Olympus Jr. to unveil restored Steinway piano

Olympus Jr. High School's 80-year-old Steinway piano has had a long and colorful history, and now current students have a chance to add something of their own to it.

Restoration of the piano started over the summer, and it will be unveiled in all its original glory for a concert on Nov. 17. The concert will be held at 7 p.m. in the school's auditorium, located on 2217 East Murray-Holladay Blvd (4730 South), and will feature performances by students, Olympus Jr. piano teacher Jane Springman, and local pianist Peter Breinholt. Breinholt will also be the guest speaker for the unveiling. A private reception will be held afterward to honor those whose donations made the restoration possible.

"From history to making history" has been the theme of the piano restoration project, Principal Carole Harris said.

And what a history it's had. The piano belonged to Granite High School for many years, during which it was played and signed by famous pianists Arthur Rubenstein, Percy Grainger and Grant Johansson. Many parents and especially grandparents of Olympus Jr.'s current students played or heard it when they attended Granite High, and Springman played it as a student there as well. As Granite High's last principal before the school closed in 2009, Harris couldn't bear to part with the old treasure, so she brought it with her when she was transferred to Olympus Jr.

"To have a grand piano with a history at a junior high is significant," she said.

The piano's future will be even more significant than its past to Olympus Jr.'s students, as the school is starting a new piano program now that it has a symphony-quality grand piano to work with.

"There hasn't been a place for students to shine with their piano talent," PTA Co-president Paula Delis said.

Olympus Jr. actually has a lot of students who play the piano very well, and have performed with adult groups such as the Salt Lake Symphony, but few of their peers know about their talent because they haven't been able to perform at the school, PTA Co-president Anne-Marie Hopkins said.

Now all of that will change, and students from surrounding junior highs will also be able to use the piano for their concerts. Community groups will be welcome to use it as well, which is fitting since it was the people of Holladay who paid for the restoration.

The school's "88 Keys" fundraiser, spearheaded by Delis and Hopkins, raised over $14,000 in less than a year. Individuals and groups from the Olympus Jr. community bought keys taken off another keyboard for $165 each, and other donations were made as well, including one anonymous gift of $400 for a new piano bench. A local Eagle Scout built a special portable garage to protect the piano until it could take its permanent place in the school.

Although there was originally some concern that the restoration might need to be done in stages from the inside out if the one fundraiser was not enough, that turned out to be no problem. The entire piano was restored by Russell Sorenson at Daynes Music, including the sound board, strings and all the little internal pieces that make a piano sound good. The outside was stripped and refinished, the keys cleaned and their tops replaced and a new Steinway logo was put on.