This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Fanoftheworld (talk | contribs) at 00:21, 12 April 2009. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 00:21, 12 April 2009 by Fanoftheworld (talk | contribs)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)
Blüthner, formally Julius Blüthner Pianofortefabrik GmbH, is a piano-manufacturing company founded by Julius Blüthner in 1853 in Leipzig Germany.
History
 | This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
The company's early success occurred at exhibitions, conservatories and the concert stage. Further invention and innovations lead Blüthner to patent a ‘repetition action', and, in 1873, the aliquot scaling patent for grand pianos. This added a fourth, sympathetic (‘aliquot’) string to each trichord group in the treble.
By 1885, the company was the largest European piano manufacturer (Bechstein surpassed them in 1905). During World War II the factory was ruined by target bombing but was later rebuilt and opened at the same location. Unique to the great makers, the Blüthner family continues their 5th generation piano building tradition.
Models
The sympathetic (‘aliquot’) strings enrich the piano's weakest register by enhancing the overtone spectrum of the instrument. The aliquot string runs parallel to the normal strings, but is elevated at the point where the hammer strikes so that it is not struck directly, but vibrates in sympathy with the other strings. The sympathetic (‘aliquot’) string remains free of damper and thus a string resonance always occurs when other harmonic notes are played. This sympathetic resonance contributes to the sound of Bluthner pianos.
Designer models
| This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
The one-of-a-kind Blüthner piano of particular interest was the special lightweight instrument, made for use on the Zeppelin LZ 129 Hindenburg. The piano had its harp plate made of aluminum, that saved about 100 kg of weight versus a regular cast iron plate of the same size piano. This was the first piano used in flight, and it was used in an "air-concert" radio broadcast. It was removed in 1937 to save weight so it survived the Hindenburg's infamous crash, only to be destroyed by bombing during the Second World War. A replica of this piano was also featured in the 1975 film The Hindenburg where Reed Channing (Peter Donat) sings "There's A Lot to be Said for the Fuhrer". Since the film is set during the airship's final flight, the piano's presence is an historical error.
Notable Blüthner artists
| This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Numerous royals, composers, conductors, artists, and performers have owned Blüthner pianos. They include Johannes Brahms, Gustav Mahler, Béla Bartók, Claude Debussy, Max Reger, Richard Wagner, Johann Strauss, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Dmitri Shostakovich, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Wilhelm Kempff, Yehudi Menuhin, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Marlene Dietrich, Petronel Malan, and Liberace. Blüthners have been used in popular music. One Blüthner piano owned by the Abbey Road Studios in London was used on some tracks of The Beatles' Let It Be album, most notably, in the hits "Let It Be" and "The Long and Winding Road". One was also used in the film The Sting. Another (stunt piano) was destroyed in Iron Man.
References
- "Roberts Pianos Oxford". 2008-04-01. Retrieved 2008-06-12.
- Central Music. Bluthner.
External links
 | This German corporation or company article is a stub. You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it. |