[patm]

Hi, my family have inherited an old upright piano. I'm not familiar with Piano's but have done some research and can't get find anything that exactly matches it.

Here are the details:

Make: Dresden by Wolff & Sohnn
Serial: 5538
Photo: see below

Notes: Average condition, last tuned in mid 90's but has been kept in good storage conditions

Any indications of age and history of the piano would be much appreciated. We will probably try and move the piano on so if you have any idea of a reasonable value let me know.

Thankyou for your time.

[PianoGuy]

Dresden is not a model name.

Wolff and Sohn were located in Dresden, which is a very pretty city in Saxony. Unfortunately most piano factories in that locality were destroyed during the atrocious Allied firebombing of that city in WW2. After the war, it became part of the DDR, and has only recently been rebuilt in its entirety.

Your piano dates from the turn of the 20th Century. It looks to have been repolished, because the finish would have been 'glossier' than it is now.

As for value, read this, then pay for a piano tuner to visit to tune it and value it. You'll need it tuned so it sounds OK to sell in any case. It should cost you no more than 50 quid or so.

Find a decent tuner through the ABPT or the PTA for starters, or better still, contact a local school, piano teacher or university music department and get a recommendation of a known and trusted tuner. Note that tuners from the ABPT are either blind or partially sighted, so be prepared to describe the piano's appearance to the tuner to obtain a more accurate valuation.