9ft Hamburg Steinway D Recording Studio Near London
Record on a beautiful new 9ft Hamburg Steinway D at a private studio near London.
Curtis Schwartz Studio offers in-person Steinway recording sessions for concert pianists, composers and artists, with remote Steinway recording also available for composers and producers worldwide.
The 9ft Hamburg Steinway Model D set up for recording at Curtis Schwartz Studio.
Record in the studio
For pianists, composers, artists and producers who want a real 9ft Hamburg Steinway D recorded in the studio.
Remote Steinway recording
For remote work, MIDI performances can be reproduced on the real Steinway and captured through the studio’s microphone chain.
Record on the Steinway
Use the Steinway for solo piano, classical sessions, jazz, film and TV music, singer-songwriter recordings, overdubs, library music, mockups and production work.
The piano is recorded in the main live room at Curtis Schwartz Studio, through carefully chosen microphones and a proper analogue recording chain, which is to say it is treated less like a keyboard and more like the magnificent nine-foot instrument it is.
For artists, composers and producers, it gives you the sound of a real concert grand: depth, movement, sustain and character. A sample library can do many clever things, but it cannot quite breathe in the room.
This is the point: a real Steinway recording gives your music its best chance of sounding timeless.
“Quite simply the best piano sound I’ve ever experienced.”
Robert Foster, composer
The Piano
A 9ft Hamburg Steinway Model D Spirio | r, hand-selected for recording.
The piano at Curtis Schwartz Studio is a full-size Hamburg Steinway Model D concert grand, chosen for its depth, balance, sustain and expressive range.
Bought new in 2023 and hand-selected at Steinway Hall with pianist and composer Gwilym Simcock, it was chosen for one purpose: to record beautifully, from intimate solo pieces to film, jazz, pop and production work.
Because it is a Spirio | r, MIDI performances can also be played back on the real acoustic instrument — including timing, dynamics and pedalling — and captured through the studio’s analog valve microphone chain.
A new Hamburg Steinway Model D Spirio | r is currently in the region of £280,000.
That is part of what makes this remote recording service unusual: your MIDI performance can be played on a real full-size concert grand and recorded through the studio’s professional microphone chain, without needing to book a full studio day.
See the Spirio | r in action
A real Lang Lang performance reproduced on the Steinway itself:
This is an intentionally natural recording of the Steinway: just two close microphones, with no EQ or compression added.
Captured acoustically at 96kHz through the studio’s professional valve signal chain, the recording retains the depth, realism and flexibility of a real instrument.
Unlike many sampled pianos, it remains highly responsive to further processing during mixing and production.
Sampled pianos can sound impressive in isolation, but often become brittle or thin under heavy EQ, compression or cinematic production treatment.
A real Steinway recording continues to respond musically as it is shaped in the mix.
A short Steinway D Spirio | r playback demonstration, recorded naturally with no EQ or compression added.
Riopy recording his latest album on the 9ft Hamburg Steinway Model D Spirio | r in the live room at Curtis Schwartz Studio.
Why the real piano matters
At first, a good sampled piano can seem perfectly convincing. The notes are there, the tone is there, and everyone in the room nods politely.
But records are unforgiving places. The longer a sound has to live inside one, the more it reveals about itself.
A sampled piano can be very impressive in the way a good high-street jacket can be impressive. It looks smart enough when you first try it on. But beside Savile Row, you begin to notice the difference. One has the shape. The other has the soul.
A real Steinway brings weight, air, movement and a kind of quiet musical authority. It does not just play the notes. It gives them somewhere to live.
That is the difference a real Steinway recording can bring to a production: the feeling that the track belongs not just to this year, but to any year.
Remote MIDI-to-Steinway recording
Remote MIDI-to-Steinway recording — from £95 + VAT per track
Send your MIDI piano performance and I’ll play it back on the real 9ft Steinway D, record it through studio microphones, and return high-resolution audio ready for your session.
The MIDI controls the performance. The sound is the actual Steinway, the room and the microphones — not a sample library.
Captured through premium Neumann microphones and Avalon valve preamps at Curtis Schwartz Studio.
How it works
Send your MIDI file
Include tempo, preferred sample rate and any notes about feel, dynamics or pedalling.The Steinway performs it
Your part is played back on the 9ft Hamburg Steinway D Spirio.I record the real piano
The performance is captured through studio microphones as high-resolution audio.You receive the files
Ready to drop into your session.
Pricing
Steinway MIDI recording — from £95 + VAT per track
Your MIDI piano performance is played back on my 9ft Hamburg Steinway D Spirio | r and recorded as high-resolution audio.
Optional refinement — £95 + VAT per hour
For velocity shaping, pedalling adjustments, feel correction, alternate takes or musical editing before recording.
Optional fresh tuning — £100 + VAT
Available if you would like the piano freshly tuned on the morning of the recording. Otherwise, the piano is maintained on a regular tuning schedule.
Available worldwide
No studio visit is needed for remote MIDI-to-Steinway recording. Send your MIDI file from Los Angeles, London, Berlin or anywhere else, and receive a real Steinway recording, ready to drop into your session.
To enquire, send your MIDI file, tempo details, preferred delivery format, turnaround request and any notes about feel, pedalling or references.
Payment and delivery
Remote Steinway sessions are kept simple. Once your MIDI file has been checked and the recording confirmed, I can send a payment link or invoice. Payment can be made by bank transfer, credit card, Apple Pay or Google Pay before the final audio is delivered.
Not ready to record yet?
Join the studio mailing list for occasional notes on Steinway recording, remote sessions, Atmos work and recent projects.