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Building a Piano Stool

A

Andy Kev.

Nordic Pine
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I've just bought myself an electric piano and have decided that it would be a good idea to build the stool for it myself.

The internet tells me that an ideal height is 18" - 22". Would I be right in thinking that one's feet should be touching the ground and the thighs should be parallel to the ground? (That would make sizing easy.) My thinking is to use up a bit of cherry: four legs and four rails ( M&T) and then get it upholstered. Does one leave the gap between the rails empty and the upholsterer sorts everything else out or is it best to cross it with slats below the tops of the rails?

Thanks in advance for replies/advice.
 
It's your arms, not your legs, that determine the right height. Different teachers have different rules for how to determine it for a new player, but they all boil down to making sure that your hands can naturally sit just above the keys while maintaining relaxed movement and without introducing strain or uncomfortable positioning in your shoulders or elbows. Your legs aren't nearly as important.

It also often takes a bit of trial and error. If you're building something specifically to be a piano stool, I'd strongly recommend building some adjustment in, as every commercial version I've ever seen does.
 
What Stephen said.

I teach piano as an approaching retirement interest. Make it wider than you think you'll need as it can be quite a big reach across 88 keys (if its full size keyboard) and height adjustment is handy as there is often a compromise between comfortably reaching the pedals and optimal arm position. Most good piano stools are also very deeply padded as you can be botted down for a long time!

Generally the concert auditorium pro benches are hydraulic these days, but the scissor screw method is used on most home benches. That said Glen Gould famously just used an ordinary chair.
 
I have previously considered making a piano stool, but it will probably have to wait until retirement. My idea is to buy a knackered stool off Facebook marketplace cheap. Hopefully one that is knackered in terms of upholstery and carpentry but a sound metal rise and fall mechanism and strip that out and reuse in a new stool.

Regards

Mark
 
Really, if it's only going to be used by one person, the rise and fall is not necessary. It's handy with kids or small adults but not essential. You can check what is your ideal keyboard height if you have a rise and fall office chair. Probably a bit higher than you would normally sit at a desk or table. More important to me is it not creaking - drives you crazy when the stool squeaks or creaks as you move around.
 
More than one person plays my piano. I would therefore be building a rise and fall in
Mark
 
It can be funny how events sometimes seem to conspire in an unlikely way. Yesterday I went down a street I've never walked down before and went past a piano shop: Mon - Fri only, Sat by appointment. There was however a bloke opening the door as I went past. He confirmed the former info and he was opening up as he had a Sat appt. "What do you want, anyway?" he asked. I explained that I was just after a piano stool. "We've got time for that", he said and so I went in. The business specialises in reconditioning second hand pianos and associated gear. So I bought this for the equivalent of about 34 quid:

Piano Stool.jpg
 
Obviously I'm now at least temporarily out of the piano stool making game. That said, I like this design so much that I could imagine copying it in a posher wood.
 
I measured mine, it's about 21" from the ground, that's about the right height, making it adjustable is a good idea, I think leather upolstered ones are the best for comfort, agree with adrian about noise, no creeks, it needs to be silent or as close as possible.
 
A circa 1875 Victorian piano stool that I refurbished for the owners.
They had the seat upholstered. The middle section is where the brass up-down turns.
Final finish was a BLO mixture (it had been painted white at some stage!)

8Complete2.JPG
 
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