The open question
How do they get the grand piano onto the stage?

In this section, we answer questions you’ve always wanted to ask the Berliner Philharmoniker – about what happens on stage, behind the scenes, or about the orchestra in general.

Whether as a solo instrument or as part of the orchestra, a grand piano is needed in many concerts. Large, black, and gleaming, it’s always an eye-catcher. Given the tiered surfaces, raised levels, and numerous access steps of the Philharmonie Berlin stage, it can be hard to imagine how the ca. 450 kg instrument finds its way to its place. You might suppose the use of ramps or winches – but in fact, the Philharmonie uses a lift. The front section of the concert stage – where the conductor’s podium stands during performances – can be raised and lowered using a so-called spiral lift. Staff in the stage technology team call this area the “tip” of the stage, as it juts out into the auditorium.

Beneath the stage are two rooms: the piano storage area and, below that, the so-called “grid cage,” a small piano workshop where the instruments are prepared for their performances. From there, the piano is brought up to stage level via the lift. But this is no small task. “You definitely need some technical know-how to operate it,” explains Meike Aurich-Schnitt, master of stage technology. “The lift moves very slowly. It takes at least five minutes to raise or lower an instrument – because of all the safety circuits that have to be closed. If they’re not, nothing happens.” After all, there is no room for error: no lift, no concert. Technical glitches simply aren’t an option. But they have been known to happen – Meike Aurich-Schnitt recalls how, years ago, the lift got stuck halfway, and Daniel Barenboim had to conduct that evening from the depths of the lowered stage tip. “Luckily, that’s a very rare occurrence,” she says.