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The Weight of a Piano
For fans of Ann Patchett's Bel Canto, Amanda Coplin's The Orchardist, and Annie Proulx's Accordian Crimes. A tour-de-force about two women and the piano that inexorably ties their lives together through time and across continents, for better and for worse.
In 1962, in the Soviet Union, eight-year-old Katya is bequeathed what will become the love of her life: a Blüthner piano, built at the turn of the century in Germany, on which she discovers everything that she herself can do with music and what music, in turn, does for her. Yet after marrying, she emigrates with her young family from Russia to America, at her husband's frantic insistence, and her piano is lost in the shuffle.
In 2012, in Bakersfield, California, twenty-six-year-old Clara Lundy loses another boyfriend and again has to find a new apartment, which is complicated by the gift her father had given her for her twelfth birthday, shortly before he and her mother died in a fire that burned their house down: a Blüthner upright she has never learned to play. Ophaned, she was raised by her aunt and uncle, who in his car-repair shop trained her to become a first-rate mechanic, much to the surprise of her subsequent customers. But this work, her true mainstay in a scattered life, is put on hold when her hand gets broken while the piano's being moved--and in sudden frustration she chooses to sell it. And what becomes crucial is who the most interested party turns out to be.
The mysterious--and tragic--connections between Katya, Clara, and this Blüthner unravel gradually yet thrillingly in Chris Cander's stunning portrait of modern womanhood and powerful ode to music's ability to sustain us or, in its absence, destroy us. A novel about attraction, obsession, creative passion, love, and loss, The Weight of a Piano is a dazzling exploration of how the human heart can both break and be restored.
In 1962, in the Soviet Union, eight-year-old Katya is bequeathed what will become the love of her life: a Blüthner piano, built at the turn of the century in Germany, on which she discovers everything that she herself can do with music and what music, in turn, does for her. Yet after marrying, she emigrates with her young family from Russia to America, at her husband's frantic insistence, and her piano is lost in the shuffle.
In 2012, in Bakersfield, California, twenty-six-year-old Clara Lundy loses another boyfriend and again has to find a new apartment, which is complicated by the gift her father had given her for her twelfth birthday, shortly before he and her mother died in a fire that burned their house down: a Blüthner upright she has never learned to play. Ophaned, she was raised by her aunt and uncle, who in his car-repair shop trained her to become a first-rate mechanic, much to the surprise of her subsequent customers. But this work, her true mainstay in a scattered life, is put on hold when her hand gets broken while the piano's being moved--and in sudden frustration she chooses to sell it. And what becomes crucial is who the most interested party turns out to be.
The mysterious--and tragic--connections between Katya, Clara, and this Blüthner unravel gradually yet thrillingly in Chris Cander's stunning portrait of modern womanhood and powerful ode to music's ability to sustain us or, in its absence, destroy us. A novel about attraction, obsession, creative passion, love, and loss, The Weight of a Piano is a dazzling exploration of how the human heart can both break and be restored.
8 pages, Audiobook
First published January 22, 2019
558 people are currently reading
7728 people want to read
About the author
Chris Cander
12 books268 followersChris Cander is the author of the novels THE YOUNG OF OTHER ANIMALS, A GRACIOUS NEIGHBOR, THE WEIGHT OF A PIANO, WHISPER HOLLOW, and 11 STORIES, and the grade K-5 picture book THE WORD BURGLAR. Visit www.chriscander.com for more info.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 604 reviews
July 2, 2019
Pianos are difficult to move. Ponderous and unwieldly, a piano cannot be moved by oneself. Help is required. This particular piano carries with it not only its heft but emotional attachments that are equally as heavy. Auto mechanic, Clara, drags the piano around from apartment to apartment and relationship to relationship until she meets a photographer with his own baggage associated with the instrument. And what of the music or its absence? There is a great deal of history associated with this piano and we travel from the Soviet Union to Bakersfield, California as the story unfolds. For a romance, this is surprisingly well written and I learned a bit about auto mechanics, photography and how pianos are constructed, maintained and tuned.
August 3, 2019
Two things attracted me to this book:
1- Joanne’s review on Goodreads. A lovely review!!
2- Our daughter is an excellent piano player/ singer/song writer/dancer.. etc.
Her first musical was recently chosen by a production company in New York...to be performed in NY next February-2020.
Lots of piano playing.
Back to this book: 📚🥰🎹🎼
A Bluthner upright piano - which was built in Germany during the 1800’s - was a strong developed main character, in Chris Cander’s novel.
The two female main characters were:
....Katya ( a Russian immigrant with a love for music,... she inherited the Bluthner as a child),
and
....Clara, ( the first ‘female/ character’ car mechanic I’ve known from any of my novels).
Grief and loss and depression affected both women... beginning in childhood... from Russia to California.
I enjoyed the storytelling- the description of the music - the mystery of the piano itself and how it was tied to both women - the other people in their lives - their struggles about their past and hope for the future.
I couldn’t help but wonder- why Bakersfield? .... a small town known for agriculture and energy production -
at the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley in the Central Valley region,here in northern California.
But... why not?
Bakersfield it is!!!.....with a trip to Death Valley, to boot!( piano, and photographer, too)..
The storytelling is a combination of beautiful & sorrowful to down right heartbreaking at times.
The ‘WEIGHT’ of the Piano....carries burdens...
but the ‘MUSIC’ sends messages of healing
to the inner self.
As I read this lovely novel ( not without flaws - but lovely)...
I was taken back to when our own piano-playing child was sick - angry and hopeless about being sick.
Our daughter often told me - it was her artistic drive - her passion that kept her alive:
Music, playing the piano, writing, drawing, singing, and dancing literally helped her heal ( 5 hospitalizations never filled her heart or helped ‘her’ fight for her own life - rather - the hospitals only drove home how sick she was)... but ART- MUSIC - HER PIANO playing gave her a reason to live —
I enjoyed this novel.
The characters might have been developed a little more - and perhaps less details about the ‘moving’ of the piano....
but....
THE HEAVY WEIGHT and burden of moving the piano to the other side of the world ( yep, Bakersfield) - symbolized the heavy weight of our own pains, loss, disappointment, abandonment, and sadness.
Awe-inspiring majestic prose ....
Touching, tragic, and beautiful.
1- Joanne’s review on Goodreads. A lovely review!!
2- Our daughter is an excellent piano player/ singer/song writer/dancer.. etc.
Her first musical was recently chosen by a production company in New York...to be performed in NY next February-2020.
Lots of piano playing.
Back to this book: 📚🥰🎹🎼
A Bluthner upright piano - which was built in Germany during the 1800’s - was a strong developed main character, in Chris Cander’s novel.
The two female main characters were:
....Katya ( a Russian immigrant with a love for music,... she inherited the Bluthner as a child),
and
....Clara, ( the first ‘female/ character’ car mechanic I’ve known from any of my novels).
Grief and loss and depression affected both women... beginning in childhood... from Russia to California.
