Appointed by Steinway & Sons, Hamburg · Since 2017
The Authorised & Exclusive Steinway & Sons Dealer for the UAE and GCC
What an exclusive dealership actually gives you — and how to check any seller’s claim, including ours.
In short
HOUSE OF PIANOS, at Al Quoz in Dubai, has been the authorised and exclusive Steinway & Sons dealer for the United Arab Emirates and the GCC since 2017. It is also the exclusive dealer for Boston and Essex — the two lines designed by Steinway & Sons — and for Blüthner of Leipzig. The company was founded in Dubai in 2012 and opened its Steinway & Sons Dubai showroom and Steinway Hall in 2022. A Steinway & Sons flagship store, now in completion, opens in the Cultural District on Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi, by the end of 2026. A new Steinway supplied by the authorised dealer arrives from the Hamburg factory with a five-year manufacturer’s warranty registered to the buyer. Pianos described elsewhere as renewed, reconditioned or rebuilt are pre-owned instruments whose parts and workmanship are not certified by Steinway & Sons.
The appointment
What an authorised and exclusive dealership is
The two words are not the same thing, and the difference is worth understanding before you buy. Authorised means a seller meets Steinway’s standards and is supplied by the factory. Exclusive means there is only one such seller in the territory. For the United Arab Emirates and the GCC, that has been HOUSE OF PIANOS since 2017.
It is not a reseller arrangement, and it is not a certificate bought once and framed. It carries continuing obligations — on our side, in facilities, trained technicians, stock of genuine parts and service to every Steinway already in the region; on Steinway’s side, in supply, training and support. Six things follow from it for you.
- Factory supply
- New instruments are ordered from and shipped by the factory — Hamburg, for this region — and their serial numbers are recorded against the dealer and, on delivery, against you.
- A five-year manufacturer’s warranty
- Registered in the owner’s name at the point of sale, backed by Steinway & Sons and honoured here, by us — the same technicians who delivered the instrument.
- Selection at the factory
- Buyers of a new grand may travel to Hamburg, tour the factory and choose their own instrument from several of the same model in the selection room. We arrange the visit and go with you. Two Model Bs built weeks apart are not the same piano, and the difference is audible.
- Technicians trained to the maker’s standard
- Our technicians are trained and re-certified to Steinway’s standards, and we hold genuine Steinway parts in Dubai. A concert-level instrument is only as good as the person who prepares it.
- Genuine parts, for the life of the piano
- A Steinway grand is assembled from more than twelve thousand parts, and the maker’s position on substitutes is unambiguous.
- Access to the factory’s programmes
- Spirio, the Crown Jewel collection and limited editions, All-Steinway School status for institutions, and the Steinway artist programme are available through the authorised dealer.
“If it doesn’t have 12,116 genuine Steinway parts, it isn’t a Steinway.”
Steinway & Sons
Before you buy
New, restored, renewed: the words matter
Four terms are used for Steinway pianos offered in this market. Two are defined by Steinway & Sons. Two are defined by whoever is selling.
| Term | Who defines it | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| New | Steinway & Sons | Built at the factory and supplied through the authorised dealer, with a five-year manufacturer’s warranty registered to the buyer. |
| Certified Pre-Owned | Steinway & Sons | Steinway’s own programme: grand pianos thirty years old or younger, put through a 74-point authenticity and condition check, with any repair or replacement made using 100% genuine Steinway parts. |
| Restored / rebuilt | Depends entirely on who did the work | Meaningful when carried out by Steinway or an authorised restorer to the factory’s specification with genuine parts. Otherwise it describes an unknown quantity of work, of unknown origin. |
| Renewed / reconditioned / refurbished | The seller | No Steinway standard sits behind these words. They may describe anything from a clean and a set of new strings to a replaced action or soundboard. |
Steinway’s published guidance on the point is direct: many non-Steinway dealers and unauthorised rebuilders use inferior non-Steinway parts, which seriously compromises an instrument’s performance and its value.
