Piano technician Stephen Wilson has been fascinated with the ivories nearly all his life. He recalls tinkering with his household’s century-old instrument as a young boy in rural Pennsylvania.
“The first thing I bought out of college was a piano, not a car,” Wilson says.
Wilson is the owner of Upcycle Piano Craft, a Midtown shop that specializes solely in selling restored pianos. He manages the store alongside his partner Anne Trinkl. Both are focused on sourcing what Wilson specifies as “fine instruments.”
“I’m interested in incredible pianos––an instrument that allows a musician the ability to emote,” Wilson says. “I enjoy restoring, or upcycling, them, if you will, from their former life to their new life.”
When it comes to selection, Wilson is particular, but despite his rightfully high standards, he has little trouble procuring instruments. He’s almost always game to take a look at a piano and suss it out, whether the source is an estate sale or a downsizing family.
“I don’t spend a minute looking for pianos,” Wilson says. “They find me.”
Wilson’s second career as a piano technician is followed by his first career as an airplane mechanic. In 2012, facing shifts in the aviation industry and seeking a change of pace, he decided to pursue a new career that combined his technical expertise and passion for music. Four years later, he made the leap and opened Upcycle Piano Craft. Today, he spends much of his days meticulously disassembling, inspecting and reassembling pianos.
Beyond restoration, Upcycle Piano Craft has also become a hub for education and performance.
Over the past five years, Wilson has taught a quarterly rotating technician school that teaches students how to tune and make basic repairs to pianos. The ten-week course shares the tools of the trade—a valuable skill set with limited apprenticeship opportunities.
Every first Tuesday of the month, Upcycle Piano Craft opens up the shop for a free happy hour show. A duo or trio usually performs, but this month’s concert will fill the shop with a full big band featuring vocalist David Watson’s Re-Birthing The Cool, Bebop N Beyond. The veteran bebop singer recently relocated to KC from Oregon and will be joined by a cast of all-star KC musicians.
But for Wilson, refurbishing pianos goes far beyond the instruments themselves.
“I’m in the business of restoring something that brings life into a home,” Wilson says.
GO: David Watson’s Re-Birthing The Cool, Bebop N Beyond, Tuesday, February 4, 4:30–7:30 pm. Upcycle Piano Craft. 3945 Main St., KCMO.
