New piano donation

A countryside music festival has been gifted with the world's "most elite piano" after their original £45,000 piano was dropped by delivery men.

Organisers of the Two Moors Festival in South Molton, Devon had spent two years fund-raising for the Bosendorfer piano, only to see it crash to the ground. Now Bosendorfer has donated an £85,000 Imperial Concert grand piano for the festival, which starts on 12 October.

Festival organiser Penny Adie said: "It is almost too good to be true." She said: "Never in the company's history has it given a piano of this value to any individual or organisation."

The piano was driven from Austria by Bosendorfer staff and delivered on Friday.

Mrs Adie said: "They did a dummy delivery run, and very calmly and efficiently moved the piano without a hitch.

"This is the most elite piano in the world. It is such an immaculate instrument I cannot believe it is there."

She watched in tears as the piano was sampled by concert pianist Tom Poster.

About 100 supporters of the Two Moors Festival had raised money for the original piano.

The issue of any insurance claim for the damaged piano has not yet been resolved.

Bosendorfer makes about 400 pianos a year.

The Two Moors Festival was set up in 2001 to bring tourists back to Dartmoor and Exmoor after the foot-and-mouth crisis.

The festival runs a series of classical music events for 10 days in October.