Steinway: From American Dream to American Excellence

Classic gold lettering above the piano keys of an ebony Steinway grand piano. cdrin/Shutterstock

German piano-maker Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg stood in his kitchen one evening putting the finishing touches on a piano he built by hand. He aspired to make the best piano possible, built on pride in one’s work and the model of American excellence he already embodied from growing up in Germany.

With his innovative model piano now complete, he made plans to move his family to America. He immigrated with five of his sons, who helped him with his business endeavors. Through innovation, creativity, and inspiring tenacity, he and his sons accomplished their goal and much more.

Three years after immigrating to New York in 1850, Steinweg changed his name to Henry E. Steinway and officially embarked on his lifelong dream, founding his piano company, Steinway & Sons.

Steinway & Sons were the first develop overstringing. An illustration of Henry Steinway and the fan-shape disposition of strings in a Steinway grand, from "The Popular Science Monthly," 1891–1892. Internet Archive. Public Domain

Today, Steinway & Sons is recognized as a world-renowned piano company. Their revolutionary pianos have long been found on symphony stages around the world—each one is a striking representation of American entrepreneurship at its finest.

A Dream Becomes Reality

Steinway opened his first workshop in a small, unassuming space located in the back of a building along Manhattan’s Varrick Street. After he sold his first piano to a local family for $500, it didn’t take long for Steinway to upsize. Just one year after opening, he and his sons moved their workshop to a bigger space due to growing demand.

Steinway & Sons on Park Ave, 1893, from the "King's Handbook of New York City." British Library. Public Domain

The Steinway & Sons factory took over Park Avenue in the 1860s. They required so much space to run their business that the factory they built occupied an entire block.

What made this near-unprecedented growth possible for a family piano-making business? Even as far back as Gilded Age America, Steinway built pianos that remain unparalleled today.

The Steinway Sound

Close to 95 percent of professional concert pianists prefer a Steinway piano over other brands. When taking a close look at the company’s innovative approach to instrument-making, and their focus on a handcrafted building process, it’s easy to understand why.

One of the piano’s most striking differences is its state-of-the-art soundboard. It is so unique that company engineers patented the design.

Technicians at the Steinway & Sons factory in Long Island City, New York, place soundboards into grand pianos. Timothy A. Clary/Getty Images

A piano’s soundboard is one of the instrument’s key components because it amplifies the sounds from nearby vibrating strings. Well-built soundboards aid in the quality, warmth, and expression of notes.

Steinway’s soundboard is built for the pianist to take full advantage of the instrument’s wide range of notes. It offers both endurance and intensity, helping notes ring out longer and louder due to its makeup. Its design is tapered, and extends from the center of the piano all the way to its edge. This creates a rich, full-bodied melodic experience known as the unparalleled “Steinway sound.”

The company uses only a few types of wood. One is the Alaskan Sitka Spruce, and another is the sugar maple (hard rock maple), which allows for an immense amount of tonal projection.

In 1963, the company introduced another innovative design, the Hexagrip Pinblock. It’s a treasured mechanism among piano players because it helps keep the instrument in tune longer, and with better accuracy.

A worker strings the soundboard of a Concert Grand Model D Piano at the Steinway & Sons factory in Long Island City, New York. Timothy A. Clary/Getty Images

Steinway & Sons’s  commitment to excellence meant that their once-small Manhattan family business grew into one of America’s most successful companies. Throughout the 20th century, the Steinway piano was a part of several historic events, becoming a symbol of American culture that people recognized around the world.

Committed to American Patriotism

The 100,000th Steinway grand piano, designed by Joseph and Richard Hunt with the allegorical painting by artist Thomas W. Dewing, was the original White House piano. Photograph by Harris & Ewing in the early 20th century. Library of Congress. Public Domain

In 1866, one of Henry’s sons, William Steinway, debuted Steinway Hall, a cultural center for the performing arts in New York City. With rooms dedicated to showcasing the company’s best pianos, and a beautiful concert hall, the building became one of the city’s largest performing arts venues.

The hall not only helped bolster piano sales, but it became a premier music venue known for hosting the world’s best talent. It was home base for the New York Philharmonic for over 25 years.

As the company grew, Steinway and his successors stayed committed to American patriotism and what it meant to embody the American spirit.

During World War II, Steinway & Sons constructed 3,000 specialty pianos to be sent overseas where American soldiers were fighting. The company arranged for the pianos, once coined “Victory Verticals” and ultimately called “G.I. Steinways,” to be parachuted down to troops from planes. This was accomplished by working patiently with U.S. officials. Their patience paid off in the end. The pianos boosted morale for many soldiers and offered them a way to feel connected to their loved ones even though they were so far from home by playing and singing along to popular songs together.

A Steinway piano has been the musical centerpiece of the White House since the early 1900s. Steinway & Sons gifted the original one to the presidential home in 1903 and it remained the main piano until 1937.

Pioneer of the Modern Piano

Lawrence Alma-Tadema designed the Steinway Model D Pianoforte as the centerpiece of a “Greco-Roman” music room in the Manhattan mansion of Henry Marquand. The Clark Art Institute, Mass. Image courtesy Clark Art Institute

Steinway’s commitment to excellence and his entrepreneurial spirit helped him accomplish his ambitious goal of making the world’s best piano. Through innovation and creativity, the visionary piano maker pioneered the modernization of the popular instrument.

Through he and his sons’ dedication to patriotism, Steinway & Sons became more than a brand. It grew into a cultural force embodying a high standard of workmanship. This high standard has long been appreciated by a wide range of individuals, from professional pianists to music enthusiasts, and even soldiers stationed overseas who long to hear the music of their home country.

Venezuelan classical pianist, soprano, and composer Teresa Carreño seated at a Steinway & Sons piano, circa early 20th century. Library of Congress. Public Domain

Each piano the New York-based company crafts is an inspiring example of what can be accomplished with one’s own hands while chasing the American dream.

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