Mirra Kannan | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
According to Mirra Kannan, an old acoustic piano is a time capsule. Any “small treasures” can be found in its past, under its dusty lid and between its keys. “These can be old newspapers, signs of a coin or restoration of their previous technicians,” she says. The 29 -year -old, which is now located in Edinburgh, Scotland, is documenting India’s old acoustic piano as part of its undertaking, called a resonant heritage. It is part of Para, his initiative is that ‘sound discovery’. She was in Chennai, earlier this year, her hometown, and has so far documented 15 piano.
Mirra is fascinated by instrument. She calls herself “a patron of buildings in the week of the week, and the patron of Pianos on the weekend”. Her attempt with Pianos began three years ago when she went to Scotland for her master under Vastu conservation. It was there that she came across the pianodrome, an amphitheater was fully made of an up-cycle piano. Installed by Bandmets Tim Vincent-Smit and Matt Wright, space and many ancient piano set Mirra’s life journey to a new way.
Steinway Grand Piano of KM Sangeet Conservatives | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Mirra moved to Apprentice under a piano tuner and technician Benjamin Traft, who introduced her to the nuances of the complex craft of piano tuning. Opening an old piano and seeing its mechanics and architecture, Mirra was taken back in her childhood when she would inspect ‘Rao Chacha’ (popular Piano Tunner of Chennai S Venkateswara Rao), working on her piano at her Chennai home.
An old blothener honest piano music musical | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
For the first time, Mirra not only got the opportunity to inspect a technician at work, but to tune a piano itself. “In 2023, I found to practice on 100 odd piano at an abandoned shopping center, where people left her to adopt,” she remembers. Mirra’s conversation with these ancient piano took interest in the history of equipment returning home in India. “This inspires me to think about the piano tunners of India,” she says, India’s colonial heritage has left many old equipment behind which are alive, breathing those beings who are not only echoed with music, but also history.
Thus, India’s visit to Mirra started to document the piano and also met his technicians. “Talking to technicians, understanding their journey and experiences with different piano blew my mind,” says Mirra, who visited the Musi Musical, Mystery & Company Mumbai in Chennai and in Kolkata at Braganza & Company. These conversations said, she says that men saw their work as “one seems to be one to repair an object”.
Inside an honest piano. Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
In Chennai, Mirra has documented the piano at Taj Konmara, Musi Musical and KM Music Conservatives as part of the piano of his journey. In February this year, he was introduced to an 111 -year -old Steinway Grand Piano in KM, and helped to clean and tune. “AR Rahman commented on my Instagram post about this piano!” She says.
Mirra’s documentation involves taking several pictures of the instrument. “I pay attention to the brand, its serial number, and if I am allowed to interact with it, I play something and record it,” she says. He feels that there are many old pianos in India, especially the hill stations such as Kodikal and Darjeeling, and they are expected to travel some time again this year to see them.
Mirra in a piano dissection workshop | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
For that, the documentation of the piano does not end only with recording its existence. An important part of her work is entangled with her technicians, which she feels that “they are not considered in such a way that they should be”. She says: “I am learning a lot from such technicians and see them.” Mirra continues to fix her skills and feels that she is still at the beginning of her journey.
To reach Mirra with information on old piano, email at mirra.k9@gmail.com
Published – 01 April, 2025 02:46 pm IST
