You came to the right place:)
In the first tours Freddie played what concert organisers supplied him. Most often than not they gave him Steinways, but he also used Baldwin, Kawai, Yamaha and perhaps some more local brands (e.g. Bluthner, in West Germany). The white Bechstein appearing in the video of Bo Rhap was rented for him the first time he played piano on stage, at Chelsea in late 1972. The concert had been arranged by Trident Productions who had a special deal with the Bechstein store Jacques Samuels in Edgware Road in London. That's why the piano at Trident Studios (which Freddie used for the first two Queen albums and Brian for Now I'm Here) was also a Bechstein.
For the recordings of Sheer Heart Attack Fred used the house pianos (one Yamaha and one Bosendrfer) at Rockfield in Wales. Then after the world tour he rented the white Bechstein of before for almost have a year (summer-winter 1975) and used it for all the events: recordings, video, and the UK A Night At The Opera tour. For the world tour he still used whatever was available on the venue. In 1976 he repeated the gimmick and hired the Bechstein for five months, and John used it to mime the video of Best Friend. Fred used it for the short UK tour (including Hyde Park) and the recordings of A Day At The Races. Then he returned it and that's why in the video of Somebody To Love he plays the house piano (a Bosendorfer).
For Races tour (including London) he just used what promoters supplied. For the recordings of News he did some at the Steinway of Sarm West, some at the Bosendorfer of Wessex, which was the piano Brian used for All Dead All Dead. Then Freddie bought a 1969 Steinway D Concert Grand in New Haven Connecticut from a piano company based in Detroit, three or four days before the beginning of the NOTW tour. From then on he always used that piano on stage, except at Live Aid where he used the piano set for all artists that came before Elton John, but that piano was also a Steinway.
For the recordings of Jazz he used his own piano at France, and the house piano of Mountain Studios at Switzerland (which was also a Steinway, same model). For The Game he used the Bosendorfer of Musicland Studios. For future recordings in Montreux or Munich he would use the house pianos.
For The Works sessiosn in LA he used his Steinway; Brian played a Bosendorfer in the Flash sessions at Townhouse. Townhouse Magic sessions could have been done with either a Steinway or one of the two Bosendorfers there. Same for Mike Moran's piano in Barcelona and All God's People. In Headlong Fred used the Yamaha of Metropolis Studios. At Olympic Studios (Party) he used the Steinway there.
Btw at home he had a Yamaha Baby Grand, in which he composed Bo Rhap
Just to add to this Sebastian. I do believe the piano used at Live Aid was actually Freddies piano, which everyone else used. I recall an article where someone complained that it was out of tune.
classicfan,
Thanks a lot for your nice question...I've been interested in his pianos, because I love piano best of all the instruments and I also love to see Freddie playing it...Thanks! :)
Sebastian,
Thanks a lot for your detailed explanation there! I've been interested in Freddie's pianos and I've heard two or three big names of the piano makers he used to play, but I've never heard such a detailed one...I'm deeply impressed to read it!
You are maybe a... that I've seen or heard sometime, somewhere ...,for example,...no, no...I'm probably mistaken...
I'm going to your website now...
Thanks! :)
deleted user 17.11.2004 12:04
The piano Freddie used at Live Aid was quite banged-up at the corner. Can be clearly seen on BoRhap.
I'm not sure, but I think for Live Aid rehearsals Fred played on something what I even can't call as a piano, so it's seems very possible if he didn't have a possibility to use his own piano on the Live Aid.
Anyway you can trust Sebastian in the answers to to the such questions!
I haven't seen Live Aid for donkeys years and even more the Queen set, but I seem to remember it's the same piano Phil Collins was using, which has slight different external details to Fred's Steinway. It seems to me that the one Phil (and all the artists before Elton) played is a more modern model than Freddie's. But I can easily be wrong
I really cant remember who it was that said it was Freds piano or that it was out of tune but I definitely read it. Thats not to say that the quote was right, Ill try to dig it out but I dont think Ill have much luck.
Great site by the way.