I enjoyed the storytelling- the description of the music - the mystery of the piano itself and how it was tied to both women - the other people in their lives - their struggles about their past and hope for the future.
I couldn’t help but wonder- why Bakersfield? .... a small town known for agriculture and energy production -
at the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley in the Central Valley region,here in northern California.
But... why not?
Bakersfield it is!!!.....with a trip to Death Valley, to boot!( piano, and photographer, too)..
The storytelling is a combination of beautiful & sorrowful to down right heartbreaking at times.
The ‘WEIGHT’ of the Piano....carries burdens...
but the ‘MUSIC’ sends messages of healing
to the inner self.
As I read this lovely novel ( not without flaws - but lovely)...
I was taken back to when our own piano-playing child was sick - angry and hopeless about being sick.
Our daughter often told me - it was her artistic drive - her passion that kept her alive:
Music, playing the piano, writing, drawing, singing, and dancing literally helped her heal ( 5 hospitalizations never filled her heart or helped ‘her’ fight for her own life - rather - the hospitals only drove home how sick she was)... but ART- MUSIC - HER PIANO playing gave her a reason to live —
I enjoyed this novel.
The characters might have been developed a little more - and perhaps less details about the ‘moving’ of the piano....
but....
THE HEAVY WEIGHT and burden of moving the piano to the other side of the world ( yep, Bakersfield) - symbolized the heavy weight of our own pains, loss, disappointment, abandonment, and sadness.
Awe-inspiring majestic prose ....
Touching, tragic, and beautiful.
January 12, 2019
OMG, can this book be any more irritating?
Every major character in this book is either depressed, behaves badly, or keeps making bad decisions. It's essentially the story of a young Russian girl named Katya to whom is bequeathed a beautiful and expensive Blüthner piano, which eventually falls into the hands of an American girl named Carla, and how their stories intersect. Katya's story in interesting, and I wanted to read more about her. Carla's story, whose chapters alternated with Katya's, was much less interesting by comparison, and I couldn't wait for those chapters to be over. I'm not sure how anybody could refer to this as a "tour de force." This type of story is not new...it's been done before: please refer to the 1998 movie "The Red Violin."
Add to the mix a couple of needless sex scenes that truly added nothing to the story; I'm far from being a prude, but sex scenes for the sake of sex scenes don't mean much. They weren't obscenely graphic, thankfully, just not really relevant to the story or that damn piano. Also, Katya often spoke in Russian and the author sometimes wrote out her words in Cyrillic with no translation, including sentences during a couple of important moments. As a non-Russian speaker this really detracted from the story and made me feel like I was missing an important point. And why write out AN ENTIRE LETTER in Cyrillic?! What's the point? There was a translation for that one, fortunately, but it was unnecessary.
So, is there anything positive about the book? Yeah, there is: the story wasn't completely horrible, and it was a quick read.
Every major character in this book is either depressed, behaves badly, or keeps making bad decisions. It's essentially the story of a young Russian girl named Katya to whom is bequeathed a beautiful and expensive Blüthner piano, which eventually falls into the hands of an American girl named Carla, and how their stories intersect. Katya's story in interesting, and I wanted to read more about her. Carla's story, whose chapters alternated with Katya's, was much less interesting by comparison, and I couldn't wait for those chapters to be over. I'm not sure how anybody could refer to this as a "tour de force." This type of story is not new...it's been done before: please refer to the 1998 movie "The Red Violin."
Add to the mix a couple of needless sex scenes that truly added nothing to the story; I'm far from being a prude, but sex scenes for the sake of sex scenes don't mean much. They weren't obscenely graphic, thankfully, just not really relevant to the story or that damn piano. Also, Katya often spoke in Russian and the author sometimes wrote out her words in Cyrillic with no translation, including sentences during a couple of important moments. As a non-Russian speaker this really detracted from the story and made me feel like I was missing an important point. And why write out AN ENTIRE LETTER in Cyrillic?! What's the point? There was a translation for that one, fortunately, but it was unnecessary.
So, is there anything positive about the book? Yeah, there is: the story wasn't completely horrible, and it was a quick read.
February 1, 2019
Chris Cander’s new book, The Weight of a Piano is simply stunning. Her story follows the life of a Bluthner piano as it travels from owner to owner. In addition to the piano, there are two women who play central roles in the tale. In 1962 when she is 8 years old, Katya is gifted the piano by a neighbor in her apartment building in Russia. She eventually emigrates from Russia to the United States losing her piano in the process. In 2012, Clara, who was gifted the piano by her father, decides to sell it to help make ends meet. As the book progresses, their stories unfold and begin to intertwine. Cander’s prose is lyrical and beautiful, and her tale unfolds at just the right pace. As I was close to finishing the book, I began to worry that the ending was going to frustrate me, but instead the book ends perfectly. I highly recommend this one.
November 27, 2018
The start was GORGEOUS. The piano-maker roaming the Romanian forests to find a perfect tree; the craftsmen carefully creating each instrument by hand. But then: for as sweeping a story as it was, the language was seriously lacking, imho. I wanted perfectly-wrought, elegant sentences that made me sit up and take notice -- and I didn't get them. Somewhat predictable storyline and Greg got really creepy, really fast.
December 28, 2018
In 1962, 8-year-old Russian Katya receives a piano, which is bequeathed to her by her elderly neighbor, who recognizes the music in Katya. The piano is a German Bluthner. Katya becomes a gifted pianist and she brings the best out of the piano. But her piano is lost to her when her husband decides to leave Russia with high hopes of starting a new life in America with Katya and their son.
In 2012, Clara is torn about whether she should sell her Bluthner piano, which was given to her by her beloved father as an early 12th birthday present. She never learned to play it and has had to have it moved every time one of her relationships ends. But the piano is special to her since her father gave it to her shortly before he and her mother died in a fire. When she impulsively decides the piano must go, the buyer brings a connection with the piano that completely takes Clara off guard and brings her on a unique road trip through Death Valley.
I loved how this book begins with the building of this particular piano. The details in this chapter are fascinating, from the slow choosing of the right tree to the long drying out of the wood to the final building of the exquisite piano in a factory in Leipzig. It made the piano come alive in my mind and immediately built a connection with it. In alternating chapters, the author introduces the two women who have such a love for this piano – Katya and Clara – and carefully weaves their stories together. Their stories are beautifully told, with a slow and careful intent towards the brilliant ending.
Recommended.
This book was given to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.
In 2012, Clara is torn about whether she should sell her Bluthner piano, which was given to her by her beloved father as an early 12th birthday present. She never learned to play it and has had to have it moved every time one of her relationships ends. But the piano is special to her since her father gave it to her shortly before he and her mother died in a fire. When she impulsively decides the piano must go, the buyer brings a connection with the piano that completely takes Clara off guard and brings her on a unique road trip through Death Valley.