None of this makes a pre-owned Steinway a poor purchase. A properly restored Steinway can be a wonderful instrument, and the marque’s ability to be rebuilt across generations is part of what makes it worth buying. It does mean that a pre-owned piano and a new one are different products at different prices, and that the difference should be visible before you buy rather than after.
What we sell, and what we don’t
We are not a used-piano dealer, and we do not take instruments of unknown history into stock. There are two exceptions, and both exist because the provenance is complete.
- Instruments from our own customers. When a client we have looked after for years decides to sell, we know the piano — we delivered it, we have tuned it, and its service history is on our records. Nothing about it is a guess.
- Factory-certified pre-owned instruments from Hamburg. Certified by Steinway & Sons itself, restored to the factory’s specification with genuine Steinway parts, and supplied to us through the same channel as a new piano.
If neither is available and you would still like a pre-owned Steinway, we will tell you so, and we are happy to inspect an instrument you are considering elsewhere before you commit to it.
Self-playing
What is a Spirio, and what is not
Steinway Spirio is installed at the time of manufacture and cannot be added to an existing piano. It is available only on the models the factory builds with it. Any self-playing Steinway that did not leave Hamburg or New York as a Spirio therefore has a third-party system fitted into it, by someone.
That is not a criticism of third-party systems. We install QRS PNOmation and PianoDisc ourselves, and on the right instrument they are excellent — they are how most fine pianos in the region are made to play themselves. But fitting a system into a piano is a modification of that piano, and a retrofitted Steinway is not a Spirio, whatever the listing calls it. If self-playing matters to you, decide which of the two you are buying before you see the invoice.
Due diligence
How to verify any Steinway dealer in five minutes
We would rather you checked. Five questions settle it, and they work on us as well as on anyone else.
- Look the seller up on Steinway’s own website. The dealer finder at steinway.com lists every appointed dealer, showroom and piano gallery. If a seller is not on it, they are not an authorised dealer, whatever the shop is called.
- Ask for the serial number before you pay. Every Steinway carries one. It records where and when the piano was built.
- Ask whether the instrument is new or pre-owned — and if pre-owned, who restored it, and whether genuine Steinway parts were used throughout.
- Ask who registers the manufacturer’s warranty, and in whose name.
- Ask who will tune it in the first year, and what their training is. A fine piano needs attention four times in its first year in this climate, not once.
If a seller cannot answer those five questions in writing, you have your answer.
Send us a serial number
If you are considering a Steinway anywhere — from us, from another seller, or privately — send us its serial number and we will tell you what the records show about when and where it was built. There is no charge and no obligation. We would rather you bought the right piano than the wrong one in a hurry.
The long view
Thirty years, not thirty days
A Steinway is bought once and lived with for decades, so the questions worth asking are the long ones. Who holds parts for it in this country. Who will regulate the action when it has settled. What happens when it moves house in August. Whether an insurer or a buyer, fifteen years from now, will accept its documentation.
An authorised dealership answers those questions by existing. We supplied the instrument, our technicians know it, its serial number and service history are on our records, and we are still here — in the same street, in the same city — when it needs something. That continuity is most of what the appointment is for.
Visit
Where to see them
Two showrooms on the same street in Al Quoz, Dubai, open seven days a week, 9am to 8pm — and a third opening in Abu Dhabi.
Steinway & Sons Dubai
Showroom 33, Street 8, Al Quoz 1. The Steinway range, and Steinway Hall, our recital hall, opened in 2022.
HOUSE OF PIANOS
Showroom 43, Street 8, Al Quoz 1. Steinway, Boston, Essex, Blüthner, Haessler, Irmler and Kurzweil, and the largest piano showroom in the UAE.
Steinway & Sons Abu Dhabi
In completion now, opening its doors by the end of 2026 in the Cultural District on Saadiyat Island, among the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the Guggenheim and the Zayed National Museum. A flagship store for the capital.
