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Cole Porter's Grand Piano, 1907
Cole Porter's Steinway grand was built by the renowned instrument maker in 1907. Waldorf Astoria New York's managers gave the piano to Porter (1891-1964) after he moved into a ten-room apartment in the hotel's Waldorf Towers in 1934. Porter composed numerous hits on this Steinway, one of two pianos kept in his apartment, including "Anything Goes," "You're the Top," and "I've Got You Under my Skin." The hand-decorated mahogany case features scenes painted by British landscape artist Arthur Blackmore, who was commissioned by Steinway & Son's art department at the time the instrument was made. After the composer's death, the piano was displayed in the Waldorf Astoria's lobby and regularly played in its Peacock Lounge. This piano, along with President John F. Kennedy's highback rocking chair and the Waldorf Astoria'a grand lobby clock, arriving in late summer 2019, are on display in the Smith Gallery during the hotel's renovation. |