I loved how this book begins with the building of this particular piano. The details in this chapter are fascinating, from the slow choosing of the right tree to the long drying out of the wood to the final building of the exquisite piano in a factory in Leipzig. It made the piano come alive in my mind and immediately built a connection with it. In alternating chapters, the author introduces the two women who have such a love for this piano – Katya and Clara – and carefully weaves their stories together. Their stories are beautifully told, with a slow and careful intent towards the brilliant ending.
Recommended.
This book was given to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.
August 13, 2019
Der Roman strotzt vor Melancholie,
aber ein sehr gut umgesetztes Thema von Chris Cander,
sprachlich hervorragend.
aber ein sehr gut umgesetztes Thema von Chris Cander,
sprachlich hervorragend.
January 16, 2020
Another music themed book I chose to read and another mistake.
This is a novel that's not worth reviewing. The characters are stick figures, rather than people. The plot is a cliché - I could see it coming early on. And having a narration from the point of view of the piano in one of the chapters is ridiculous.
This is a novel that's not worth reviewing. The characters are stick figures, rather than people. The plot is a cliché - I could see it coming early on. And having a narration from the point of view of the piano in one of the chapters is ridiculous.
June 21, 2019
This is a novel that is centered around the metaphor that is a Bluthner piano that was owned by a Russian Jewish woman named Katya. It begins in early 1960s Russia where she is obsessed with her wonderful piano. She marries an alcoholic and abusive man named Mikhail and has a son named Grisha. They escape from Russia, against her desire, and eventually resettle in Los Angeles.
Meanwhile, we follow the life of Clara, who lost her parents in a fire when she was 12. It is 16 years later, and she now owns the piano, which had been a present from her father. She is an auto mechanic with a mostly unsatisfying life. She decides to sell the piano, and in the process meets Greg, a photographer who wants to photograph the piano in Death Valley National Park. She decides at the last minute not to sell the piano but to rent it to him for a couple of weeks. She follows him as takes it to Death Valley, for the piano is the last connection to her father that she has.
In alternating chapters, the author weaves the story of these two woman and the storied piano. There are some secrets revealed along the way that create an intricate and well-plotted story. Little bits of information are leaked out until everything is sorted out in the end. The ending was unusual but emotionally very effective.
This is a well-written story which does teeter on the maudlin at times. I did like the way the author used music throughout the book. The most prominent piece in the story is the Prelude Opus 11 No 14 in E flat minor by Alexander Scriabin, an evocative but somewhat unusual choice. The characters are well drawn and the plot moves along nicely to his vibrant conclusion.
Meanwhile, we follow the life of Clara, who lost her parents in a fire when she was 12. It is 16 years later, and she now owns the piano, which had been a present from her father. She is an auto mechanic with a mostly unsatisfying life. She decides to sell the piano, and in the process meets Greg, a photographer who wants to photograph the piano in Death Valley National Park. She decides at the last minute not to sell the piano but to rent it to him for a couple of weeks. She follows him as takes it to Death Valley, for the piano is the last connection to her father that she has.
In alternating chapters, the author weaves the story of these two woman and the storied piano. There are some secrets revealed along the way that create an intricate and well-plotted story. Little bits of information are leaked out until everything is sorted out in the end. The ending was unusual but emotionally very effective.
This is a well-written story which does teeter on the maudlin at times. I did like the way the author used music throughout the book. The most prominent piece in the story is the Prelude Opus 11 No 14 in E flat minor by Alexander Scriabin, an evocative but somewhat unusual choice. The characters are well drawn and the plot moves along nicely to his vibrant conclusion.
November 24, 2018
I couldn’t decide whether to give this book a 3/ 3.5/ or a 4 and After debating I decided on a 4 because it genuinely was a good novel. It had some predictable moments however, the alternating stories of the past and present kept me interested not really lagging anywhere throughout. Of all the “twists” there was only really one that I didn’t see coming and I enjoyed that. This books synopsis is already written out so I will just say that it was a heartfelt book about wrestling with either holding on too tight to the past or trying so hard to let it go and actually being scared of both. The Piano in this book linked two families, and the two main characters, but it can be used as a metaphor for any object in anyone’s life that keeps them clinging to the past, and all you can do is choose whether it’s something you wish to keep doing or finally just let it all go, and stop bearing the “weight of a piano”
August 9, 2018
I have a total "book hangover!"
The story is poignant, but more importantly to me is how the people are so real! This author clearly understands human emotion on another level, and pulls the reader right into each character's world so completely that you truly forget they are words on a page and not flesh and blood!
The research that must have gone into this novel in order to include the level of detail it does, is staggering.
The PASSIONS are palpable! I laughed, I cried, and I even exclaimed "Oh, shit!" out loud while reading.
The author takes you on a journey with each character, and gives you their stories without insulting the reader's intelligence by handholding along the way.
For those (like me) who need a comparison novel... I would say my last relationship to characters this strong was when I read "All the Light You Cannot See." The novel overall also had a perfect blend of past and present that reminded me of when I read "History of Love: A Novel." Without the WWII (which personally I need a break from every once and a while).
This book was full of real relationship with raw emotions of need, anger, desire, pain, loss and control! Stories and sentiments that any reader will be able to relate to, and will come away wishing they had more intensity in their own lives.
I did not want it to end, and will definitely be reading this book again!
The story is poignant, but more importantly to me is how the people are so real! This author clearly understands human emotion on another level, and pulls the reader right into each character's world so completely that you truly forget they are words on a page and not flesh and blood!
The research that must have gone into this novel in order to include the level of detail it does, is staggering.
The PASSIONS are palpable! I laughed, I cried, and I even exclaimed "Oh, shit!" out loud while reading.
The author takes you on a journey with each character, and gives you their stories without insulting the reader's intelligence by handholding along the way.
For those (like me) who need a comparison novel... I would say my last relationship to characters this strong was when I read "All the Light You Cannot See." The novel overall also had a perfect blend of past and present that reminded me of when I read "History of Love: A Novel." Without the WWII (which personally I need a break from every once and a while).
This book was full of real relationship with raw emotions of need, anger, desire, pain, loss and control! Stories and sentiments that any reader will be able to relate to, and will come away wishing they had more intensity in their own lives.
I did not want it to end, and will definitely be reading this book again!
February 21, 2020
4 -1/2*
This is a book about the most famous piano maker –Blüthner- you probably never heard of.
This is the journey of one particular upright Blüthner piano.
What possible connection could there be between a 26 yr.-old female auto mechanic in 2012 California and an antique upright Blüthner piano built in Germany around 1903?
You’ll just have to read the book to find out.
HINT:
The piano was gifted to 8-year old Katya living in the USSR in the 1960’s. The piano was lost during her long and arduous immigration journey to the USA … until it was found again.
“What if …the piano gained the weight of each owner and his or her music?”
This is a book about the most famous piano maker –Blüthner- you probably never heard of.
This is the journey of one particular upright Blüthner piano.
