West Palm Beach can now walk in and play a Steinway. Steinway & Sons West Palm Beach opened in mid-September at 2800 South Dixie Highway, a company-owned showroom with everything from concert grands to uprights and the high-resolution Spirio player piano. Until now, the nearest company-owned Steinway gallery was in Coral Gables.

A factory showroom, not a dealer

Steinway sells through independent dealers in much of the country, but it also runs a small network of its own stores. The West Palm Beach location is one of them, listed on Steinway's national showroom directory alongside company stores in cities like Greenwich, Chicago and Coral Gables. It is run together with Steinway Piano Gallery Miami at 4104 Ponce de Leon Boulevard, which means the two share inventory, service and programs across South Florida.

For a buyer, that matters. A Steinway grand is built by hand in the company's New York factory, and no two sound exactly alike. Being able to sit at several instruments in one room, in your own county, is the difference between choosing a piano and ordering one. The South Florida stores also sell Steinway's Boston and Essex pianos and certified pre-owned Steinways.

Spirio, the player piano that is not your grandfather's

One of the showroom's main attractions is Spirio, Steinway's high-resolution player piano. Controlled from an iPad, it plays back performances by Steinway artists on the actual instrument, keys and pedals moving, with a library the company updates every month. The Spirio | r model adds the ability to record and edit your own playing, plus a streaming feature called SpirioCast. The music library holds more than 130 hours of high-resolution recordings made exclusively for Spirio, from classical virtuosos to jazz legends to current pop, with new playlists added each month. It is the rare piece of technology that is easier to understand in person than on a website, which is exactly what a showroom is for.

Built for teachers and students

Steinway has long cultivated piano teachers, and the South Florida stores run programs designed to make lessons and instruments easier to reach. Teachers can sign up as Steinway educational partners and join a teacher directory that helps families find an instructor. Students can rent, with a rent-then-own path for families who are not ready to commit to a purchase, and there are concert rentals for events. The showroom also includes a small recital hall, and its manager has told local press that teachers can use it for student recitals at no charge. For a young pianist, playing a first recital on a Steinway in a real hall is the kind of thing that keeps the lessons going.

The South Florida stores also offer tuning, so owners of an older Steinway have one more reason to call.

Why it matters here

South Dixie Highway, south of downtown, is already where West Palm goes to shop for the home, from antiques to furniture and design showrooms. A Steinway gallery fits that stretch, and it puts a factory team within an easy drive of piano owners from Jupiter to Boca Raton.

If you go

You do not need to be shopping to stop in. Go on a quiet weekday, ask to hear a Spirio, and try a few grands side by side. If you teach, call about the recital hall.