Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum MY NEW PIANO or KEYBOARD! - Share Your Story! Finally Bluthner 1885 210cm

Hi, my "new" piano has arrived. I started a discussion earlier. I would like to summarize:

Forum trade
https://forum.pianoworld.com/ubbthre...ratory-work-in-progress.html#Post3028430


I found this ancient bluthner in a town and got it for $ 3000. I took it to restore indicating that I could not spend too much. In the end, the restoration cost 5,000 including transport. All strings have been replaced. a slight repainting of the frame, some retouching of the wood to the body of the top (necklines ect.) new ankles.
The mechanics have new rods and rollers. The tailpiece has been badly adjusted over time so he had to recalibrate all over again. I have not changed the lectern although I would have preferred. The stands in the future could give problems for the springs, at the moment I leave it like this. The dampers are not original and have some small defects that can only be solved with a replacement (which is currently expensive) but they do their job almost well.

Considerations :
the bass is huge and beautiful. I think the room influences a lot and in the future I will have to do some work to understand how to improve the sound. at the moment the sound is a little too loud and sometimes they mix too much on the bass when playing many notes together. my biggest regret is to notice how the central area is a little poor as a sound, as if it were hollowed out, not very full. I was told that the new strings however affect the sound a little and the piano has to settle down. the plan has a nice tone but I would have thought more about the central area. every pitch and hammer adjustments have been made. ah, the hammers are not original and therefore I don't know to what extent they can influence. I might also think that the soundboard has stiffened over time or that simply a piano from 1885 is still close to sounds like erard or pleyel.

Sorry for the video, but I understand that I need external microphones to be able to record the piano decently. for the moment try to guess the sound if you can or otherwise I'm very sorry for you.

Pierluigi, lei è affortunata per acquistare questo bello pianoforte. Mi racommando. Auguri!

Keep renewing and preserving it! All the best.

guys. im an idiot. piano lenght is not 210. is 225 cm. cant change title or oter post, idk why. but ok.

Hi. pierreluigi:

Congratulations on your Bluthner! Thank you for posting about it and including all of the photos and the video which makes everything come alive for those of us here on PW. What a grand piano! She's (He's?) a beauty! She sounds beautiful.

Here's a link to something you may find of interest - two vintage Bluthners that are part of the Frederick's Historic Piano Center Collection: a Bluthner built in 1877 "with an unusual string layout" and also one built in 1907 with" a very sweet, clear, even tone…that can produce an almost inaudible pianississimo…" that is described as being "somewhat startling". http://frederickcollection.org/Bluth1877.htm

There are only a few photos of the 1877 Bluthner on Frederick's website, but one clearly shows the plate which looks significantly different from your Bluthner. I wonder how much of a difference this makes in the character of the piano?

The plate of the 1907 Bluthner looks closer to your plate, but still different?

Frederick's, btw, is not just a showplace where all you can do is look at the pianos. It is not a museum, it is a "Study Center" located in Ashburnham, Massachusetts and the pianos are still "alive". The founders, Edmund Michael Frederick and Patricia Humphrey Frederick restore and keep the pianos in playing order and the pianos are played. Every year during concert season the performing pianists choose particular pianos in the collection to play and tours are also given when visitors are given the opportunity to actually play the pianos for themselves.

A group of us PW members visited the Study Center back in September 2004 with Frank Baxter. Frederick's is wonderful and well worth visiting. Of course, now with Covid -19 events the concerts have been halted. Here is the link to our visit back in 2004 for anyone who may be interested in hearing our impressions of the tour and of the pianos: https://forum.pianoworld.com/ubbthre...toric-piano-study-center.html#Post922160

When our PW group visited there was a CD available played on a 1907 Bluthner. I don't see any info on the website about this, but for anyone who may be interested, if you contact the Frederick's, I assume they'd know if it is still available.

Congrats, again on your Bluthner, pierreluigi!

Jeanne W

Congratulations on your beautiful restored Bluthner .From what I heard there is a wonderful tone there.

Congratulations from another Blüthner owner. Hope it settles down to your satisfaction.
Ian