Rolf Langebartels-Internetproject Soundbag

Margaret Leng Tan
Toy Piano Diva

Margaret's fascination with toy instruments, and toy pianos specifically, began when she hunted down a toy piano in order to perform John Cage's 'Suite for Toy Piano', written back in 1948. 'I found one for 45$ in a junk shop in Manhattan's East Village - in mint condition,' she says gleefully. She now has several toy pianos. The brown upright, which has a 'warm and mellow' sound, was sent to her by a fan in St. Paul whose children had outgrown it. Margaret also has a toy grand piano with a 'more crystalline, more transparent, lighter' sound than the upright. This one was specially made for her by the Schoenhut Piano Company, the Steinway of toy pianos.

Toy piano from Schoenhut's and Doll Catalog of 1917

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