Blüthner model 6

Beautifull Blüther model 6 grand piano, 190 cm in length. This grand is totally restored in high glossy black.

Leipzig was, together with Paris, London and Vienna the basis of the European music culture.

Apart from culture, Leipzig was also a very important center of trade with extensive national connections and a wealthy middle class. Julius Ferdinand Blüthner (March 11, 1824 – April 15, 1910) established his company there on November 7, 1853 in Leipzig.

Blüthner sold its first grand piano in the spring of 1854 and from 1855 his instruments were brought under the attention of pianists and institutions and sales increased.

In 1863 Blüthner bought a piece of land on which he built a factory, suitable for 100 employees.

By taking part of a world exhibition ,Blüthner got more fame and won until 1903, apart from other prizes and nominations, twelve rewards on several world exhibitions.

The increasing demand for musical instruments led to further expansion: a second factory with machines powered by steam built in 1870. In 1872 Blüthner built his third factory and employed 170 workers extra.

In 1873 Blüthner invented the aliquot grand piano in which a fourth string is placed in the treble (high tones) above the choir (a group of three equal strings) in order to make the sound more clear and brilliant. Throughout the years Blüthner experimented with the aliquot grand, however, they also make grand pianos without this system.

In 1881 a new factory was built and in 1890 another site was put into operation which provided room for 230 workers. The continuous expansion of the factories made Blüthner one of the largest piano manufacturers in Europe. The annual production increased in 1903 to 3000 instruments and, in the meantime, the factories of Feurich, Hupfeld, Schimmel and Gebr. Zimmermann were also established in Leipzig.

Blüthner supplied to various noble families and also composers like Claude Debussy, Max Reger, Gustav Mahler, Franz Liszt, Richard Wagner, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Carl Orff, Dmitri Shostakovitch and Andrew Lloyd Webber had a grand piano of this manufacturer. The pianists Claudio Arrau, Ferruccio Busoni, Arthur Rubinstein, Wilhelm Kempff and Oleg Maisenberg belonged to the Blüthner clientele and so did Udo Jürgens who was given a grand piano as a gift for his shows in the DDR.

On April 13, 1910 the founder of the company, Julius Blüthner died. The company was inherited by the three sons Robert, Max and Bruno Blüthner. During World War I many empolyees were called up for the military service. Foreign connections were lost, export was delayed and locally there was not much interest to buy a piano. The reconstruction started in 1919 and in 1928 number 113.000 was finished and in 1932 Rudolph Blüthner-Haessler took over the management.

During World War II the business burnt down completely because of a bomb attack and, unfortunately all the traditions and special instruments were lost. In 1948 the first grand pianos came on the market again, however, because of the nationalization by the communists, the influence and the freedom of doing business of the Blüthner family was limited. Nevertheless business went better from 1953 on because of the increased demand.

In 1970 a new building for 180 employees was opened. The business was called VEB Blüthner from now on and number 144.000 was finished. After the DDR period the factory became family owned again.

In 1990 Blüthner started to pick up old relationships with a result that there were Blüthner dealers again in foreign countries. Because of the better position on the market and the increasing demand, Blüthner was able to build a new production department in the industrial area of Strörmthal near Leipzig.

In 2005 the piano manufacturer organized his own piano concourse in Leipzig. Until then the participants came mainly from local music schools, however, the winners from this year were students from China and Japan.

In October 2007 Julius Blüthner Pianofortfabrik opened, next to London, Moscow, Tokyo and Shanghai, a new center in Vienna. In 2003 the Blüthner family celebrated their 150^th anniversary with a ceremony in Leipzig. Since the establishment of the factory in 1853 more than 150.000 instruments have been manufactured.

Today the company makes 90% of its sales abroad.