I Had a Steinway Once

Saying Goodbye to a Friend

A couple of days ago, my cat Steinway passed away. I was not home when it happened. In fact, I have been out of town for most of the last week, and I will be staying in Nashville until tomorrow to manage a few odds and ends.

His inert body was found in my partner’s garden, and we have no idea what happened.

I return to my home in the woods tomorrow after MaxZine picks me up from the big city, and I will go directly to the place in my Japanese-style garden where he has been buried.

On March 1, 2014, I went with my Mom, my sister, and my niece to Metro Nashville’s Animal Control facility, where numerous dogs and cats are housed and adopted out to new homes. I spent time with eight cats that day, and Steinway, with his big green eyes and soft pink nose, was the first one out of the bunch that I picked to get to know. Upon entering the room, he greeted each of us individually with a little cat kiss. I knew instantly that he was special, and I kept looking back over to his cage whenever a different cat was brought in for me to meet.

I chose him, of course, but it always felt like he chose me.

I named him Steinway because I was a piano nerd who was suddenly responsible for a black-and-white-colored cat. It was too perfect.

Steinway pianos are regarded worldwide as some of the finest musical instruments. They cost a lot of money for good reason. The high level of craftsmanship is unparalleled. I got to record most of the songs on my debut album, Seahorses, on two Steinway grands. On the recording for the song called “Tears In Savannah,” I played on a meticulously preserved and enormous antique Steinway concert grand, and as a pianist, it was an absolute thrill to hear and feel its rich tones and resonance. (Listen below.)

I named my cat Steinway because I knew that he would make my heart sing.

This biracial piano kitty did not disappoint.

We spent most of our first two years together sharing a cozy one-bedroom apartment near the airport in Nashville. During that time, I was still reeling from an intense break-up. This little cat slept with me every night and greeted me with several cat kisses whenever I arrived home. He was the soft, purring, furry dose of comfort, affection, and companionship I needed as I was grieving what I had lost.

Then, when I moved out to my current home in the Tennessee woods to live with my partner MaxZine, Steinway’s world opened up. After about a month of settling in, he became an indoor/outdoor cat who would make daily rounds through our garden grounds, galivant through the woods, and take long decadent naps out on our deck. He would slay rodents and, to our dismay, the occasional small bird to his heart’s content.

He enjoyed an expensive diet of cat food made to prevent urinary infections, and I would pick him up for cat cuddles whenever possible. (MaxZine and our housemates Spree and Spiky took on his daily feedings and care. I owe them all a debt of gratitude for this.)

People often talk about the grand, pivotal moments in their lives like winning a Grammy or buying a house, but they rarely brag about the tiny, tender moments that happen every day.

I would give anything to hold Steinway one more time in my arms and get his gentle kisses. I will never again look out a window and see him traipsing through the garden like a little lion in a jungle.

This is not how I expected to end 2025, but here I am, nonetheless.

I care for pets in my life knowing that I will not get to have them forever. Of course, this awareness does not make the eventual loss any easier.

I am going to miss my friend so damn much.

I need to step back and slow down for a little while. This will be the last post here at WPR for the year.

All the windows are now closed. I will sit at my piano and let my memories wash over me.

I will take the time to grieve and honor the years I got to care for my sweet little friend and firstborn.

See you all when WPR returns in 2026.

P.S: Steinway is featured in the the “Cat Daddy” music video I made during the COVID lockdown a few years ago. Have a look.

And perhaps more so in the lyric video: