Setting a piano on fire appears to be quite a thing. There can be various reasons for this seemingly crazy act. Tradition, spectacle, vandalism, rebellion, attention seeking, art, celebration, waste disposal(!), these have all be cited as grounds for immolating a piano.
This isn’t the first time World Piano News has explored this issue. In 2017 we ran an article entitled Burning Issues. The story looked at various instances including the setting fire to a piano on primetime TV (effect), the Square Piano Pyre of 1904 (vandalism/rebellion-ish), the annual Roxbury Summer Solstice (celebration).
In 2018 we published More Burning Piano issues. This piece looked at the tradition in both the Royal Air Force, and the US Air Force of setting fire to pianos to honour their respective war dead.
We’ve now got a couple of new conflagrations to highlight.
Amadeus
Sky UK will air a new five-part adaptation of Peter Shaffer’s award-winning 1979 play Amadeus in December 2025. NOW US will also show it, but the screening date has yet to be announced. A movie adaptation was released in 1984 and won eight Oscars including Best Picture.
The spectacular new series follows Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s meteoric rise, his conflict with jealous Viennese court composer Antonio Salieri, and his troubled marriage to Constanze. Actors Will Sharpe, Paul Bettany, and Gabrielle Creevy play the three main roles.
Naturally a host of period style pianos and keyboards appear in the series. Watch out for them:
– A reproduction Anton Walter fortepiano by the German company J.C. Neupert
– A reproduction 1792 Anton Walter fortepiano by Paul McNulty
– A reproduction clavichord made by J.C. Neupert
– A c.1785 Johann Bohack (in Wien) fortepiano from the Radbon Collection
– A rare c.1797 tangentenflügel (tangent piano) by Johann Wilhelm Berner, Hamburg (Radbon Collection)
– A non-playing copy of the above tangentenflügel
– An unidentified clavichord (Radbon Collection).
And the pianos actually used during the recording sessions for the series are:
– The above 1792 Anton Walter fortepiano by Paul McNulty
– A reproduction Heilmann fortepiano
– A Steinway Model B grand piano for the title sequences and two Mozart pieces.
Mozart originally grew up playing harpsichords and clavichords (he also played the organ and the violin). He began performing on the piano around the age of 20. His most cherished instrument was a Viennese fortepiano by Anton Walter. He also greatly admired the instruments of Johann Andreas Stein, an outstanding piano maker .
And now the clincher! One scene does feature a burning piano. The piano actually ablaze is the aforementioned copy of the c.1797 Berner tangentflügel. The event occurs whilst Mozart is suffering a particularly difficult period.
Full details of the production can be found on the Sky UK website.
Piano on Fire by Piano Sigrist
Piano builder Josias Sigrist (of Swiss company Piano Sigrist), technician Janosch Bar and pianist Ivan Horvatic have recently premiered a show they describe as “the world’s only acoustic-pyrotechnic piano concert”.
Horvatic performs live on a specially prepared Steinway grand that has been fitted with various incendiary effects. The result is a dazzling sensory experience packed with “fiery surprises”.
This event definitely earns the piano-burning designation of “spectacle”.
The Piano on Fire concert is shortly due to go on tour around the world. More information can be found on the Piano Sigrist website.