." The church outfitted the U1 with a damp chaser, which Thomas says has worked out beautifully.
A Yamaha U1 upright ably performs multiple duties, including choir rehearsals and performances for Sunday services, weddings and holiday celebrations. |
"It was fun to try out all the pianos at Boston Organ and Piano, and the Yamaha U1 was a perfect choice," says Thomas. "We've had it almost a year now and the quality of our music is just so much better. Music is very important to our congregation and the choir appreciates the Yamaha piano because they were the ones who started the fund to purchase a new instrument."
For more information, write Yamaha Corporation of America, Piano Division, P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622, telephone (714) 522-9011, or e-mail infostation@yamaha.com.