What possible connection could there be between a 26 yr.-old female auto mechanic in 2012 California and an antique upright Blüthner piano built in Germany around 1903?
You’ll just have to read the book to find out.
HINT:
The piano was gifted to 8-year old Katya living in the USSR in the 1960’s. The piano was lost during her long and arduous immigration journey to the USA … until it was found again.
“What if …the piano gained the weight of each owner and his or her music?”
January 23, 2019
Thank you so very much Knopf for my free copy of THE WEIGHT OF A PIANO -
This is an emotional, poignant novel with elegant prose that will pull you in so much you won’t want to let go.
In 1962, eight-year-old Katya Dmitrievna receives a piano from her neighbor who sees something special in her. It’s a beautiful Blüthner piano and Katya grows up to become a gifted pianist. Years later, she’s married with a son and her husband decides it’s time to leave Russia to start a new life in America, but her piano is lost.
In 2012, Clara Lundy has been moving her piano with her for years, ever since her father gave it to her for her twelfth birthday just before her parents died in a fire. After her last relationship ended, she impulsively decides to sell her piano. Even though it’s special to her, she’s never learned to play it. Come to find out, the buyer has an unexpected attachment to the piano that catches Clara off-guard.
We follow three storylines that run parallel of each other: the piano maker (Julius Blüthner), Katya, and Clara. Cander’s writing is exquisite and her characters are so real you can reach out and touch them. The details of the piano, how it’s created, and the central role it plays are magical. The piano carries a heavy weight on each of their lives, from Blüthner, to Katya in Russia, to Clara in California, and it made quite the impression on me as well. Cander weaves the stories together perfectly, but be prepared to feel every emotion when reading this book. THE WEIGHT OF A PIANO is a brilliantly unique exploration of loss, along with the power of beautiful music.
This is an emotional, poignant novel with elegant prose that will pull you in so much you won’t want to let go.
In 1962, eight-year-old Katya Dmitrievna receives a piano from her neighbor who sees something special in her. It’s a beautiful Blüthner piano and Katya grows up to become a gifted pianist. Years later, she’s married with a son and her husband decides it’s time to leave Russia to start a new life in America, but her piano is lost.
In 2012, Clara Lundy has been moving her piano with her for years, ever since her father gave it to her for her twelfth birthday just before her parents died in a fire. After her last relationship ended, she impulsively decides to sell her piano. Even though it’s special to her, she’s never learned to play it. Come to find out, the buyer has an unexpected attachment to the piano that catches Clara off-guard.
We follow three storylines that run parallel of each other: the piano maker (Julius Blüthner), Katya, and Clara. Cander’s writing is exquisite and her characters are so real you can reach out and touch them. The details of the piano, how it’s created, and the central role it plays are magical. The piano carries a heavy weight on each of their lives, from Blüthner, to Katya in Russia, to Clara in California, and it made quite the impression on me as well. Cander weaves the stories together perfectly, but be prepared to feel every emotion when reading this book. THE WEIGHT OF A PIANO is a brilliantly unique exploration of loss, along with the power of beautiful music.
February 8, 2019
I give it an second star just for the first chapter alone which was beautifully written. And then the book goes down hill from there. I would’ve liked to read about the “old German’s” story. I didn’t like any of the characters and their character development or lack there of. Forget “The Weight of the Piano” this book’s title should’ve been “The Weight of the Book” with how dang depressing it was!
July 5, 2022
Un roman despre amintiri și speranță, suferință și dezamăgire, muzică și tăcere – acea tăcere profundă, perfectă și incompletă, ce se „aude” în clipa în care muzica încetează brusc, deși ecourile ei încă reverberează în mintea și inima auditoriului (melomanii și toți oamenii sensibili știu exact la ce mă refer).
„Imortalizez ce e și ceea ce nu e, prezența și absența, astfel încât să poți vedea ceea ce eu pot auzi.” – p.81, repetat la p.179, spune unul dintre protagoniști, pe site-ul lui de promovare.
Acțiunea aparent complicată, plină de meandre și răsturnări de situație, se desfășoară pe două planuri, ce merg o vreme în paralel, pentru ca, de pe la jumătatea romanului, să se apropie și să se întretaie, iar în final să se unească, acum oferindu-se și cheile de înțelegere a unor stranii coincidențe și cam toate răspunsurile la întrebările ce s-au ivit pe parcurs.
S-a spus ades că unul din personajele importante ale romanului, dacă nu cel mai important, este pianina cu numărul 66 825, creată pe la începutul secolului XX, în Leipzig, de celebrul producător de piane Julius Blüthner, un instrument remarcabil, cu o tonalitate aparte, ce trece prin mai multe mâini, cumpărată, dăruită ori moștenită de pasionați sau mai puțin pasionați ai muzicii. Și s-a mai afirmat că, fiind mutată dintr-un loc în altul – din Austria în Rusia, apoi, trecând prin toată Europa, în America –, pianina ajunge „să se încarce” de amintirile tuturor celor care au deținut-o, greutății inițiale, oricum mari – și cunoscătorii știu la ce mă refer –, adăugându-i-se greutatea emoțiilor pe care le-au încercat protagoniștii, ce nu se leagă neapărat de evenimente petrecute în timpul mutării, ci sunt fapte de viață, întâmplări mai banale sau mai dramatice. De altfel, în penultimul capitol, se observă antropomorfizarea vizibilă a pianinei, transformarea ei într-un personaj, pentru că aceasta „se simți împinsă...” etc. etc. – p. 306 și următoarele –, și își ia „rămas-bun, rămas-bun” – dar nu ca un strigăt uman, ci ca o melodie frântă! Ca atare, nu aș spune că instrumentul e protagonist și chiar poartă povara memoriei, aceasta fiind dusă tot de oameni, de cei care s-au aflat în preajma ei, au mutat-o, au iubit-o sau au urât-o, au lovit-o sau au mângâiat-o, au cântat la ea sau i-au „ascultat” liniștea. Pianina rămâne un obiect, emblematic și cu mare valoare sentimentală, dar tot un obiect se cheamă că este, care „împovărează” suflete și „a ajuns ceva mai mult decât un prespapier în formă de instrument muzical, care nu lăsa ca tot ce mai rămăsese din amintirile ei [ale Clarei] despre copilărie să-și ia zborul și să dispară.” – pp.48-49
Un roman palpitant, foarte plăcut la lectură, mult mai bine realizat ca altele pe aceeași temă, în care se jonglează frumos cu procedee și tehnici literare, dar pe care nu l-aș numi o capodoperă a genului. Consider că e doar un text antrenant, bine închegat și atent documentat, deși, pe alocuri, informațiile tehnice (din sfera muzicală și mecanica auto) sunt prea abundente, puțin prelucrate și prea puțin încadrate în context. Este meritoriu și demn de lăudat efortul făcut de autoare spre a se documenta (vezi impresionanta listă de persoane care au contribuit la „realizarea” romanului, prezentă la final), numai că, din nefericire, partea artistică suferă exact din pricina acestui „exces de zel” – un punct de vedere strict subiectiv!
