The Blüthner Grand Piano (1884) Part I

The Blüthner Grand Piano (1884), Part I

The story of the Walnut Wardrobe was only one side of the tale about our friend Clarence Hagler Rice and his wife and daughter (see previous Aug. 25 blog entry). When Hagler and Inge Rice were moving back to New Orleans, they were not going to have room in their new home for both grand pianos. They would be selling the Blüthner which was 6’ 1” in length. Hagler made the announcement one night when they were having dinner with us. I was totally shocked that he would be selling this wonderful instrument that had an interesting tale of its own as did the Walnut Wardrobe. I responded to Hagler in disbelief that he could ever part with this instrument. He said that there was just no room in the New Orleans home. The piano had served its purpose over the years and it was time to sell it. He asked if we would be interested in the instrument. We were interested since we needed a second piano (a good one) for our second studio in our home, but I knew there was no way we could afford such an instrument at that time. The conversation ended and we continued with our meal and time of sharing.

After the Rices left our house that night, I began to ponder the sale of the Blüthner. It had an interesting story of how it got to the United States as well as a rich history in the many hours of practice that a young child prodigy had spent playing the instrument. In addition, there was the story of the visit by the famous Beethoven authority and concert pianist by the name of Wilhelm Kempff.

Even more importantly for us, the piano belonged to Hagler Rice who was the best man in our wedding. He symbolized so much to us of our own Southern heritage and roots as well as his friendship toward us and his kindness of “looking after us” as we spent many evenings in his home talking about life, music, and days past. His family was so dear to us. How could we allow the Blüthner be sold? The new owners would not cherish its history and the symbolism it held of our friendship and love of the Rice family.

I decided that night to call Hagler the next morning to ask how much he would be asking for the piano. I knew I would not be able to afford another instrument since we were still paying on the loan that we had taken out to buy our Kawai grand which we purchased right after our marriage two years earlier.

It was a restless night as my mind went back to the time Hagler told us how he had purchased the piano.

Mr. Rice was stationed in Germany as part of the occupation forces in divided Germany. He was a commander in the Navy and was probably stationed in Bremerhaven if my memory serves me well. He was frequently in Berlin which was also parceled out among the Allied Forces and the Soviet Union. Berlin, of course, was surrounded by East Germany which was the portion that the Soviets had gleaned for itself right after the war had ended. In June of 1948, the Soviets blockaded access to West Berlin with the intention of gaining complete control of Berlin. The Allied Forces devised an airlift of supplies to the people of West Berlin. This lasted until September of 1949 even though the blockade was lifted in May of 1949. (See this link regarding the Berlin Blockade.)

It was during this blockade, when Hagler Rice and two others each purchased a Blüthner grand piano (follow this link for more info on Blüthner pianos). The purchase was made in West Berlin and the question was how to transport the pianos into the West Germany where they could be safely shipped to the United States. Because of the blockade and the intensity of the airlift of supplies, there was no air transportation available. A plan was devised to get permission from the Soviets to have a disabled army truck towed across the autobahn. The three grand pianos would be stowed away on the disabled truck. There was a great risk that the Soviets would inspect the truck, and the pianos would be confiscated. Permission was granted to have the truck towed across the Soviet zone. There was no inspection, and the pianos eventually arrived safely in the perspective cities of each owner. A new life had begun for the remarkable and beautiful piano (to be continued with next blog entry).