I vividly remember the day my father and I went to pick out my first piano. He found it in the Sunday classifieds: It was an old black upright in dire need of a tune-up—perfect for an eager six year-old. I played it constantly for the next 12 years, and it's still a fixture in my parents' house, where it stands dark and tall.
There's definitely something mysterious about black uprights. Though they make less of a design statement than their grand counterparts, the humble vertical piano in the right surrounding strikes a moody, pleasingly haunted note.
Take a look at these 10 examples, and fill us in on your own piano story.
Above: A piano displays a collection of vintage porcelain glove molds in the home of Swedish interiors stylist Lotta Agaton.
Above: Designer and illustrator Tina Rud Pedersen's upright is layered with black-and-white art. Photograph by Sisse Langfeldt via Boligcious blog.
Above: An upright passed down from a neighbor is a black presence in the home of photographer and stylist Daniella Witte. Photograph via Swedish Femina Magazine.
Above: A romantic music room styled by Anna Truelsen for Bo & Leva. Photographed by Carina Olander.
Above: An antique piano in a Hollywood Hills house that belongs to actress-actor couple Rachel Bilson and Hayden Christensen. Photograph by Douglas Friedman for Lonny.
Above: A piano with a wool-topped stool in the home of a Dutch family who renovated an old warehouse in Friesland, the Netherlands. Styled by Marianne Luning and photographed by Alexander van Berge for VTWonen.
Above: Another Scandinavian piano, this one paired with, among other things, a Senegalese basket. Photograph via Mary Made This.
Above: In a family loft in Brooklyn, husband-and-wife design team Rebecca Robertson and Marco Pasanella created a nook to give an otherwise obtrusive piano a tidy place to live. See more in A Whimsical Family Loft in Brooklyn, Whale Wallpaper Included. Photograph by Matthew Williams for Remodelista.
Above: A vintage piano with built-in candelabra found via Johanna Vintage Blogspot. Photograph by Lisa Östling.
Above: A black upright is a key fixture in San Francisco interior designer Lizette Bruckstein neo-Gothic living room. Photograph by Aubrie Pick via Rue Magazine.
For more moody room inspiration, visit the Remodelista Photo Gallery. Would you dare paint your house black? Here are 11 Traditional Houses Gone to the Dark Side. And Gardenista has noticed a Trend in Black Fences—see what you think.
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