by Julia Blakeney
Chris Cander’s book, The Weight of a Piano, is ultimately about the relationship several people have with a single, beloved object: an antique, all-black, upright Blüthner piano. The book begins by describing how this particular piano was conceived of and built, which was incredibly cool to read. Cander imagines this process and executes it wonderfully, with the creator, Julius Blüthner, heading out into the forests of Romania himself to hand-select the trees that will be cut down and used for his unique instruments.
a 1924 Blüthner piano
This novel is also about the connection made, through the piano, between two women. Clara, who owns the piano after Katya is forced to give it up, has no idea who the previous owner is and discovers over the course of a few days why the piano is so special to Katya, and how she is connected to her.
The connection and the way it plays out are well-done, but what really interested me about this book when I first picked it up was the music. Classical music is often seen by those who play it and appreciate it as a language of its own, one that defies normal verbal or written description. I think that Cander does a great job of describing classical music in a way that anyone can understand, often by describing Katya’s feelings toward the piano and the music.
The Weight of a Piano surprised me in the amount of technical detail Cander used when describing musical technique and the titular piano. It is so easy to see Katya’s love of music throughout the novel, which is portrayed by Cander’s poetic description of the piano and the music played on it. I was easily able to relate to Katya and the way music brings her joy and conveys her feelings, as well as the way music connects characters to one another, even across time, because I often feel this way about classical music. As a classical musician, it also felt extra special to be able to understand Katya’s emotional connection to the piano and the music she plays on it.
In this beautifully written novel, Cander explores how an object can connect people across generations, bringing them together for better or for worse. I was enraptured by this novel from start to finish and I enjoyed every minute of reading it.
Below is a YouTube playlist for all the classical pieces mentioned in the book:
Chris Cander will be at Lemuria on Wednesday, January 30, at 5:00 p.m. to sign copies of The Weight of a Piano. She will be in conversation with Knopf editor Gary Fisketjon at 5:30 p.m. The Weight of a Piano is Lemuria’s January 2019 selection for its First Editions Club for Fiction.
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