Rămâne însă un roman captivant, accesibil multor categorii de lectori, melomani sau simpli iubitori ai artei sunetului și – să nu uităm unde ne aflăm! – ai artei cuvântului!
„Imortalizez ce e și ceea ce nu e, prezența și absența, astfel încât să poți vedea ceea ce eu pot auzi.” – p.81, repetat la p.179, spune unul dintre protagoniști, pe site-ul lui de promovare.
Acțiunea aparent complicată, plină de meandre și răsturnări de situație, se desfășoară pe două planuri, ce merg o vreme în paralel, pentru ca, de pe la jumătatea romanului, să se apropie și să se întretaie, iar în final să se unească, acum oferindu-se și cheile de înțelegere a unor stranii coincidențe și cam toate răspunsurile la întrebările ce s-au ivit pe parcurs.
S-a spus ades că unul din personajele importante ale romanului, dacă nu cel mai important, este pianina cu numărul 66 825, creată pe la începutul secolului XX, în Leipzig, de celebrul producător de piane Julius Blüthner, un instrument remarcabil, cu o tonalitate aparte, ce trece prin mai multe mâini, cumpărată, dăruită ori moștenită de pasionați sau mai puțin pasionați ai muzicii. Și s-a mai afirmat că, fiind mutată dintr-un loc în altul – din Austria în Rusia, apoi, trecând prin toată Europa, în America –, pianina ajunge „să se încarce” de amintirile tuturor celor care au deținut-o, greutății inițiale, oricum mari – și cunoscătorii știu la ce mă refer –, adăugându-i-se greutatea emoțiilor pe care le-au încercat protagoniștii, ce nu se leagă neapărat de evenimente petrecute în timpul mutării, ci sunt fapte de viață, întâmplări mai banale sau mai dramatice. De altfel, în penultimul capitol, se observă antropomorfizarea vizibilă a pianinei, transformarea ei într-un personaj, pentru că aceasta „se simți împinsă...” etc. etc. – p. 306 și următoarele –, și își ia „rămas-bun, rămas-bun” – dar nu ca un strigăt uman, ci ca o melodie frântă! Ca atare, nu aș spune că instrumentul e protagonist și chiar poartă povara memoriei, aceasta fiind dusă tot de oameni, de cei care s-au aflat în preajma ei, au mutat-o, au iubit-o sau au urât-o, au lovit-o sau au mângâiat-o, au cântat la ea sau i-au „ascultat” liniștea. Pianina rămâne un obiect, emblematic și cu mare valoare sentimentală, dar tot un obiect se cheamă că este, care „împovărează” suflete și „a ajuns ceva mai mult decât un prespapier în formă de instrument muzical, care nu lăsa ca tot ce mai rămăsese din amintirile ei [ale Clarei] despre copilărie să-și ia zborul și să dispară.” – pp.48-49
Un roman palpitant, foarte plăcut la lectură, mult mai bine realizat ca altele pe aceeași temă, în care se jonglează frumos cu procedee și tehnici literare, dar pe care nu l-aș numi o capodoperă a genului. Consider că e doar un text antrenant, bine închegat și atent documentat, deși, pe alocuri, informațiile tehnice (din sfera muzicală și mecanica auto) sunt prea abundente, puțin prelucrate și prea puțin încadrate în context. Este meritoriu și demn de lăudat efortul făcut de autoare spre a se documenta (vezi impresionanta listă de persoane care au contribuit la „realizarea” romanului, prezentă la final), numai că, din nefericire, partea artistică suferă exact din pricina acestui „exces de zel” – un punct de vedere strict subiectiv!
Rămâne însă un roman captivant, accesibil multor categorii de lectori, melomani sau simpli iubitori ai artei sunetului și – să nu uităm unde ne aflăm! – ai artei cuvântului!
April 25, 2022
"Eroii romanului „Greutatea unui pian” de Chris Cander încearcă din răsputeri să-și creeze viața, trăind în exil de patrie sau de propriile emoții. Clara este o femeie mecanic, ai cărei părinți au murit într-un incendiu de proporții. Greg este un fotograf excentric, dornic să aducă prin fotografiile sale un omagiu celei care i-a dat viață. Ce ar uni aceste două destine atât de diferite? Cu siguranță arta este liantul, sedimentul pe care cei doi ajung să arunce semințele unei comuniuni, ar spune orice cititor care ar savura romanul. Eu aș merge mai departe și aș afirma că e mai degrabă o conjunctură mixtă, un amestec între un trecut zbuciumat, un prezent confuz și multă muzică."
Pe larg aici: https://filme-carti.ro/carti/preludiu...
Pe larg aici: https://filme-carti.ro/carti/preludiu...
May 3, 2022
O carte care mi-a incantat sufletul. O carte care m-a făcut să "aud" muzica cuvintelor, emoțiilor și trăirilor personajelor.
January 21, 2019
This book was provided to me for free from Net Galley in exchange for a fair review.
Chris Cander starts out this book with a mind blowingly good first chapter. The problem with introducing a book with such a beautifully written first chapter is that you lead the readers to believe that every chapter after that is going to be of that same tone and quality. Unfortunately the remainder of the book just did not take me there again.
With that said, this book had its moments and was technically written well with two stories playing out side by side. The first story is that of a young pianist in Russia who falls into a relationship with an abusive husband. This part of the story is particularly tragic. It is also problematic. When we first meet Katya she is an independent woman who is making her way and knows what she wants. This somehow dissipates as she becomes involved with the man who becomes her husband. Though this happens in real life all the time, it was hard to buy into her total acceptance of her plight when she had a strong family to support her, good friends and had up to this point been pretty self sufficient. Her fall into a life of depression and solitude with only her music to bring her solace could have been better if we had experienced some of her internal conflicts more. By the time her husband does the unthinkable and separates her from her only friend, her piano, readers are clearly left wondering what the benefits are to staying with such a person and what has happened to Katya's common sense. The motivations in this story needed more attention.
The other story that is interwoven throughout is Clara's, the owner of a piano given to her by her father before his death. Her story is fairly typical. What is not typical is her connection throughout the story to Katya's experience. Though the inner workings of Clara's psychological problems and issues feel telegraphed and transparent, the descriptive details of her trip to follow her piano on a journey through Death Valley is beautifully written and leaves you wishing for deeper connections within the story.
The ending to this book was also problematic for a variety of reasons. A personified reflection from the piano's point of view was out of place and odd since the object this story is based on is not personified prior to this chapter. The amount of time it takes for Clara to come to the story's final conclusion is frustrating as the reader can already guess where things are going.
So, while the story is an interesting one and the writing is at times quite beautifully, the structures and revelations of Cander's story about how a piano touches several lives and thus becomes a living container of history and emotions is a bit predictable. The story needed deeper connections to the humans of the story. I wanted to know more about the characters that were mere reflections in the story and just did not get it. Clara's point of view was the dominant story story and sadly also the least interesting.
