A rare piano believed to be just one of three in Australia has been painstakingly restored for a recital in Bendigo.

After a decade-long search, Scott Hamblin finally received an email notification that someone was selling a piano made by the Hamblin family.

Scott Hamblin spent a decade searching for a Hamblin piano. ( ABC Central Victoria: Emma Nobel )

"After the first couple of years I forgot about it and then 10 years later I got a message in my inbox saying that someone had a Hamblin Brothers piano for sale," he said.

The seller turned out to be Margaret Cleland, the great-granddaughter of Joseph Hamblin, a relative of Scott Hamblin.

The rare piano is one in just a handful of pianos made by the Hamblins that is still in existence.

The earliest Hamblin pianos date back to the 1860s, but Mr Hamblin said this piano was made sometime between 1889 and 1907.

Only three pianos made by the Hamblins exist, according to Mr Hamblin.

One of them is housed in the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, another is owned by Hamblin family members in Emerald, Victoria, and the third now belongs to Mr Hamblin.

"This piano, in my opinion, is the nicest. It's in beautiful condition, so it's more or less showroom, as it would be in the 1890s," he said.

Peter Butler will play the Joseph Hamblin piano at a recital in Bendigo. ( ABC Central Victoria: Larissa Romensky )

Australian timber's unique tone

Joseph Hamblin was a piano maker from Kyneton in central Victoria during the late 1880s. ( Supplied: Scott Hamblin )

Joseph Hamblin began his career building furniture for the early colonial government in Western Australia in the 1840s, before arriving in Kyneton a decade later to establish his business selling pianos to miners, church halls and local community groups.

"Joseph's early pianos date back to the 1860s, but very few are in a playable condition after 150 years," Mr Hamblin said.

He trained two of his sons, known as The Hamblin Brothers, who took over the business and ran it until the early part of the 20th century.

Mr Hamblin's piano is a working example of early colonial craftsmanship, with internal and external components made exclusively from local timber and finished in book-matched native walnut veneer.

"The use of Australian timbers, particularly the soundboard, contribute to its unique tone," Melbourne piano restorer Sam Dwyer said.

Different sized pianos made of iron frames finished in walnut were made in High Street, Kyneton. ( Supplied: Scott Hamblin )

Mr Dwyer said he would normally not endeavour a restoration on such a challenging project, but he made an exception after being drawn to the family story.

He spent about 140 hours refurbishing the rare instrument to ensure this piece of Australian history was preserved.

"This piano has been completely refurbished internally. We wanted to make sure we maintained the original character, so we didn't want to change it, but we wanted to make sure it plays well," Mr Hamblin said.

Sam Dwyer's company, Classic Piano Restorations, spent many hours restoring the Hamblin Bros piano. ( ABC Central Victoria: Larissa Romensky )

No room for the piano

Before Mr Hamblin came into possession of the piano, it had spent several generations with the Cleland family, including 25 years at the home of Mrs Cleland's son, who no longer had room for it.

Mrs Cleland remembered the piano from when she was a little girl visiting her grandparents at their Brighton home.

"That's when I first saw the piano and heard the piano played," she said.

"Growing up, to my recollection, there was just one person that always played piano and that was my Aunty Grace."

Grace Wood was a keen musical student, the youngest child of Joseph Hamblin's daughter.

"She loved playing the piano. When she came to my home she always played our piano," Mrs Cleland said.

The family held on to the piano for many years and it went from home to home following Ms Wood's death.

Margaret Cleland is the great-granddaughter of Joseph Hamblin. ( ABC Central Victoria: Larissa Romensky )

Piano will never leave the family

After struggling to find a buyer for the piano, Mrs Cleland was pleased it had gone to a good home.

"For us it was a thrill to know it wasn't going to be chopped up or just left somewhere," she said.

"I think it's something we never expected, having been told it wasn't worth anything, and to think that it's going to stay in the family is unbelievable."

Mr Hamblin has guaranteed the piano will never leave his family.

"We will treasure it. It's an heirloom and it would be a tragedy if it ever left," he said.

