History of Piedmont Piano Company

Beginnings
The story of Piedmont Piano Company really begins in 1956, the year I was born. In that year my parents moved west from Washington D.C. and my father, Jim Callahan Sr., joined the French Horn section of the San Francisco Symphony, a position he would hold for over 25 years. At the time, the Symphony played just a half year schedule, and to supplement his income Dad decided to learn the trade of piano tuning. He apprenticed to Peter Wolford, one of the finest tuner/technicians in the area, and established Callahan Piano Service, his part time tuning business, in 1957. The Symphony season soon expanded to fill the year but he maintained the tuning business on a smaller scale, and as my three brothers and I grew up we became familiar with the skill of tuning and the joy of piano music. Although my piano lessons didn’t last long I played piano throughout my childhood and became fascinated by the different tones and qualities of different pianos.

A New Company
In 1978, I was completing my degree in Architecture at UC Berkeley, but still had a great love for pianos. My brother John had reestablished Callahan Piano Service and was tuning pianos full time, assisted by our brother Michael. We were often asked by customers and acquaintances for help in finding a good used piano. Dad was considering a career change and we felt between the four of us we had the skills and knowledge to create a first rate used piano business. On October 1, 1978, we rented a garage (just 100 yards from our current location), bought an old Melville Clark upright piano, and opened for business as Piedmont Piano Company, a partnership between Jim Sr., Jim Jr., John, and Michael Callahan.

Our Early Years
We discovered immediately that there was a great demand for good used pianos in Northern California. We scoured the area for quality pianos made before World War II that we could refurbish into long lasting instruments for our ever increasing customer base. From the start we specialized in vintage Steinways, and restored and sold hundreds of these superlative uprights and grands in our early years in business. We traveled across the US and to Europe and Japan to find the finest woods, felts, parts, and supplies to restore these instruments to their highest level. The response from our customers was overwhelming: we soon became Northern California’s top dealer for quality used pianos.

A Move and Other Changes
In 1980 we moved to our first storefront location at 4260 Piedmont Ave. It was around this time my father accepted the position of personnel manager at the Symphony and assumed the role of silent partner in our family business. Shortly thereafter John and Michael left Piedmont Piano Company and were joined by our youngest brother Matt to concentrate fully on Callahan Piano Service, which was experiencing a great increase in demand for tuning, repairs, and rebuilding. Since that time Piedmont Piano Company and Callahan Piano Service have existed as separate businesses working closely together to provide the finest in pianos and piano service.

New Pianos, Lessons, and Expansion
In 1984 we had the opportunity to acquire Mills Music, the original Yamaha piano dealership in the East Bay. We had always had great respect for Yamaha and jumped at the chance to be the factory authorized dealer for these fine acoustic and digital pianos. Carrying new pianos necessitated a move to larger quarters, and in 1985 we relocated to 4382 Piedmont Ave., our location ever since. Included with the assets of Mills Music was the Yamaha Music School, which is known today as our Harmony Road Music School, which over the years has taught music to thousands of students of all ages.

In 1998 we became the first American dealer since the 1920s to carry Pleyel pianos, handcrafted in France. Immediately we experienced an overwhelmingly positive response to these beautiful uprights and grands. In the same year we opened our acoustic guitar department which in a short time has become a major Bay Area source for fine classical and folk guitars.

Piedmont Piano Company in the 21st Century
In 2002 we were proud to become one of just five dealers in the US for Fazioli pianos, arguably the finest pianos in the world. With the addition of these world class instruments we feel we truly have the finest selection of pianos available anywhere. In December 2004 we were thrilled to announce the opening of our beautiful new showroom at 660 3rd St. in San Francisco. As we look to the future we will draw on our 29 years of experience to continue to offer the finest in pianos, guitars, rentals, and lessons to our ever increasing family of customers. Each day brings new and interesting experiences and challenges within the Bay Area music community, and we look forward to our continuing role in supporting the joy of making music.


