[pianotech] Mirror Piano

[Noah Frere]

I told someone yesterday that the cut-off portion of an old Upright, where
they added the mirror, did not degrade the structure of the piano. I still
believe that, but I wanted to confirm it with others. She found this online,
not I don't think to argue against my point, but just as an anecdote:

*"During World War 2, American piano manufacturers ceased production to
assist in the war effort. Rationing made it impossible to build a piano
during those years, so piano tuners and rebuilders saw a golden opportunity
to keep up with the public's demands by introducing the "mirror piano". They
simply took a large old upright, often a gutted player piano, cut a
step-shelf along the top, and secured a mirror across the exposed back so
that the piano had the appearance of being smaller or more modern. These
"re-styled" pianos became very popular during the war, and unfortunately
this trend continued for another 30 years. Hundreds of thousands of heirloom
pianos were butchered during these years, and they are still commonly
encountered. Because irreparable damage was done to the integrity of the
instrument, mirror pianos are seldom worth more than a few hundred dollars
at best." *

Are we all in agreement that the "irreparable damage" is cosmetic only?
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