Made in 1913 - 1928 Amherst, Nova Scotia
Amherst Pianos Ltd. was established in 1913 in Amherst Nova Scotia. The Macdonald Piano And Music Company was the largest music retailer in Atlantic Canada at the time. Business was so good that they decided to build their own factory and create the Amherst brand. Eventually Amherst established a distribution network right across Canada. However, by the 1920’s the home piano market was reaching the saturation point and like many other Canadian piano makers, they found it difficult to compete in the dwindling market. The Amherst Piano company closed their doors in 1928.
The Amherst pianos are difficult to work on. They may have been a decent piano in their day but they have not aged well. They often have pinblock problems. They usually have very loose tuning pins. They did not have a full iron plate that covered the pin block, as a result it is common for the pinblock to have separated from the back of the piano. A piano in this condition is impossible to tune to concert pitch.