The Lyrical Grand

This exceptional grand piano was built in 1895 by the famous Julius Blüthner Pianofortefabrik of Leipzig. It was acquired by Synchron Stage Vienna after having been lovingly restored by master piano builder Bernhard Balas from Vienna.

The 193 cm professional scale instrument is equipped with Blüthner’s specially developed and patented Aliquot system that uses additional dampened strings positioned above the conventional strings of the treble register, which are not struck by the hammers but resonate sympathetically. This fourth set of strings enhances the overtones, providing a velvety, organic shimmer and giving the instrument a particularly lyrical “singing” quality. In addition, the strings are unusually long and thin, stretched to an enormous string tension of 20 tons, which helps define the instrument’s specific sound. In combination with its soft hammers the Blüthner grand produces a clear, yet warm and soft timbre that is superior to many modern instruments in its variety of tonal colors.

Composers such as Debussy, Brahms, Mahler, Bartók, Liszt, Tchaikowsky, Shostakowitch and Rachmaninov created their works on a Blüthner grand. Famously, Paul McCartney played a Blüthner concert grand when recording “Let It Be” for the film of the same title in 1969.

Capturing the Golden Tone

Vienna Symphonic Library’s Blüthner 1895 grand piano was recorded at Stage B of Synchron Stage Vienna. This beautiful 69 m² (739 sq ft.) live room with a 3.5 to 4.5 m (11.5 – 14.75 ft) height features a controlled acoustic environment with less ambience than the large main hall (Stage A).

While beautifully restored, this Blüthner 1895 was recorded “as is”, with all the charm and peculiarities that give a seasoned instrument its character. Its virtual recreation is extremely versatile and well suited for soloists looking for a slightly different, personal piano sound. The Blüthner lends itself extremely well to song accompaniments and chamber music settings, as well as to pop songs and ballads where other concert grands sound too large and obtrusive. Presets like “Intimate” or “Vintage” bring out this special quality even more.

Microphones

Even if you're not using a surround setup, you get more ambience variations and spatial depth out of the Full Library by adding the room microphones' signals to your stereo mix.