Together with the Klassik Stiftung Weimar and the Franz Liszt School of Music, we have lovingly refurbished Franz Liszt's historic grand piano and made it playable again. To mark the 213th anniversary of Liszt's birth, the grand piano was inaugurated at a matinée on 22 October 2024 at the Liszt-Haus Weimar. The internationally acclaimed pianist Can Çakmur brought Liszt's music to life - an unforgettable experience! The grand piano has been restored twice in its 140-year history. Once in 1961 (the year the Berlin Wall was built) and a second time in 1999, both restorations were carried out by the C. Bechstein company in Berlin. As the mechanics of the instrument had recently become very stiff, they were overhauled in 2024. Two main tasks were carried out: 1. the hammer heads were replaced along with the stem and capsule, 2. the keyboard was completely rebalanced, which was necessary due to the new, smaller and lighter hammer heads.
These two measures resulted in completely new weight ratios, so that the action has become much smoother - just as Liszt might have played it during his lifetime! It is the last grand piano that Franz Liszt received personally from Carl Bechstein at the beginning of the 1880s (probably 1881/82) and - as was his custom - was given to him free of charge. Franz Liszt played and taught on it until his death in 1886, and the best talents at the University of Music Weimar are still allowed to play on it today. The director of the Klassik Stiftung Weimar museums, Annette Ludwig, emphasised the importance of the playability of historical instruments: ‘There are very few places in the world where a largely authentic sound experience can be offered.’ We would like to thank the Klassik Stiftung Weimar and the Franz Liszt University of Music Weimar for their wonderful collaboration. It was an honour for us to bring this special piece of music history back to life!