An appointment is not required, but it means the instrument you came for is prepared and the room is yours. Call +971 4 295 2131 or write to [email protected].
Beyond the showroom
The other half of the appointment
Representing Steinway & Sons in a region is also an obligation to that region’s musical life. We took on the appointment in 2017 and began the community concert programme in the same year, which was not a coincidence. Since then we have given more than 300 free concerts and more than 200 workshops and masterclasses. We run Piano Camp with Dubai Culture for young Emirati pianists, and the Steinway Piano Competition GCC, whose first edition was held in 2025 and whose second is in April 2027. Steinway Hall exists so that there is a room in Dubai built for the instrument.
That work is not a marketing programme attached to a shop. It is the reason the dealership is worth holding.
Questions
Frequently asked
Who is the authorised Steinway & Sons dealer in the UAE?
HOUSE OF PIANOS, in Al Quoz, Dubai, has been the authorised and exclusive Steinway & Sons dealer for the United Arab Emirates and the GCC since 2017, and operates the Steinway & Sons Dubai showroom and Steinway Hall. Appointed dealers are listed on Steinway’s own dealer finder at steinway.com.
Are the Steinway pianos sold by other shops in Dubai new?
Not usually. Steinway pianos offered by sellers outside the authorised network are generally pre-owned instruments, often described as renewed, reconditioned or restored. Those are the seller’s own terms, not Steinway’s, and they do not carry a manufacturer’s warranty registered to you. Ask any seller for the serial number and for written confirmation of whether the piano is new or pre-owned.
What is a “renewed” or “reconditioned” Steinway?
A pre-owned Steinway that has had work done to it, described in the seller’s own words. Steinway & Sons does not define those terms and does not certify the work. Steinway’s own programme for pre-owned instruments is called Certified Pre-Owned, covers grands thirty years old or younger, and requires a 74-point check with 100% genuine Steinway parts.
Does a Steinway bought from an unauthorised seller have a warranty?
It may carry a warranty from that seller, but not the five-year Steinway & Sons manufacturer’s warranty that comes with a new piano supplied through the authorised dealer and registered in the owner’s name. Before buying anywhere, ask who stands behind the warranty, how long it runs, and where it is registered.
Can Steinway Spirio be added to a piano I already own?
No. Spirio is installed at the time of manufacture and cannot be fitted to an existing piano. A self-playing system can be added to most pianos — we install QRS PNOmation and PianoDisc — but a retrofitted instrument is not a Spirio.
Does HOUSE OF PIANOS sell pre-owned Steinway pianos?
Rarely, and only in two cases. When a customer we have served for years asks us to sell an instrument we delivered and have maintained, we will — its history is on our records. And we can supply factory-certified pre-owned Steinway pianos from Hamburg, restored to Steinway’s specification with genuine Steinway parts. We do not take in pianos of unknown history. If you are considering a pre-owned Steinway from elsewhere, we are happy to inspect it for you first.
Is Steinway & Sons Dubai the same company as HOUSE OF PIANOS?
Yes. Steinway & Sons Dubai is the Steinway showroom operated by HOUSE OF PIANOS, the authorised dealer, at Showroom 33, Street 8, Al Quoz 1. HOUSE OF PIANOS is a business of Admiral World General Trading LLC.
Which Steinway models can I see in Dubai?
The Steinway grand range from the S-155 through M-170, O-180, A-188, B-211 and C-227 to the D-274 concert grand, together with Steinway uprights, the Crown Jewel and limited editions, and Spirio models. Availability varies; call ahead if you want a specific model prepared.
More on choosing, tuning and caring for a piano in the UAE climate is answered in our full FAQ.
Come and hear the difference
Two showrooms in Al Quoz, seven days a week. Bring the music you are working on — the piano should be chosen by ear, not from a page.