Chris Cander starts out this book with a mind blowingly good first chapter. The problem with introducing a book with such a beautifully written first chapter is that you lead the readers to believe that every chapter after that is going to be of that same tone and quality. Unfortunately the remainder of the book just did not take me there again.
With that said, this book had its moments and was technically written well with two stories playing out side by side. The first story is that of a young pianist in Russia who falls into a relationship with an abusive husband. This part of the story is particularly tragic. It is also problematic. When we first meet Katya she is an independent woman who is making her way and knows what she wants. This somehow dissipates as she becomes involved with the man who becomes her husband. Though this happens in real life all the time, it was hard to buy into her total acceptance of her plight when she had a strong family to support her, good friends and had up to this point been pretty self sufficient. Her fall into a life of depression and solitude with only her music to bring her solace could have been better if we had experienced some of her internal conflicts more. By the time her husband does the unthinkable and separates her from her only friend, her piano, readers are clearly left wondering what the benefits are to staying with such a person and what has happened to Katya's common sense. The motivations in this story needed more attention.
The other story that is interwoven throughout is Clara's, the owner of a piano given to her by her father before his death. Her story is fairly typical. What is not typical is her connection throughout the story to Katya's experience. Though the inner workings of Clara's psychological problems and issues feel telegraphed and transparent, the descriptive details of her trip to follow her piano on a journey through Death Valley is beautifully written and leaves you wishing for deeper connections within the story.
The ending to this book was also problematic for a variety of reasons. A personified reflection from the piano's point of view was out of place and odd since the object this story is based on is not personified prior to this chapter. The amount of time it takes for Clara to come to the story's final conclusion is frustrating as the reader can already guess where things are going.
So, while the story is an interesting one and the writing is at times quite beautifully, the structures and revelations of Cander's story about how a piano touches several lives and thus becomes a living container of history and emotions is a bit predictable. The story needed deeper connections to the humans of the story. I wanted to know more about the characters that were mere reflections in the story and just did not get it. Clara's point of view was the dominant story story and sadly also the least interesting.
January 12, 2021
I read this for a mystery book club. We've had a couple books for this club that I might have reviewed better if I hadn't been looking at them as mysteries. This probably falls into that category, for there's no mystery in the book- at least not one that can be solved from any clues given by the author. Instead, it's a story that withholds information until the author is ready to release it for dramatic purposes.
This is also the book in the subgenre "girl/woman who is unhappy finds a McGuffin (a book, a diary, a piece of art, a music box, or in this case a piano) and this gives the author an excuse to write an entirely different story about the same McGuffin set in the past, and this gives the framing story main character a growth experience." I am not a fan of this extremely overused literary device.
So the framing story in this case is Clara's. Clara is a tragic orphan mechanic who has a piano that was a gift from her father, and it's the only thing she has left from her past. Clara is afraid to be close to people because they "all leave her". The story-in-a-story is about a depressed Russian pianist in Soviet Russia named Katya. How will Katya's piano end up with Clara? What coincidences and connections will Clara find? How will Clara learn to accept the love that was right there the whole time? Why are all the men in this book (except one) completely awful?
I didn't much care. I also sort of resented the piano being used as a metaphor for the weight of the past that must be tossed away in order to move on. Poor piano! I play myself, and I felt the piano was the most sympathetic character in the book. It actually gets a POV chapter, which read like a creative writing workshop exercise that should NOT have been put into a book.
This is also the book in the subgenre "girl/woman who is unhappy finds a McGuffin (a book, a diary, a piece of art, a music box, or in this case a piano) and this gives the author an excuse to write an entirely different story about the same McGuffin set in the past, and this gives the framing story main character a growth experience." I am not a fan of this extremely overused literary device.
So the framing story in this case is Clara's. Clara is a tragic orphan mechanic who has a piano that was a gift from her father, and it's the only thing she has left from her past. Clara is afraid to be close to people because they "all leave her". The story-in-a-story is about a depressed Russian pianist in Soviet Russia named Katya. How will Katya's piano end up with Clara? What coincidences and connections will Clara find? How will Clara learn to accept the love that was right there the whole time? Why are all the men in this book (except one) completely awful?
I didn't much care. I also sort of resented the piano being used as a metaphor for the weight of the past that must be tossed away in order to move on. Poor piano! I play myself, and I felt the piano was the most sympathetic character in the book. It actually gets a POV chapter, which read like a creative writing workshop exercise that should NOT have been put into a book.
February 13, 2021
Great book with a wonderful title.
The Piano is my favorite musical instrument which I can only listen to and cant play other than "ChopSticks" and "Heart and Soul." It's so pathetic. :)
I saw it listed as an update from a member.
The book is as accurate as it's synopsis.
The Piano is my favorite musical instrument which I can only listen to and cant play other than "ChopSticks" and "Heart and Soul." It's so pathetic. :)
I saw it listed as an update from a member.
The book is as accurate as it's synopsis.
October 26, 2021
Having music as a story background is always a bonus for me. But having musical instrument, the culprit and source of all things musical is even better.
When such instrument is object of adoration and, astonishingly, source of elation AND burden at the same time, connecting people and zeitgeists, well, I would call it a perfectly interesting setup for a book.
I'm totally satisfied with the execution of these premises and all their repercussions. The story is harmonious single unit with rounded edges and somewhat dramatic, yet perfectly logical development and conclusion when you come think of it.
And I must say, I just LOVE this theme of people finding their anchor in an object. There's something uniquely human and animating in adoration of inanimate, don't you think?
Fine writing from the pen of the author that seems to be a real deal, so I'm looking forward to her other books.
When such instrument is object of adoration and, astonishingly, source of elation AND burden at the same time, connecting people and zeitgeists, well, I would call it a perfectly interesting setup for a book.
I'm totally satisfied with the execution of these premises and all their repercussions. The story is harmonious single unit with rounded edges and somewhat dramatic, yet perfectly logical development and conclusion when you come think of it.
And I must say, I just LOVE this theme of people finding their anchor in an object. There's something uniquely human and animating in adoration of inanimate, don't you think?
Fine writing from the pen of the author that seems to be a real deal, so I'm looking forward to her other books.
May 19, 2023
An interesting story, which basically seems to be the partial biography of a fancy piano. I waited a long time for mine, so the blue-collar part of my dna was mystified by the project of dragging a piano out into the desert for art's sake. Some people's kids. . . .
I was interested in the Russian part of the story, intrigued and slightly frustrated at the missing period of time in Weighty Piano's life, and then just had a lot of sympathy for WP who seemed to be the last "person" his guardians were thinking about - it was all about them and where they wanted his picture taken. Weird stuff parents do. I may have simplified this a little.
Still, I stayed through to the end, and color me surprised at that destination.
