In early February 2026, Pavel Kolesnikov (pianist and featured artist ’26-’27), Jeroen Vanacker (Bozar) and Wolf Leye (Piano’s Maene) stepped inside the Steinway & Sons showroom in Hamburg. They had one goal in mind: to select a new piano for the Henry Le Bœuf Hall at the Centre for Fine Arts. The Hamburg manufacturer is a mecca for pianists: Diana Krall, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli and Lang Lang, amongst others, have all chosen their pianos in the German city. 

Bozar operates a rotation system involving three pianos across its various halls. After sixteen years, Bozar is moving one of the two Steinways in the main concert hall to a different space. The oldest of the three instruments is leaving Bozar and will receive a new lease of life elsewhere. As the official distributor of Steinway in Belgium and the Netherlands, Piano’s Maene is an indispensable link in this merry-go-round. 

Following in the footsteps of Igor Levit in 2018 and Leif Ove Andsnes in 2014, Pavel Kolesnikov received the honour – and the responsibility – of selecting a grand piano. ‘It’s important to have a top pianist on board who knows the venue,’ explains Jeroen Vanacker. ‘They understand better than anyone how the instrument will behave in our concert hall, both for solo recitals and piano concertos with an orchestra.’ 

Ten pianos of the same model were neatly lined up in Hamburg. ‘What never ceases to amaze me is how Steinways – made from the same materials and using the same methods – can still differ so much in terms of tone colour,’ explains Vanacker. Kolesnikov played the same short piece on each piano, allowing him to rule several out. Yet he couldn’t let his personal preferences or which piano he would love to have in his living room guide him; he also had to consider his fellow musicians. ‘You pick up certain things over the years by talking to your colleagues about their concerns, about the instruments, about their frustrations, or about the instruments that they particularly like… So you gain a certain amount of information that your subconscious somehow processes, and then it gives you a certain guiding direction,’ Kolesnikov says. After taking everything into account and several hours of deliberation, the trio finally reached a decision. They selected a magnificent instrument that will inspire countless virtuosos to give memorable concerts in the years to come. 

‘Eventually we chose an instrument that had a little bit more clarity and transparency as this is my personal taste. And I also cannot completely discard my taste when I’m making a selection like that.’ – Pavel Kolesnikov 

Pavel Kolesnikov will play the new concert grand piano for the first time during his solo recital on 7 November. 

Piano’s Maene has been a loyal partner of Bozar for many years and shares our passion for music. Like the Centre for Fine Arts, the company continues to build on a rich history in which tradition and innovation go hand in hand. Would you like to learn more about Piano’s Maene and Steinway? Visit their website here.