Victory Verticals highlights the little-known story of the Steinway & Sons portable upright pianos that were specially built during World War II to endure any manner of shipping to the front lines and bring morale-boosting music to American troops on land and sea. 

The exhibit features three of these Steinway G.I. pianos, known as “Victory Verticals,” fully restored and tuned. Read more about the history of Victory Verticals below. 

Special programs and displays will highlight how the magic of music helped win the War, including regularly scheduled mini-concerts during the month-long run of the exhibit. Check the Museum's events Calendar for details!

This temporary exhibit opens Friday, August 8, 2025. Buy your tickets today!

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Exhibit Details:

Dates: Friday, August 8 through Sunday, September 7, 2025
Location: Personal Courage Wing, World War II Gallery (First Floor)

Exhibit is free for Museum Members and included with general admission.
Visiting with a group of 10 or more? Check out our Group Visits page.

Photos Courtesy of U.S. Army Signal Corps, National Archives and Imperial War Museum.

These special programs highlight how the magic of music helped win the War during the month-long run of the exhibit. All programs are free for Members and included with general admission.

Check the Museum's events Calendar for details!

Victory Verticals Events

Saturday, August 9 - Victory Vertical Pianos Symposium
Enjoy a World War II symposium featuring a book talk and special presentations on the roles of art and music during the war.

Saturday, August 16 - Victory Verticals LIVE!
Hear a WWII-era Steinway Victory Vertical piano played live during a day of diverse musical performances from local artists.

Saturday, August 23 - Women on the Production Line
Hear from Jordan Cook, a Victory Verticals expert, on the shifting role of women on the production line at Steinway and their importance to the war effort. 

About the Victory Verticals

As the United States neared entry into World War II, musical instrument makers like Steinway & Sons were prohibited from making their usual products due to government restrictions of iron, copper, brass, and other raw materials. As a result, Steinway turned out wings, tails and other parts for Waco CG-4A troop transport gliders. Then during late 1941 the company received a request from the government to produce heavy-duty military pianos, and by June 1942 the first prototypes were ready. 

From 1942-1953, Steinway & Sons produced 5,000 Victory Vertical pianos for the war effort. Half went directly to every theater of the war, including the South Pacific, Asia, Africa, Europe and across North America. The rest went to religious organizations, educational institutions, hotels and other public event venues across the United States. 

The pianos were designed to be durable and easy to transport regardless of their intended destination. They were finished olive drab green for the U.S. Army, and blue and gray drab for the U.S. Navy and Marines. The pianos were also treated to resist water, termites and other invasive insects. Special transport crates were designed so four soldiers could easily carry the 455-pound instruments. Each piano came with a set of tuning tools, instructions and spare parts. The kit also included sheet music for classical music, religious hymns and contemporary sing-along and boogie-woogie tunes. 

Post-war production lasted until 1953, but despite their durability most of Victory Verticals did not the punishing conditions on the front. An article in a 1950 Etude magazine described the woeful condition of three pianos in the Philippines during monsoon season: 

“Although 88 noises, not all traditional ones, could be elicited from these pianos,” wrote Elizabeth Randall, “what universally characterized them were their sledgehammer touch, waterlogged tone, stuck keys, missing ivories, squeaky pedals and their scarred, chipped, olive drab exteriors. No offense to the inherent good breeding of these instruments. They had been subject to a few years of tropics and war command treatment.” 

On May 6, 1943, a more loving review was offered by Private Kenneth Kranes in a letter to his mother in New York: 

“Two nights past we received welcome entertainment when a jeep pulling a small wagon came to camp. The wagon contained a light system and a Steinway pianna [sic]. Mom, you would laugh if you were to have seen it, because the Steinway is not at all like Uncle Jake’s. It is smaller and painted olive green, just like the jeep. We all got a kick out of it and sure had fun after meals when we gathered around the pianna to sing… I slept smiling and even today am humming a few of the songs we sang.” 

This was a victory in the battle of wartime morale, and reflects the poignant legacy of the diminutive uprights. A week after he wrote his letter to mom, Private Kranes was killed by German tank fire.