Making the world’s best upright and grand pianos was the visionary entrepreneur Carl Bechstein’s intention when he founded the company in Berlin in 1853. Discover top-of-the-line craftsmanship based on innovative technology, carried out by highly qualified piano makers who create instruments with a distinctive musical personality using the finest materials.
A closer look at some of the production steps
The C. Bechstein piano-making philosophy is unique. A key principle is that virtually all components contribute to the sound quality. Besides this, a holistic approach to the musical instrument as we emphasize the stability and durability of our pianos. The singing tone and the resilience of C. Bechstein pianos are indeed a point of reference.
Manufacturing the acoustic assembly plays a key role in the entire manufacturing process. The acoustic assembly is a complex system including the architecture of the soundboard, the back frame and respectively the rim-and-cabinet system in grand pianos and even the keybed, the basis for the action assembly.
The art of soundboard making
Every C. Bechstein model – whether an upright or grand piano – has its ideal voice, called the “acoustic master profile”. For the soundboard, the heart of the instrument, and its stabilizing ribs we use exclusively slow-growth mountain spruce from the Alps. Seasoning of the soundboard wood takes up to 10 years as of cutting the tree.
The ribs, too, are selected specifically for the desired tone. The clear difference in sound character between Bechstein and C. Bechstein pianos is partly due to the fact that the soundboard in the latter instruments is tapered.
Tuning and voicing
Tuning and voicing is performed by C. Bechstein tone specialists who know and understand the entire piano, inside and out. Tonal substance and perfect touch in all registers are a prerequisite for the final step of blending the multifaceted tone colours sensitively into a work of art, comparable to a painting. It can take hours or even days of working on the hammerheads to ultimately create the incomparably sophisticated Bechstein touch and tone.
