Tickling the Ivory: Steinway piano acquired by state outside purchasing process

The day before the MOU was issued, the foundation wrote a check on Oct. 16, 2023, for $198,770 to Steinway and Sons in Astoria, N.Y. Steinway is a world-renowned manufacturer of concert grand pianos founded in 1853.

According to photos posted on the department’s website, Reid-Smith met with representatives of Steinway on Feb. 27, 2023. An invoice for the piano from Steinway and Sons sent to the foundation was dated April 18, 2023.

According to the MOU — signed by Reid-Smith on Oct. 17, 2023, and Farrell the day after — the department agreed to repay the foundation $50,000 for the months of October, November, December and January — a total of $200,000.

According to the West Virginia Checkbook, the online government spending and transparency portal through the State Auditor’s Office, four checks for $50,000 were issued from the department to the foundation. According to a FedEx receipt, the estimated delivery date of the Steinway piano to the department was Oct. 19, 2023.

Multiple requests were made for an interview with Reid-Smith Wednesday and Thursday, but no responses were forthcoming by deadline. In an email Thursday, Farrell — who also serves as vice chairman of the state Educational Broadcasting Authority which regulates West Virginia Public Broadcasting — declined to comment for this story.

“I am not available for an interview as requested,” Farrell said.

During the time the MOU between Reid-Smith and Farrell was signed, the department was in the middle of reviewing bids for a concert grand piano obtained through the state Purchasing Division. After nearly three months, the department canceled the procurement.

“If the agency were to aver that the piano is owned by the Public Broadcasting Foundation and is just on loan to Culture and History, I would question why Culture and History paid the full purchase price to the Foundation,” said a source close to the procurement process who declined to be identified.

“It is possible that (Reid-Smith) ordering the Public Broadcasting Foundation to make a purchase on behalf of another entity is allowed under the rules of the Public Broadcasting Foundation,” the source continued. “Unless it was an outright gift to (WVDACH) — and the payments would say it is not — I would want to know from (WVDACH) what law allows them to bypass competitive bidding.”

Bidding War

The department submitted a requisition form on Aug. 11, 2023, to the Purchasing Division seeking requests for quotations for a “Concert grand piano for the WVDACH theater.” Steinway was listed as a suggested vendor.

According to the Purchasing Division Procedures Handbook, a bid process is required through the wvOASIS system for certain solicitations with costs of $20,000 to $50,000 or higher. Requests for quotations (RFQ) are used for procurement, with awards going to the lowest qualified bidder.

The Purchasing Division sent out the solicitation for RFQs on Aug. 14, 2023, with the bid period closing on Aug. 29, 2023. According to sources, an employee of the Purchasing Division who had also been a college music major wrote up the specific mandatory requirements for bids, seeking a concert grand piano equal to a Steinway New Model D piano.

At least four major manufacturers of concert grand pianos were identified: Steinway, Yamaha, Kawai and Bosendorfer. The Purchasing Division received two bids from Steinway, both at $198,770; and one from Kawai at $149,295. The department was notified by the Purchasing Division once the bids were opened.

On Aug. 30, 2023, Samuel Calvert, the director of administration for the department, questioned Kawai’s bid and whether it met the minimum qualifications for the RFQ process.

“The bid by Kawai did not specify what piano they were providing as the bid item,” Calvert wrote in an email to Larry McDonald, a senior buyer at the Purchasing Division. “No model number or specifications, only cost.

“Based on preliminary research of Kawai, they only seem to have one model of grand concert piano,” Calvert continued. “Also, one of our qualifying specifications is that the company have ‘at least 50 years of continuous experience in manufacturing and selling concert grand pianos.’ The earliest we have found from Kawai is from 1981, giving them 42 years of experience.”

Kawai was given until Sept. 5, 2023, to respond to these issues. The piano Kawai submitted was a Shigeru Kawai SK-EX. They also confirmed that they did have more than 50 years of experience. According to the company’s own history, it was founded in 1927 in Japan and is known for its piano innovations. The department submitted additional requests for clarification for Kawai’s bid, with those answers submitted on Sept. 15, 2023.

During the buyer review process, Reid-Smith wrote a letter on Sept. 26, 2023, to Frank Whitaker, now the assistant director for the Purchasing Division. In that letter, Reid-Smith requested written approval from the division to purchase a Steinway piano without a competitive bid process, seeking to classify the Steinway as “artwork.”

