A historic piano, resurrected from bay water damage, begins a new chapter in its already-rich life story. The Gables Inn’s 1932 Steinway M baby grand piano returned to its home in Beach Haven on Saturday after spending a year in repair at the Steinway factory in Astoria, Queens, N.Y. The heirloom instrument, number 897 of only 900 made, received $42,000 in restorations after being damaged by 550,000 gallons of bay water, which was used to help put out the bed and breakfast’s $1.2 million brush fire on Easter Sunday last year.
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| Photo by Kelley Anne Essinger Mike Bingham puts the finishing touches on The Gables' 1932 Steinway piano. |
“Within 24 hours (of the fire), the water from the firemen came trickling down through the ceiling. It broke a hole in the ceiling directly above the piano and basically poured into the piano,” said 30-year piano technician Mike Bingham, who has been maintaining the Steinway piano since Gables’ owner Sondra Beninati purchased it in 2005. “By the time I got here, the water was gone, but you could see the rust already accumulating on all the strings. The electronic components were destroyed, and the whole piano was basically saturated,” he explained, while taking a break from connecting the instrument’s new player piano system.
The new system allows the piano, with the tap of an iPod, to play thousands of different songs that were recorded by well-known, accomplished artists.
“Their rendition, their version comes through because it’s their touch. It’s not just a recording. The piano is emulating their nuance and their special talent,” said Bingham.
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| Photo by Kelley Anne Essinger Longtime jazz pianist Steve Kramer seranades guests at the local inn. |
The piano itself had to be totally rebuilt. Fortunately, it was able to be taken apart and put back together with all-new components, layer by layer. It received a new ½-inch-thick spruce soundboard, cast-iron harp, steel-drawn wires and strings, brass pedals, tuning pins, hammers, felts and a refinished mahogany case. All 12,116 Steinway parts are genuine, as promised by Steinway’s restoration center.
“If somebody else other than Steinway had fixed it, it would have no value. It would no longer be a Steinway,” said Beninati. “When you’re really having a fine supper, to have music playing and to have it be from a live instrument and a fine instrument, is a wonderful thing. This piano has a clarity to it that is like nothing else,” she added.
The piano is said to be worth around $85,000.
“It’s obviously the focal piece of this Victorian (building), and it hails sort of from that era,” said Bingham. “Even if it was manufactured maybe later than that, it evokes that charm that you associate with an elegant restaurant like this with fine music playing.”
Bingham spent five hours getting the piano ready for proper use. At 6 p.m., the instrument was turned over to Steve Kramer, 56, a long-time jazz pianist who has been playing at The Gables for the past two years whenever possible.
The musician, a lifelong Long Beach Island visitor who has a second home in Brant Beach, attended Berklee College of Music in Boston after falling in love with the piano – something he attributes to his parents, who often listened to jazz music. He started playing publicly when he was 15 years old. After college, he began playing at the Comedy Connection (now The Wilbur Theatre), a well-known comedy club in Boston, for comedians who later acquired fame and fortune, such as Steven Wright and Lenny Clarke. Soon after, he traveled with Artie Shaw playing big band music, and then with the Ice Capades, playing for Olympic gold medalists Scott Hamilton and Dorothy Hamill.
“I always came back to Long Beach Island in the summer, though, whenever I could get back to Jersey. It’s the place I’ve always come to. It basically brings back memories,” said Kramer.
Kramer was walking around Beach Haven two years ago when he happened upon The Gables and heard the Steinway piano playing from a distance. After he asked to play, Beninati realized Kramer and the piano belonged together.
“He loves the piano, and the piano loves him back,” she said.
Kramer’s performance on Saturday night proved this to be true. Sitting at the piano under a dazzling chandelier while guests conversed over dinner, their faces illuminated by flickering candlelight, Kramer filled the dining room with easy-listening music by George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Jerome Kern and even The Beatles. The music emanating from the keys of the piano added an elegant touch to the already gracious atmosphere.
“You cannot find places anymore that have real pianos that are in decent shape, where you can play cocktail music for diners,” Kramer said. “There’s music in a lot of places for bands or duos, but for easy listening, nice music, to have a piano is impossible to find anymore. But this place has a real piano. This place is like, ‘Oh, my gosh.’ It’s perfect; it’s what I’ve been looking for. There’s no place like this anywhere. The ambience is completely unique, the food is top-notch, and of course the service is, too.
“Music is a reflection on everything, so I look at it as being an instrumental part in the dining experience,” he added. “I play so people can still enjoy their meal and their conversation. Every once in a while, if they sit back while they’re sipping their glass of wine, they go, “This piano music is really nice.” It adds to the atmosphere. It’s part of the whole experience of dining. It’s really a big part of the success of any place; the owners of The Gables understand that.”
— Kelley Anne Essinger
This article was published in The SandPaper.
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