	History of Piedmont Piano Company as told by Jim Callahan, Jr. Beginnings The story of Piedmont Piano Company really begins in 1956, the year I was born. In that year my parents moved west from Washington D.C. and my father, Jim Callahan Sr., joined the French Horn section of the San Francisco Symphony, a position he would hold for over 25 years. At the time, the Symphony played just a half year schedule, and to supplement his income Dad decided to learn the trade of piano tuning. He apprenticed to Peter Wolford, one of the finest tuner/technicians in the area, and established Callahan Piano Service, his part time tuning business, in 1957. The Symphony season soon expanded to fill the year but he maintained the tuning business on a smaller scale, and as my three brothers and I grew up we became familiar with the skill of tuning and the joy of piano music. Although my piano lessons didn’t last long I played piano throughout my childhood and became fascinated by the different tones and qualities of different pianos. A New Company In 1978, I was completing my degree in Architecture at UC Berkeley, but still had a great love for pianos. My brother John had reestablished Callahan Piano Service and was tuning pianos full time, assisted by our brother Michael. We were often asked by customers and acquaintances for help in finding a good used piano. Dad was considering a career change and we felt between the four of us we had the skills and knowledge to create a first rate used piano business. On October 1, 1978, we rented a garage (just 100 yards from our current location), bought an old Melville Clark upright piano, and opened for business as Piedmont Piano Company, a partnership between Jim Sr., Jim Jr., John, and Michael Callahan. Our Early Years We discovered immediately that there was a great demand for good used pianos in Northern California. We scoured the area for quality pianos made before World War II that we could refurbish into long lasting instruments for our ever increasing customer base. From the start we specialized in vintage Steinways, and restored and sold hundreds of these superlative uprights and grands in our early years in business. We traveled across the US and to Europe and Japan to find the finest woods, felts, parts, and supplies to restore these instruments to their highest level. The response from our customers was overwhelming: we soon became Northern California’s top dealer for quality used pianos. A Move and Other Changes In 1980 we moved to our first storefront location at 4260 Piedmont Ave. It was around this time my father accepted the position of personnel manager at the Symphony and assumed the role of silent partner in our family business. Shortly thereafter John and Michael left Piedmont Piano Company and were joined by our youngest brother Matt to concentrate fully on Callahan Piano Service, which was experiencing a great increase in demand for tuning, repairs, and rebuilding. Since that time Piedmont Piano Company and Callahan Piano Service have existed as separate businesses working closely together to provide the finest in pianos and piano service. New Pianos, Lessons, and Expansion In 1984 we had the opportunity to acquire Mills Music, the original Yamaha piano dealership in the East Bay. We had always had great respect for Yamaha and jumped at the chance to be the factory authorized dealer for these fine acoustic and digital pianos. Carrying new pianos necessitated a move to larger quarters, and in 1985 we relocated to 4382 Piedmont Ave., our location ever since. Included with the assets of Mills Music was the Yamaha Music School, which is known today as our Harmony Road Music School, which over the years has taught music to thousands of students of all ages. In 1998 we became the first American dealer since the 1920s to carry Pleyel pianos, handcrafted in France. Immediately we experienced an overwhelmingly positive response to these beautiful uprights and grands. In the same year we opened our acoustic guitar department which in a short time has become a major Bay Area source for fine classical and folk guitars. Piedmont Piano Company in the 21st Century In 2002 we were proud to become one of just five dealers in the US for Fazioli pianos, arguably the finest pianos in the world. With the addition of these world class instruments we feel we truly have the finest selection of pianos available anywhere. In December 2004 we were thrilled to announce the opening of our beautiful new showroom at 660 3rd St. in San Francisco. As we look to the future we will draw on our 29 years of experience to continue to offer the finest in pianos, guitars, rentals, and lessons to our ever increasing family of customers. Each day brings new and interesting experiences and challenges within the Bay Area music community, and we look forward to our continuing role in supporting the joy of making music.