My friend Edward Auer, a fellow student of Aube Tzerko, once asked me to help him choose a stereo system. This was in the era B.D.—before digital—back when the Long-Playing record ruled the roost; and on our visit to a fancy Beverly Hills audio dealer, Edward brought along an LP of another Tzerko student, Lincoln Mayorga, playing the Brahms Handel Variations, a favorite of both of ours for Lincoln’s superb playing and the superb sound quality resulting from “direct-to-disc” technology.
The salesman took us into a listening room and started the record playing. “You see, gentlemen,” he commented, “on these speakers the piano sounds like a Steinway.” Edward and I smiled and agreed with him. He smiled, too; and said, “I’ll leave you alone to listen.” As he left the room, our barely-contained smiles grew to grins, and Edward turned to me saying, “However, we happen to know that Lincoln’s piano is a Mason & Hamlin!”
