After immigrating to America in , German-born Henry Steinway founded Steinway and Sons in New York City in , His self-stated goal was to build the best piano possible through tonal excellence. The Steinways pursued popular acclaim by creating Steinway Hall, a top concert venue in New York City for piano performers. Interestingly, both Bosendorfer and Steinway lay claim to a share of Franz Liszt and Anton Rubinstein, both of whom had positive comments about Bosendorfer but who ultimately became Steinway Artists.
Both Bosendorfer and Steinway use spruce wood in the interior of their pianos, though Steinway specifically uses Sitka Spruce for its trademark soundboard. The soundboard, along with the Hard Rock Maple case, helps to produce a rich sound that projects well in concert halls around the globe. When comparing Steinways and Bosendorfers, a bit of piano history is worth knowing. By the time Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven were experimenting with the piano, the instrument had been around for two to three generations.
Though the differences between these two approaches are subtle today, Steinway follows the American school of design, while Bosendorfer is more aligned with the Viennese school. So what is the difference between the two schools? To hear piano commentators talk, one could deduce that the difference between these two schools and two brands is in the treble and bass registers.
All of this helps produce more audible harmonics for a rich, complex sound with great projection. In contrast, Bosendorfer, following the Viennese school, makes the inner rim of solid Bavarian spruce blocks, using a technique similar to that of a bricklayer building a brick wall.
The outer rim is made of solid spruce, shaped by cutting narrow slots are filled with spruce shims. As a result, the outer rim of a Bosendorfer is thinner than most pianos, and their inner and outer rims interface directly with the soundboard. Thus, the entire case becomes an extension of the soundboard.
The result is a more classical-era, 18th Century sound. It can be reminiscent of a harpsichord. However, Bosendorfer gets higher marks for powerful keys on the lower end of Middle C. Also, for those who like a particularly fast action, Bosendorfer has that, too. Some advocates for Bosendorfer note that a North American professional pianist might have difficulty having exposure to any European brands like Bosendorfer as Steinway dominates the concert market here.
Such pianists, at the top of their musical profession, have likely played several different European brands, including Bosendorfer. North American piano buyers often associate Steinways as the highest-priced pianos on the market. However, that is likely because Steinway is the best-known premium piano to them. However, compared to some European brands, including Bosendorfer, Steinway is far from being the most expensive premium piano brand.
For a brand that was once owned by Kimball , Bosendorfer has certainly come of age. Meanwhile, Steinway can enjoy the fact that their pianos, considered the standard in the industry, are not the most costly at all.
One is a familiar name to most and one is an Italian brand people may not have heard of. Which one is really the best? Are they even comparable or are consumers victims of marketing myths? It has held the world record in sheer name recognition over the decades.
There are a network of Steinway dealers, Steinway stores, Steinway showrooms, retailers selling rebuilt Steinways, all over the world, with myriad Steinway models available, both new and used. Grand pianos, and most especially concert grands and performance grands are the instruments on stages around the world that most people revere. Steinway baby grands have been the darlings of living rooms across the country, but their size makes the tone in certain areas less than perfect. You can often find Steinway baby grand sales, as a result of people upgrading to a larger instrument.
The lesser known competitor for this comparison is the FAZIOLI piano designed by an Italian musician and engineer, Paolo Fazioli, who in set out to create the finest-quality hand-made pianos ever built. In only a few short years, his extraordinary pianos are sought after in the most prestigious concert halls by artists, as well as by discerning private clients who are truly in the know.
Each Fazioli piano takes over 2 years to build. At the height of their success, Steinway produced 3, pianos annually. Side by side there is simply no comparison between Steinway and Fazioli not on any front.
After Euro Pianos Naples was named a Fazioli dealer one of only nine dealerships in the entire United States , one of our first Fazioli sales was to a client who had been arduously searching for the perfect for him piano. His search included forays to see and play Steinways, Yamahas, and Bosendorfer among others. For almost three years he researched, and tinkered with different dealers. When he got wind that Euro Pianos Naples had become a Fazioli dealer, he called.
He had heard of the brand, and drove straight from Miami to our showroom, sat down to play. It was love at first note.
It was the most responsive piano he had encountered. He purchased one on the spot. Some, if not most, say the German strings are superior. Finally, there are tonal differences between the two. These differences are largely due to the different kinds of hammers the New York and Hamburg Factory use: New York Steinways use a low compression hammer that requires hardening as part of the final factory prepwork.
Hamburg Steinways utilize the opposite; a high compression hammer that requires softening to bring it to its full tonal potential. Additionally, the kind of wood each manufacturer uses for the rim or case also has an impact on sound.
0コメント