Section 9 of the Purchasing Division Procedures Handbook includes a section on the “impossible-to-bid list,” which includes items such as artwork and historical items. Examples include services for restoring governors’ portraits or refurbishing chandeliers.

According to Reid-Smith, the department was organizing a concert series featuring “Steinway Artists.” The first two of the three-part concert series took place in February and March with Lewisburg native Barbara Nissman, who is listed on the Steinway website. The third free concert takes place Thursday, May 16, at the Culture Center Theater.

“…The Department requests written approval to purchase a Steinway piano directly without advertisement or bid under the impossible to bid list,” Reid-Smith wrote. “Because the artists that will perform at the upcoming arts series will only play on a Steinway piece, the piano must necessarily be a Steinway, rather than other pianos that might be available for other purposes.”

W. Michael Sheets, the director of the Purchasing Division who retired at the end of September, wrote Reid-Smith a response on Sept. 27, 2023, rejecting Reid-Smith’s request. He encouraged Reid-Smith to reach out to Steinway to use its Concert and Artist Services “Piano Bank,” allowing Steinway Artists access to 300 Steinway pianos for delivery to a concert hall or recording studio at the artist’s expense.

“Purchasing Handbook Section 9 exists because of (state) Code that realizes that certain goods and services are simply impossible to bid,” Sheets wrote. “In the case of pianos, there is a robust market. …This commodity is not impossible to bid.”

On Oct. 10, 2023, and Nov. 1, 2023, the Purchasing Division emailed the department seeking status updates on the evaluations of the piano bids. In a response to the Nov. 1 email, the division was informed that the department was no longer interested.

“I apologize, I meant to send this email a few times,” Calvert wrote. “We are not going to be purchasing the piano at this time. So we can cancel the requisition. Thanks.”

At the time Calvert wrote that email, the department already had its new Steinway piano. Letters were sent out on Nov. 3 to Steinway and Kawai informing them that the transaction had been canceled.

“Had the agency awarded the contract based on the competitive bid, it would have saved the state approximately $50,000,” the source said. “However, this end run on the procurement process means that West Virginia is paying more for a concert grand piano because of one department head’s brand preference and relationship with the vendor.”

Piano Man

The Legislature passed a bill during the 2024 session changing Reid-Smith’s title leading WVDACH from curator to cabinet secretary. The Legislature also passed Senate Bill 844, which, among other things, takes authority away from the Educational Broadcasting Authority to hire the executive director of West Virginia Public Broadcasting and puts that authority directly in the hands of WVDACH and Reid-Smith.

Those opposing SB 844, including some members of the Friends of West Virginia Public Broadcasting Foundation, raised concerns about whether it would allow Reid-Smith and the governor’s office more direct control over public broadcasting and its newsroom and programming. In its first meeting in April since the passage of SB 844, EBA Chairman William File III said he’s been assured by Reid-Smith that nothing will change.

While the EBA is a board within WVDACH, the executive director of public broadcasting was hired by and answered to the EBA. Reid-Smith serves as Gov. Jim Justice’s representative on the EBA, with seven members appointed by the governor and three other members representing the Higher Education Policy Commission, the state Department of Education and state Board of Education.

SB 844 reduces the number of appointed EBA members from seven to five, reducing the total EBA membership from 11 to nine. The bill also reduces the terms of appointed members from seven to five years.

The West Virginia Public Broadcasting Foundation — one of two 501©(3) foundations that provide private funding for public broadcasting in the state — is independent of WVPB and WVDACH, handling major grants, gifts, awards and bequests. The other nonprofit that funds WVPB, the Friends of West Virginia Public Broadcasting Foundation, handles annual membership donations.

According to WVPB’s 2023 annual report, 46.2% of funding for public broadcasting — nearly $5 million — comes from private funds. Another 35.5% ($3.9 million) comes from the state general revenue budget and 18.3% (nearly $2 million) comes from federal funding sources.

At least one major national donor, the Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies, has expressed concerns over SB 844 and possible interference in public broadcasting by Reid-Smith and the state, with Reid-Smith, Farrell, and interim WVPB Executive Director Eddie Isom traveling to meet with the organization last month.

The West Virginia Public Broadcasting Foundation applied to the Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies for a second grant totaling $600,000 for WVPB’s Folkways Reporting Project, which showcases Appalachian arts and culture. The grant would fund the project for another three years.