Piano (RETIRED)

I can't believe I haven't reviewed this yet!

This piece is...lovely. What more can I say? It's made of the loveliest wood to match the rest of Josefina's furniture and is oh so smooth, too. There's a lovely border around the edges and gold "buttons" on the corners for decoration.

The keyboard is hidden from view, but to have Josefina play it, you have to lift up the cover (that converts to a music stand). With the cover down, the piano looks like a table. The keys are plastic and really play, too...though it sounds like the Little Tykes xylophone my mom has. But that's just being a little too picky!

The piano comes with miniature sheet music (Home Sweet Home).

I never thought I'd get the piano...I never thought I could afford it! I forget how much it was original price, but I'd never pay those crazy eBay prices for it, despite how gorgeous it is! But now that I have it, it's not going anywhere.

Grade: A++++

Here is Samantha playing the piano at her holiday party:




In its "place of honor" on my Josefina shelf. I only get it down for holiday displays usually. I do feel fortunate enough to have found the perfect little bench for it--it's actually a cigar case, but the color matches perfectly, and I can store Josefina's sashes and things inside.

[PleasantMemories]

Grade: B

I also have the piano. I bought it when it first came out at the MCM sale, where I paid a whopping $70 for it. I thought it was a lot back then. Honestly, I don't think the piano is worth $120, much less the prices they are going for on E-bay.

The detail on the piano is beautiful, as is the wood. It looks just like Tia Dolore's piano in the books, both rustic and elegant. It also makes a cute little table.

My major issue with the piano is that it has little play value. There are only a dozen or so keys, and it sounds like my dd's little tykes xylophone. There are very few tunes that can be played on it. My Josefina's haven't actually played with the piano and I have only taken it out of the box 3 or 4 times since I purchased it. Plus, now that it is essentially "priceless" in the AG world, I'm afraid to take it out of the box.

Honestly, if you are going to spend the money: get Josefina's trunk (or another trunk).

[American Girl Rescue]

I finally acquired one of these rare items. Great for a Josefina collector, but like Pleasant Memories said, it's really not worth what they are asking on ebay these days, quality wise. But if you need it to complete your Josefina collection, it's worth whatever you'll pay for it!

[green chile supergirl]

I bought the piano for a really reasonable price on ebay, but when it arrived, I was really disappointed by the plunky xylophone sound. Even though I paid around retail for it, I was unhappy. By happy circumstance, the post office had damaged it during shipping and I was able to claim the insured parcel. Maybe someone will find themselves a nice banged-up piano at a postal auction! Other than the plunky sounds, the piano is actually very nice. However, given the complexity of other similarly priced items, this one is just too much to spend on what you get, even if you only pay retail.

Grade: C+

[Candace]

For some really odd reason, I have a sentimental attachment to this thing, even though mine has needed minor repairs in the last two years I've owned it. I paid above retail for mine, but not by too much. The piano reminds me of those old school type pianos you see in western museums that may or may not have once been in a saloon.

As a prop, it is really really neat and doubles as a counter for my dolls in their photostories.

As something you can play with, well, the piano isn't the best, and that is probably one of the reasons AG retired it. It has very few (but they are doll sized in scale) keys, and the keys don't sound like piano keys at all. I use mine as a display piece, mostly, and every once in a while I'll set the piano up and Josefina or one of my other dolls will "play" it while standing.

The sheet music is, well, sheet music, and mine isn't even an original. I copied mine from the scans that Tiffany made here.

The piano is entirely wood and metal save for the keys, with two gold medallion things (which I discovered were actually buttons when one fell off and had to be put back on). The piano is somewhat fragile. Luckily, I have a nice box to store it in.

Grade: B- (mostly sentimental here)

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[skukla]

My much younger cousin Sarah received Josefina from my parents (coincidentally!) in 1998. An American Girl was her 11-year-old heart's desire. My parents included Josefina's piano in the gift.
I try very hard not to be to jealous of the piano that sits, slightly dusty, treated as if it were just another beloved but outgrown artifact in her childhood bedroom, at my aunt and uncle's house. Instead of something her cousin secretly covets with a passion.
I get to visit it every few years. Last September, I finally took some pics.