The Bluthner piano company is one of what the piano trade calls the ‘Big Four’ makers (Steinway, Bechstein, Bluthner and Bosendorfer). The company was founded in Leipzig in 1853 and, by the 1880s, had established itself as Germany’s leading domestic piano maker. The instruments produced in this period from 1880 to just before the war, including many full-sized uprights and smaller baby- and boudoir-sized grands, are very fine pianos with almost no exceptions. These instruments are very well built from top-quality materials, and always restore well. Bluthner pianos have a characteristic warm, rounded tone, not too forceful, making them perfect for domestic situations. The touch is generally light to medium, and always very smooth.
During the ‘Iron Curtain’ period from 1945 to the 1980s, Bluthner piano quality becomes a little more variable, though many good instruments from this period do exist. Towards the modern day, Bluthner have tended towards a firmer, more ‘modern’ touch, more like other German makers, but the tone quality is still warm, rounded and mellow.
More than twenty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Bluthner company is now once again a manufacturer of fine quality German pianos and this Concert B upright is a fine example. Manufactured in Leipzig in 2003, this piano is in excellent condition from the satin rosewood case to the handbuilt action, which has been fully regulated in our workshops.
The Concert B is one of Bluthner’s finest full sized upright pianos; at 52″ high this instrument has longer bass strings than most baby grands, making the tone, especially in the bass, full, rich and mellow, though with some considerable power when it is called for. The action is medium weight, smooth and responsive and repeats very well – this piano is designed to cope well with the rigours of high level musical performance. This Bluthner would be an ideal piano for an advanced, confident player seeking an instrument for life, and, with the famous Bluthner build quality, will remain a top quality instrument for decades to come.
Pre-Owned 2003 Bluthner Concert B