Theme Music Company, India’s premium piano distribution and retail establishment, recently launched Shigeru Kawai Pianos in India.

The exclusive national distributors for Kawai Pianos in India, Theme Music hosted a launch

Concert on the 30th of November 2014 at a city hotel featuring celebrated Japanese pianist, Maiko Ami, who played the SK7, a top of the line semi concert grand Piano. Many others from the guests also tried their hand at the concert piano.

We met up with Amit Saraogi Sales & Marketing Manager – India (West) Theme Music Co. (P) Ltd for a short interaction to know more about Shigeru Pianos, their marketing strategy and the future of such pianos in India.

How many years has Kawai been in India and what are the different types of pianos they sell here...

Kawai has been India for more than 17 years right now. They sell Digital Pianos, Upright Pianos and Grand Pianos including Concert Grands.

What is the percentage or number of people who have bought a Kawai piano in India?

Over 3000 happy Kawai users in India.

Can you comment on the growth of Kawai and Theme in India

We believe that our growth has been fuelled by the innovative services and products that we provide to our satisfied clientele. Our mission is to not only to continue to utilize the expertise and experience that we currently possess, but also upgrade ourselves with the best practices in the world of western music in order to expand our breadth and depth of knowledge and as a result ensuring the progress of our company and our clientele. The Kawai pianos are becoming popular in India and there is a huge demand from the musicians for it in these days. 

What is the price range for Kawai pianos in India? Are there any budget models also available for those who wish to own a Kawai piano?

Well, the Digital Piano series in Kawai starts from INR 49900 onwards whereas the Upright Pianos start from INR 2, 30000 onwards and Grand pianos start from INR 7, 40000 onwards. Definitely we have budget models for those who wish to own a KAWAI in digital and upright category. We provide financial assistance also to genuine buyers.

What after sales service does the company provide to its customers?

With the objective of providing high quality services to our customers, we give 3 year warranty on our digital pianos and 10 year warranty on acoustic pianos. We provide the first tuning free on acoustic pianos. We have a set of trained in-house technicians and tuners who can take care of any issues related to our pianos who have been trained by the MPA (Master Piano Artisans) from Kawai Japan.

What is the USP of Kawai?

KAWAI is constantly into research and development bringing out the best innovative features in their products. They are the only piano manufacturer in the world that makes tropical pianos. Especially in India we have noticed that there is lot of humidity and moisture content which is a threat to wooden parts inside the piano and thereby causing the keys and wooden parts to swell, misaligning of action and sticking of keys. The patented Millennium III Action with ABS carbon parts instead of wooden action parts solves these threats making it unbeatable in its class. This particular action is 16 percent faster than the conventional wooden action and is superior to all other pianos. In digital pianos, KAWAI is one of the very few companies that does 88 key sampling into 3 sensors from the much acclaimed KAWAI EX 9 feet concert grand, making the piano tone realistic by capturing subtle details and nuances. The KAWAI action is a “spring less action” using real Graded Hammer components with “Let off” to create the action which is similar to that of the acoustic piano.

What is the partnership history between the me Music Company and Kawai and what future do you foresee for the two companies?

Theme Music was founded in 1989 with a vision to provide quality services to musicians in India. Over a decade, we have been collaborated with the KAWAI pianos, the premier piano manufacturer of Japan, bringing the finest pianos to the talented musicians in India. KAWAI pianos are highly appreciated by teachers especially for its touch and tone. Recently we launched the premium handcrafted Concert Grand piano series “Shigeru Kawai” in India. In the coming years we hope that the western classical music will develop in India and we can create talented musicians across the country. KAWAI is indeed the "Future of the piano".

What are your short and long term expansion strategies?

Our headquarters is in Delhi and we have showrooms and institutes in Mumbai, Bangalore, Goa and Delhi. We are coming up with more exclusive showrooms and Music institutes throughout India

What is the differentiation from other competitors?

KAWAI is one of the finest piano brands in the whole world. For the past 88 years, Kawai has proved its excellence in piano manufacturing, providing world class instruments to the music lovers. Worldwide there are about 2500 piano brands and in India we tell about only 7 – 8 brands maximum where Kawai has a remarkable market share.

The only piano manufacturer in the world that makes tropical pianos. Especially in India we have noticed that there is lot of humidity and moisture content which is a threat to wooden parts inside the piano and thereby causing the keys and wooden parts to swell, misaligning of action and sticking of keys. The patented Millennium III Action with ABS carbon parts instead of wooden action parts solves these threats making it unbeatable in its class. This particular action is 16 percent faster than the conventional wooden action and is superior to all other pianos.

In digital pianos, KAWAI is one of the very few companies that does 88 key sampling into 3 sensors from the much acclaimed KAWAI EX 9 feet concert grand, making the piano tone realistic by capturing subtle details and nuances. The KAWAI action is a “spring less action” using real Graded Hammer components with “Let off” to create the action which is similar to that of the acoustic piano.

We are the soul importers and distributors of KAWAI pianos all over India.

What do you think is the future of western classical and contemporary music in India?

I see a great future and development of western classical music in our country in the years to come. With increasing awareness among quality conscious music learners, western classical and contemporary music education has spread its wings and connected the world through music.

It is for these great value seekers that we at Theme Music provide an end-to-end music learning program that covers the spectrum of the Best Music Learning Models, course materials from the world's most renowned music publishers and Music Examinations by internationally recognized Music Examination Boards. The Kawai Piano lab, created in technical association with Kawai Pianos, Japan, is a revolutionary advancement in the area of group piano teaching systems and is adopted in Theme Music across the country.

Interviewed by Verus Ferreira