C. Bechstein organised an extraordinary two-year cycle of Beethoven’s piano sonatas at the St Agnes Convent in Prague. The complete set of 32 masterful sonatas, which are among the most momentous piano works in European history, was performed on the D 282 concert grand piano by the charismatic virtuoso Saleem Ashkar during eight evenings in two concert seasons from 2016–18. He also chose a C. Bechstein piano for his complete recording of the set for the prestigious label Decca.
Influencers of Resonance is the spiritual successor to this extraordinary Beethoven project. The 2018/19 season saw Tomáš Kačo, Jan Bartoš, Beata Hlavenková, and Ivo Kahánek perform on the C. Bechstein piano. The 2019/20 season will again field a diversity of genres – the same venue and instrument will welcome four distinguished musicians with a bespoke repertoire. The keys of the D 282 grand piano are set to dance under the fingers of Marek Kozák, Najponk, Miroslav Sekera, and Karel Košárek.
C. Bechstein is the largest European instrument maker and a traditional producer of master-class concert pianos with a distinctive European sound since 1853.
film The Soul of Sound
For more than a century and a half, C. Bechstein has been manufacturing masterpieces that are the embodiment of quality, exquisite sound and tone. The highest quality of timbre and perfect action brings the beauties of the great era of the piano into the present day. Today, C. Bechstein pianos can be found in the Royal Academy of Music in London, the Paris Conservatoire, or the Berlin Philharmonic.
From the outset, C. Bechstein’s philosophy has been influenced by the likes of Hans von Bülow or Franz Liszt. The company continues in its great tradition of handcrafted production, complemented with cutting edge technology. Instruments of the C. Bechstein and Bechstein brands are made exclusively in Europe, in the company’s German factory in Seifhennersdorf, Saxony; upright and grand pianos of the W. Hoffmann brand are built by the subsidiary C. Bechstein Europe in one of the most modern European production facilities in Hradec Králové in the Czech Republic.
In May 2019 the company opened a piano showroom in Prague, the largest display and sales piano centre in the Czech capital.