I was interested in the Russian part of the story, intrigued and slightly frustrated at the missing period of time in Weighty Piano's life, and then just had a lot of sympathy for WP who seemed to be the last "person" his guardians were thinking about - it was all about them and where they wanted his picture taken. Weird stuff parents do. I may have simplified this a little.
Still, I stayed through to the end, and color me surprised at that destination.
March 7, 2019
This was not an exactly perfect novel for me but I loved it enough, and it made enough of an emotional impact, that I will just go ahead and give it a bump to 5 stars.
While it seems on the surface that this is a book about a piano (and it is), it is really a story about grief, letting go of the past, and our choice as humans to be happy or unhappy despite our circumstances. In all of the various characters throughout the past and present timelines, there are examples of people who make different choices as it relates to their past and their grief. Some cannot deal with it, and we see the damaging effects of that. Some try to pretend it doesn't exist, which obviously doesn't work. We also see people who choose to pursue happiness in the midst of difficult circumstances, sometimes to a positive and unfortunately, sometimes to a negative end. Every story is so painfully human and the grief and love both pour off the page. There were a couple scenes that I actually felt a painful twinge deep in my chest and tears sprang to my eyes as I was drawn into deep empathy for these characters. You watch them make questionable decisions, yet you love them anyway. They all carry this weight, this burden that is so perfectly embodied by the unwieldy bulk of this piano that plays a central part in the story. The closer I got to the end of this story, the more I was in awe of the use of the piano as a character, and as a deep metaphor for the experience of grief and carrying of burdens. I'm being intentionally vague because there are some twists and turns (some a bit predictable, I felt, but still impactful) that should remain unspoiled for the most compelling reading experience.
Really I just want to say, read this book! If you love stories with family drama, read this book! If you love stories about immigration, read this book! Musicians? Read this book! Dual timelines? Read this book! Female mechanics? (how dope is that?) Read this book! Read it!
While it seems on the surface that this is a book about a piano (and it is), it is really a story about grief, letting go of the past, and our choice as humans to be happy or unhappy despite our circumstances. In all of the various characters throughout the past and present timelines, there are examples of people who make different choices as it relates to their past and their grief. Some cannot deal with it, and we see the damaging effects of that. Some try to pretend it doesn't exist, which obviously doesn't work. We also see people who choose to pursue happiness in the midst of difficult circumstances, sometimes to a positive and unfortunately, sometimes to a negative end. Every story is so painfully human and the grief and love both pour off the page. There were a couple scenes that I actually felt a painful twinge deep in my chest and tears sprang to my eyes as I was drawn into deep empathy for these characters. You watch them make questionable decisions, yet you love them anyway. They all carry this weight, this burden that is so perfectly embodied by the unwieldy bulk of this piano that plays a central part in the story. The closer I got to the end of this story, the more I was in awe of the use of the piano as a character, and as a deep metaphor for the experience of grief and carrying of burdens. I'm being intentionally vague because there are some twists and turns (some a bit predictable, I felt, but still impactful) that should remain unspoiled for the most compelling reading experience.
Really I just want to say, read this book! If you love stories with family drama, read this book! If you love stories about immigration, read this book! Musicians? Read this book! Dual timelines? Read this book! Female mechanics? (how dope is that?) Read this book! Read it!
July 14, 2019
I have complicated feelings about this tragic novel. I did not expect that there would be such drama about a musical instrument that is supposed to bring joy, at least a little. The story is about a piano exchanging hands over the years and how it witnessed one tragic event after another. If poor Blüthner had known what would become of it, I guess he never would have carved the precious wood into a piano.
Katya is a broken woman with a traumatic child, who is neglected because his mother escapes her miserable marriage by playing the piano and she falls in love with her student. The student, a professor at a university escapes his miserable marriage to be with her and neglects his own daughter, who becomes a mechanic with no purpose in life, who has attachment issues. Imagine these two children find each other later in life and what would become of them. And imagine a piano witnessing three generations of misery until finding peace at last.
You can guess from my bittersweet (mostly bitter) review that I was not in the mood for this novel. However, I have to congratulate the author for writing a beautifully constructed chronological history-fiction about a musical instrument.
P.S. I started listening to Scriabin while reading the novel and it doubled the impact.
Katya is a broken woman with a traumatic child, who is neglected because his mother escapes her miserable marriage by playing the piano and she falls in love with her student. The student, a professor at a university escapes his miserable marriage to be with her and neglects his own daughter, who becomes a mechanic with no purpose in life, who has attachment issues. Imagine these two children find each other later in life and what would become of them. And imagine a piano witnessing three generations of misery until finding peace at last.
You can guess from my bittersweet (mostly bitter) review that I was not in the mood for this novel. However, I have to congratulate the author for writing a beautifully constructed chronological history-fiction about a musical instrument.
P.S. I started listening to Scriabin while reading the novel and it doubled the impact.
April 25, 2019
I always wonder if I should have read the books referenced in the book notice before I read/listen to a story I pick. I decided, since I had read two of them, that I could read this story.
More than the book summary, I selected it for the title, and then the narrator, since the audiobook was available from my library and I had enjoy listening to Cassandra Campbell for another audiobook earlier in the year.
So, what does the weight of a piano have to do with the story? It is a catchy title and not much else, except that the piano was moved around - a lot. What this story is about is broken people. Broken, emotional people, broken lives, broken bones and a piano. The book starts off with the making of the piano. Pay attention.
Like the summary indicates, the story is about two women. Each of them owned the piano and lost it. It is their story that the book follows, along with the son and husband of the woman from Russia and the woman and her family in the US. It visits Bakersfield, California and takes the reader to Death Valley, California. It is a sad story. There is music and anger and love along the way.
More than the book summary, I selected it for the title, and then the narrator, since the audiobook was available from my library and I had enjoy listening to Cassandra Campbell for another audiobook earlier in the year.
So, what does the weight of a piano have to do with the story? It is a catchy title and not much else, except that the piano was moved around - a lot. What this story is about is broken people. Broken, emotional people, broken lives, broken bones and a piano. The book starts off with the making of the piano. Pay attention.
Like the summary indicates, the story is about two women. Each of them owned the piano and lost it. It is their story that the book follows, along with the son and husband of the woman from Russia and the woman and her family in the US. It visits Bakersfield, California and takes the reader to Death Valley, California. It is a sad story. There is music and anger and love along the way.
January 6, 2020
Emanuela - per RFS
.
Di solito non tengo in considerazione i commenti sensazionalistici che introducono la trama di un romanzo ma, devo ammettere che stavolta non erano affatto ingannevoli.
La storia cattura sin dalle prime pagine e incanta grazie ai continui salti temporali tra la Russia di Breznev e gli Stati Uniti dei giorni nostri, presentandoci la vita di due donne molto diverse tra loro i cui destini saranno invece destinati a incrociarsi.
Katia, riceve in eredità il pianoforte verticale di un anziano tedesco ex SS rimanendone completamente soggiogata ed avvinta. Approccerà lo studio di questo pianoforte facendosi conquistare completamente dalla musica e dalla sua sonorità. Si narra infatti, che per creare la cassa armonica dei suoi strumenti, il costruttore andasse personalmente alla ricerca degli abeti rossi migliori nei boschi della Romania.
