Luca Fazioli Visits Lewis & Clark College
Accompanied by Mitch Paola, owner of Portland Piano Company, and Music Department Chair Susan Smith, Luca removed the piano’s keyboard, and thoroughly inspected each hammer, as well as the piano’s soundboard. Luca also polished the brass emblem on the side of the piano, and then played the instrument and listened to its dynamic sound.
The Fazioli company produces around 140 highly-coveted pianos per year, showing great care and attention to detail with each instrument. The soundboard of the Fazioli piano is made with Italian Red Spruce, which grows very slowly and therefore straight, allowing the sound to travel smoothly through the grain of the wood.
In 2015, the Department of Music purchased the instrument from Portland Piano Company (which was the first 9’ Fazioli sold in Oregon), with the help of a generous gift by a trustee. The iconic concert grand piano has been played in countless recitals, ensemble concerts, and weddings, as well as masterclasses by Angela Hewitt (2019) and piano duo Stephanie & Saar (2022).
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Music is located in Evans Center on the Undergraduate Campus.
MSC: 18
email music@lclark.edu
voice 503-768-7460
Chair Susan DeWitt Smith
Music
Lewis & Clark
615 S. Palatine Hill Road
Portland OR 97219