[tool:灯里的歌词滚动姬]
[00:00.017]When it comes to owning an upright piano, society has changed its tune.
[00:06.681]One hundred years ago, having the instrument in your home was a sign of social status,
[00:13.044]as well as being an important source of home entertainment.
[00:18.024]But, nowadays, it seems that the piano's heyday is over,
[00:22.425]and fewer people are choosing to tinkle the ivories at home.
[00:27.567]The once impressive instrument sits silently in the corner of people's living rooms, gathering dust.
[00:34.800]Many families have had to face the music - the instrument takes up too much space -
[00:41.267]and so make the difficult decision of selling their piano.
[00:45.400]But, to their dismay, no-one is buying.
[00:50.427]Even when they're going for a song, buyers are not coming forward.
[00:55.466]What's more, many owners are finding that they cannot even give their old pianos away.
[01:01.619]Piano restorers across the globe have been inundated with calls from owners,
[01:07.344]hoping to hear that their instrument is worth a lot of money.
[01:11.802]John Gist, from the Gist Piano Centre in Louisville, Kentucky,
[01:16.958]receives 10 to 15 calls a day from people asking how much their piano is worth.
[01:23.528]The answer comes like a broken record – not much.
[01:28.439]"It becomes a money pit," says Gist, and his advice is simply "to get rid of it." “
[01:35.125]Pianos are complicated to restore, as they have thousands of moving parts.
[01:40.385]Fine-tuning the instrument is complex: loosening the strings can take around 10 hours;
[01:47.084]even just polishing the piano can take up to 70.
[01:51.520]So, the instruments that once rang out in thousands of households across the world are slowly and steadily ending up on the scrapheap.
[02:01.597]But the death knell hasn't sounded for the piano just yet.
[02:06.647]There is one market where the piano is booming – China.
[02:11.918]Sales of pianos have reached a crescendo in the Chinese market,
[02:17.363]with 300,000 pianos made there every year.
[02:21.357]Famous Chinese virtuosos like Lang Lang, who first performed as a child,
[02:27.267]have struck a chord with many other young musicians who have an interest in classical music,
[02:32.781]and parents in tune with the times see piano playing as a way their child can get ahead.
[02:39.747]But despite its growing popularity in China,
[02:43.660]the traditional, wooden piano appears to have had its swan song,
[02:47.921]with those who are buying opting for digital versions,
[02:51.660]which are cheaper, quieter and, crucially, can be easily stored so they don't gather dust.