About Us

• Curated Selection of Instruments: Merriam’s had the privilege of representing nearly every piano supplier in the industry over it’s 37 years in business, and every piano we currently represent has been chosen for a reason. If you see us excited about a piano, from our articles to our video reviews, it’s because we genuinely love it. If we’ve partnered with a supplier for decades, it’s because we trust them. Every choice we’ve made is about offering up the very best cross-section of instruments to our customers.
• Trade-Up Guarantee: From entry-level keyboards to workhorse upright pianos, when it’s time to upgrade your piano, Merriam has you covered. Clear, easy to understand trade-up values that increase as you invest more. Earn up to 100% of your original purchase back in credits. 
• Top-Tier Customer Support: Merriam Pianos has invested in some of the most sophisticated and effective customer support systems in our industry, all so we can deliver what matters: a seamless customer experience at every touchpoint, from sales and delivery inquiries, to service and warranty support.
• Top Dealer Awards: Merriam Music has received top sales awards in both Canada and the United States from manufacturers including Kawai, Bechstein, Schimmel, Roland, and more. That huge buying power translates into the best pricing and strongest after-sales support in the industry.

Merriam Music America Inc. is owned and operated by pianists and industry experts Alan Merriam and Stu Harrison, with US corporate offices in Delaware and warehousing and service facilities in California, Utah, Indiana, and New Jersey. We operate as a sister company to Merriam Music, a major Canadian-based piano retailer and music school in Toronto.

Alan Merriam’s journey with the piano began not as a businessman, but as a performer. A gifted session player and professional musician, Alan spent his early career immersed in the mechanics and soul of the instrument. However, it was during his tenure as the Managing Director of one of the world’s most prominent Steinway dealerships that he identified a systemic problem in the industry: piano retail had become “murky.” The process was opaque, often high-pressure, and disconnected from the actual needs of the musician. He found it also lacked the level of bespoke after sales service one would expect with a purchase of this kind.

In 1988, Alan set out to fundamentally reinvent the piano-buying journey. He envisioned a model where the “salesperson” was replaced by an advocate and the “showroom” became a center of objective information and expertise. By combining his deep technical knowledge with a commitment to authentic transparency, laser focusing on the customer’s needs, Alan transformed Merriam Music from a local boutique into one of North America’s most influential piano firms.

Under Alan’s leadership, Merriam Music pioneered the use of high-level digital content and industry leading instrument reviews, empowering customers across the United States and Canada to make informed decisions long before they ever stepped foot in a showroom.

Today, Alan is recognized as a standard-bearer in the global industry—a founder who proved that when you prioritize the integrity of the instrument and the education of the customer, the rest takes care of itself.

Stu’s passion for pianos began at an early age, becoming an experienced performer of both classical and jazz piano works by his teens. After completing his degree in jazz performance at the University of Toronto, he embarked on a busy career of performing throughout North America. Recently, he had the honour of performing a tribute piece on “Black and White”, a well received documentary of the iconic jazz pianist Oscar Peterson.

He met Alan Merriam in 2004, and quickly became an integral part of his retail and school operations, becoming the Marketing director in 2012 and Retail Director in 2015. He joined Merriam’s executive team in 2018, then in 2021 became a full partner and assumed the role of President.

In 2018 he began Merriam’s Youtube channel, featuring reviews and other discussions on piano purchasing and ownership. The channel now enjoys 100k+ subscribers and 500,000 views monthly, and has become a leading voice in the acoustic and digital piano world.

Stu’s enthusiasm for sharing piano knowledge and experience can be felt throughout the entire piano team, who have made it their mission to deliver the same ‘Youtube Experience’ to every single customer we speak to, whether in-person, on the phone, or online. Also, his extensive music background qualifies him to lead the Merriam School of Music, widely recognized as one of North America’s leading community music schools.