Clara è una ragazza dalla personalità complessa e con una serie di storie fallite alle spalle. Praticamente buttata fuori casa dal suo ultimo fidanzato, la ragazza trasloca portando con sé l’unica cosa lasciatale dai defunti genitori (morti nell’incendio della loro villetta): un pianoforte verticale Blutner.
Sin dal principio si intuisce che il pianoforte che accomuna Katia e Clara è il medesimo, ma non si riesce ad comprendere l’intreccio della storia se non leggendo fino all’ultima pagina.
Senza rischiare di rovinare la sorpresa a chi vorrà intraprendere la lettura di questo romanzo, dirò solamente che le personalità delle protagoniste e dei comprimari sono particolarmente complesse e che i loro processi mentali vi daranno del filo da torcere.
Lo strumento e la musica saranno solo la metafora di due vite non pienamente vissute di due donne che hanno sofferto molto ma che a loro volta hanno causato dolore a fidanzati, mariti e figli.
L’inevitabile depressione sarà la compagna fedele di entrambe ma solo Clara troverà la forza di sfuggirne la morsa realizzando in extremis i propri desideri e vivendo una nuova vita senza rimpianti. Il viaggio che compirà al seguito del suo pianoforte avrà, in questo senso, una funzione catartica.
Ho trovato questo romanzo molto bello anche se a tratti leggermente ossessivo e claustrofobico. Lievemente caricaturale la figura della musicista quasi ipnotizzata dal suo legame con lo strumento che suona, incapace di dimenticare il passato e il proprio paese di origine: la Russia esercita sui suoi figli un richiamo talmente forte che niente e nessuno lo potrà mai spezzare.
Lo consiglio!
.
Di solito non tengo in considerazione i commenti sensazionalistici che introducono la trama di un romanzo ma, devo ammettere che stavolta non erano affatto ingannevoli.
La storia cattura sin dalle prime pagine e incanta grazie ai continui salti temporali tra la Russia di Breznev e gli Stati Uniti dei giorni nostri, presentandoci la vita di due donne molto diverse tra loro i cui destini saranno invece destinati a incrociarsi.
Katia, riceve in eredità il pianoforte verticale di un anziano tedesco ex SS rimanendone completamente soggiogata ed avvinta. Approccerà lo studio di questo pianoforte facendosi conquistare completamente dalla musica e dalla sua sonorità. Si narra infatti, che per creare la cassa armonica dei suoi strumenti, il costruttore andasse personalmente alla ricerca degli abeti rossi migliori nei boschi della Romania.
Clara è una ragazza dalla personalità complessa e con una serie di storie fallite alle spalle. Praticamente buttata fuori casa dal suo ultimo fidanzato, la ragazza trasloca portando con sé l’unica cosa lasciatale dai defunti genitori (morti nell’incendio della loro villetta): un pianoforte verticale Blutner.
Sin dal principio si intuisce che il pianoforte che accomuna Katia e Clara è il medesimo, ma non si riesce ad comprendere l’intreccio della storia se non leggendo fino all’ultima pagina.
Senza rischiare di rovinare la sorpresa a chi vorrà intraprendere la lettura di questo romanzo, dirò solamente che le personalità delle protagoniste e dei comprimari sono particolarmente complesse e che i loro processi mentali vi daranno del filo da torcere.
Lo strumento e la musica saranno solo la metafora di due vite non pienamente vissute di due donne che hanno sofferto molto ma che a loro volta hanno causato dolore a fidanzati, mariti e figli.
L’inevitabile depressione sarà la compagna fedele di entrambe ma solo Clara troverà la forza di sfuggirne la morsa realizzando in extremis i propri desideri e vivendo una nuova vita senza rimpianti. Il viaggio che compirà al seguito del suo pianoforte avrà, in questo senso, una funzione catartica.
Ho trovato questo romanzo molto bello anche se a tratti leggermente ossessivo e claustrofobico. Lievemente caricaturale la figura della musicista quasi ipnotizzata dal suo legame con lo strumento che suona, incapace di dimenticare il passato e il proprio paese di origine: la Russia esercita sui suoi figli un richiamo talmente forte che niente e nessuno lo potrà mai spezzare.
Lo consiglio!
May 2, 2019
Fairly contrived melodrama revolving around the weight of memory, the uselessness of the things we don't use and the harm of the things we fetishize
This might be a good book to read between the heavier tomes/
This might be a good book to read between the heavier tomes/
February 11, 2019
Two stories alternate in this book. One is the story of a woman in Russia who loves her piano and has to leave it behind when she goes to live in America. The other is the story of a woman in California who hesitates to get involved with others because she was orphaned at a young age. She, too, owns a piano, given to her by her father before his death, but it is a piano she has never learned to play.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS:
This book felt like it must have been written collaboratively, with authors who are good writers (some of the parts about the piano) and bad writers (the parts about the relationships). Story events happened randomly and in an unbelievable way, and the final ending, which I'd held out hope for satisfaction with the disjointed parts, was especially disappointing.
I received a Goodreads message yesterday, warning me that this reader had found this book to be far short of the positive buzz it has been receiving. If only I'd received this message before I was a hundred pages in.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS:
This book felt like it must have been written collaboratively, with authors who are good writers (some of the parts about the piano) and bad writers (the parts about the relationships). Story events happened randomly and in an unbelievable way, and the final ending, which I'd held out hope for satisfaction with the disjointed parts, was especially disappointing.
I received a Goodreads message yesterday, warning me that this reader had found this book to be far short of the positive buzz it has been receiving. If only I'd received this message before I was a hundred pages in.
August 18, 2018
The Weight Of a Piano by Chris Cander
I knew that Cander was writing this book and it’s title always intrigued me. Now it’s finished and what a book it is!! The piano has always been a part of my life so it is appealing to me that the Bluthner piano is the main character of this story. It’s presence becomes significant to every person who owned it. Cander weaves a mesmerizing tale of the human connections beginning with Julius Bluthner who created the piano in Germany, to Katya in Russia and finally to Clara in California. The piano truly did weigh on the lives of these characters and it was a thrill to see this unfold. Once I began I couldn’t put this book down and finished it one sitting. A must read!!!!
December 8, 2019
Very difficult to rate this book. The writing in the first pages is beautiful, lyrical, and promising. There are effective descriptions throughout relating the piano and classical music to life in general and to the characters. However, my personal enjoyment was Katya's story. I found Clara's chapters to be overwritten and tedious. In fact, halfway through the book, I skimmed to the end, skipping much of the desert journey which may have been metaphorical, but enough is enough.
I'd still recommend the book for those who enjoy literary fiction, even though it could have and should have been condensed.
I'd still recommend the book for those who enjoy literary fiction, even though it could have and should have been condensed.
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