This paper explores the role of piano music in E. L. Doctorow’s novel The March (2005), with a focus on selected scenes in which this sort of music occurs. It examines the emotions aroused in the protagonists of the scenes in question as well as the atmosphere it creates or underscores, and considers its significance in the book with regard to the symbolic meaning it represents. It also investigates the extent to which music affects the development of the story. Special attention is paid to the piano from the historical viewpoint.