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“A musical instrument represents many things—artistic expression, personal dedication, family traditions, a link to the past. We keep your traditions alive, whether it’s restoring an existing instrument or finding a new one.”

Think Of Us As Your Friendly Neighborhood Piano Shop.

Dennis Crudo, D.C. Piano Company Owner and Founder, is a man of many trades.  As a home wine-maker he has won several awards, and as an established trumpet player and pianist he has played with and led several successful musical groups. His love for playing music and his “do-it-yourself” attitude naturally led him to become a piano technician.  Pairing this knowledge and love for pianos with his experience in business, he started D.C. Piano Company in 1989 out of his own home garage in Oakland, Ca.

In a time when the piano industry was no longer willing to focus on repairs, when it consisted solely of new, highly priced items, Dennis saw the great demand for reasonably priced instruments of superior quality.  Though it started as a hobby, Dennis’ talent for restoring pianos took him from his home garage to his first warehouse shop in Berkeley, Ca.  In 1999, D.C. Piano Co. opened its first retail location on San Pablo Avenue at Gilman st.,  boasting a talented crew of technicians and woodworkers led by Dennis’ son, Matteo.  Due to the positive response of the community and continued success, D.C. Piano Co. was able to expand to their current, spacious location at 2416 San Pablo Ave. in Berkeley.

The Dream

Dennis had a vision to create a full instrument restoration shop where all stages of the repair and sales processes could be done on site.  The D.C. Piano Co. team not only works together on selling the instruments, but also refinishes and rebuilds piano cabinets, and does complete action and belly restoration as well.  Additionally, and perhaps one of the most valuable aspects of the company, Dennis wanted to provide a piano moving service to ensure and protect the premiere quality of his company’s workmanship through to the final stages: the instrument’s arrival in the customer’s home.

Though other companies and technicians will often send pianos to three or more locations to complete a restoration, Dennis prefers to restore, repair and sell in one centralized location. This allows D.C. Piano Co. to maintain reduced costs for customers and allows Dennis to remain hands-on during the entire sales to delivery process.   Furthermore, in a commitment to outstanding customer service, Dennis valued the idea that his customers would be able to complete all their repairs and purchases in one location.

Our Promise

Our goal from the beginning has always been to repair, reuse, and restore.   D.C. Piano Co. has a commitment to being as green as possible, taking full advantage of the opportunity to reduce waste and provide a beautiful form of learning and entertainment to our valued customers.  We are able to restore the majority of pianos to the sound and look of the day they were first manufactured.   For restorations, we use only the highest quality parts and provide a variety of options. See our section on restoration.

We like to say that in our shop the pianos sell themselves.  We allow and encourage customers to explore the instruments on their own, giving them the time to find out what will fit their situation best.  Of course, we are always available to answer any questions and are more than happy to give a tour of our shop providing a basic overview of the different pianos and the options available.

The Future

D.C. Piano Co. is always growing. After suggestions from the community and our love for all musical instruments we have decided to expand our inventory. We now carry guitars, ukuleles, accordions, misc., brass instruments, woodwinds(on occasion), and the list goes on. And now we’ve made it easy to browse our inventory here on our site offering everyone competitive prices to combat “big box” stores with our own “out of the box” techniques.

Your Local “Out of the Box” Piano (and other instruments) Shop,
—D.C. Piano Co.