5 minutes with ... Bruce Stevens.

Bruce A. Stevens has been president of Steinway & Sons since 1985. Prior to that, he was director of international marketing for the Polaroid Corporation. Stevens was raised in a musical family and studied French horn, trumpet, drums and piano. A graduate of the prestigious Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Stevens and his wife, Terry, live in Winchester, Massachusetts.

Steinways are universally revered for their quality. What sets them apart?

The philosophy of the company is what makes us considerably different. We believe in crafting the finest instrument possible. Accordingly, we are steadfast about our specifications, the materials used and a handcrafting process. In fact, the Steinway System is considered to be the "modern piano," and all companies will have bits and pieces of it. However, we are the only company that adheres to the complete system.

What is the principal driving force behind your initiatives as president?

Without question, we are totally committed to our Customer Satisfaction Initiative (CSI). Everyone in the company is focused on providing the best possible customer service, and this is what drives everything we do. In short, we always have the customer in mind and, as a result, we are constantly striving to improve our beautiful instruments.

I applaud your involvement in teacher organizations and music advocacy. How would you assess the state of the arts today?

I'm reasonably optimistic. I think parents value music education for their children. We see an increase in the number of people giving major financial gifts to schools of music, and many more people are deciding that they want to participate in making music. The momentum is in our favor. For example, Steinway & Sons has been sponsoring the MTNA Young Artist Piano Competition for several years. We are impressed and encouraged by the fine young people we've seen enter the competition. This bodes well for our industry.

How has the piano industry weathered the economic downturn of the early "00s?

Candidly, our company hasn't experienced a downturn. Our business has held up very well, and we are encouraged about the future. For example, we have just introduced our Essex piano line. Now we have three distinct brands--Steinway & Sons, Boston and Essex--as part of the family of Steinway-designed pianos. Also, the All Steinway School program for universities and schools of music is doing extremely well. We now have 57 of these schools and there are many more institutions that have established initiatives to become an All Steinway School. All in all, this is very uplifting and encouraging to us.

Steinway was first to embrace the middle, or sostenuto, pedal. Can you give us details regarding this important historical development?

The middle pedal, or sostenuto, was first invented and patented by Albert Steinway for the square grand piano on October 27, 1874, patent #156388. It was later introduced for the modern grand piano, patent #164052 and upright piano, patent #164053 on June 1, 1875. These latter two patents were done by Albert Steinway, as well, and he continued to improve the design as seen in the records.

The sostenuto pedal gives the pianist an ability to create what's called an organ pedal point by keeping a specific note's damper or dampers in their open position, allowing those strings to continue to sing while other notes can be played without continuing to resonate.

Isn't "una corda" now a misnomer, since today's grands strike two, rather than one, of the three-stringed pitches?

Most standard procedures for una corda voicing cause hammers to hit two of three strings or one of two bass notes. However, we have always recognized the need for true una corda and have provided training to concert technicians in voicing the hammers for the full shift position, as well as for varying subtler degrees of shift. Also, Steinway concert technicians will, in many cases, keep the bass hammers hitting both of the duplex strings to maintain power but will voice differently between the strings.

Are pianos today too uniform? Do you envision fundamental changes in the traditional grand piano?

At Steinway & Sons, we take great pride in each and every piano we craft. Because they are handcrafted, each instrument has its own tone and personality. This is what all of our artists and the general public like about the Steinway piano. Therefore, I don't envision any fundamental changes in our instruments. However, we constantly are striving to improve the instrument on a technical basis. We continually add to our patent portfolio.

What will be the legacy of the Stevens presidency at Steinway?

I've always wanted to make certain that we embrace our great history and its tradition while at the same time keep our company at the forefront in manufacturing and marketing. I think today we are a more focused and entrepreneurial company. This is important today, but it is critical for the future. I would hope that history will show that the company is healthier today and more vibrant than 20 years ago and that we are stronger than ever.

If you had never assumed your current role, where would you be now? (Photographing the wilds for National Geographic?)

This is a very difficult question. If I had stayed in the photographic business, I might have done something in that arena. I am from Shenandoah, Iowa, and the lure of that part of the country was, and is, always strong. Nevertheless, I can't imagine doing anything else. I feel like I have been on a magical journey for the past 20 years. I enjoy being part of this magnificent company and feel honored to be its president. I am a very lucky man indeed.

Arthur Houle is associate professor/director of keyboard studies at Mesa State College in Grand Junction, Colorado and founder/director of the Festival for Creative Pianists (www.pianofestival.org).