Yamaha Mourns Loss of Iconic Artist Prince; 'One of the Greatest Entertainers of All Time'

Joining the chorus of countless, adoring fans around the globe, Yamaha today mourns the sudden and unexpected loss of Prince, considered to have been one of the most innovative, inventive and engaging artists ever.

The world's largest musical instrument manufacturer had just put the finishing touches on a custom purple Yamaha C7X grand piano for Prince, which was to be the centerpiece of his upcoming "Piano and a Microphone" tour. Yamaha was in the middle of filming a "behind-the-scenes" documentary of the making of this one-of-a-kind piano and the tour.

Prince publicly announced his excitement for the budding relationship with Yamaha in a Twitter post on April 12. Additionally, he unveiled the new piano during an impromptu concert held this past Saturday at his Paisley Park recording studio and home near Minneapolis.

Prince died unexpectedly on the morning of April 21 at his home.

"Prince was brilliant, iconic and transfixing, having created an unmatched body of work that pushed all music and cultural boundaries," said Chris Gero, founder and vice president, Yamaha Entertainment Group. "The custom purple piano was a very special and rewarding project for us, dear to our heart and guided in large part by Prince's genius. Speaking on behalf of Yamaha, I am deeply saddened by this tragic loss of an amazing artist and person, but deeply honored to have worked with one of the greatest entertainers of all time."

About Yamah Yamaha Corporation of America (YCA) is one of the largest subsidiaries of Yamaha Corporation, Japan and offers a full line of award-winning musical instruments, sound reinforcement, commercial installation and home entertainment products to the U.S. market. Products include: Yamaha acoustic, digital and hybrid pianos, portable keyboards, guitars, acoustic and electronic drums, band and orchestral instruments, marching percussion products, synthesizers, professional digital and analog audio equipment, Steinberg recording products and NEXO commercial audio products, as well as AV receivers, amplifiers, MusicCast wireless multiroom audio systems, Blu-ray/CD players, earphones, headphones, home-theater-in-a-box systems, sound bars and its exclusive line of Digital Sound Projectors. YCA markets innovative, finely crafted technology and entertainment products and musical instruments targeted to the hobbyist, education, worship, music, professional audio installation and consumer markets.