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A love story times two
Newlyweds Jonathan and Jennifer Mason make beauftiful music together.
Once upon a time... which is how this story must begin... there was a couple who were in love with music, two pianos and, of course, each other. And now, they make beautiful music together on matching Boston grand pianos in their Melbourne, Fla., home.
Jonathan and Jennifer Mason learned to play the piano as teens and grew up to become pianists at church. He at First Baptist Church of Melbourne. She at nearby First Baptist Indialantic.
Several years ago, after meeting at a Bible-study group, they began playing duets, only to find they had more in common than just music. Much more. So, they fell in love and were married last year.
Shortly after the wedding, the couple began taking classical-duet lessons “to branch out to more musically challenging pieces than our church music,” Mrs. Mason explains. Unfortunately, the two upright pianos they brought to the marriage weren’t up to the task. That’s what launched their quest for two pianos compatible in volume, responsiveness and tone that wouldn’t exceed their budget or floor space.
In fact, floor space was important to Mr. Mason, long before he met his bride. Owning a grand piano was a longstanding dream, and was a major consideration when shopping for a home before he got married. Ultimately, Mr. Mason selected a home with a front room that could showcase a piano.
Now, however, the question was whether or not it could accommodate two. Larger grand pianos they played had plenty of volume, but were too large for their home and pocketbook. Smaller, less expensive models didn’t provide the resonant bass the couple loved.
Then they visited the Altamonte Springs showroom of Steinway Piano Galleries-Orlando, the exclusive dealer for the family of Steinway-designed pianos in central Florida, where they found everything they wanted in a Boston grand piano. The GP-156, a 5-foot-1-inch model, has a wider tail design to give it the resonance they wanted in a size that would fit their front room … and at a price that would fit their budget.
And although they anticipated a wait for delivery of two polished ebony models, vice president Allen Guyot located two pianos used in the prestigious Aspen Music Festival – one of them already in his Altamonte Springs showroom. As soon as they heard the news, the Masons arrived at the dealership with a stack of solo and duo pieces to audition the piano from every angle.
“Allen just let us play,” Mrs. Mason laughs. “I’m sure we played more than an hour.” And, naturally, they fell in love (after all, this is a love story) with the Steinway design.
While she says “the touch was extremely intuitive,” he picked up on the Boston’s “better range of dynamics.” However, both agreed that Steinway-designed Bostons would be their choice, and one day after their first anniversary, the Masons took delivery of two Boston grands to fill their front room with music.
And if that happy ending isn’t good enough, there’s a bit more to the story.
Now that the Masons had the pianos of their dreams, they decided to make a few more dreams come true by donating their old pianos to the Steinway Society of Central Florida, which provides pianos to low-income children who want to learn to play the piano.
And, naturally, everyone lived happily ever after.