Estonia Piano Factory

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Estonia Piano Factory (Estonian : Estonia Klaverivabrik) is a handcrafted grand piano manufacturing company based in Tallinn.

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History

Piano-making in Estonia goes back over 200 years under German influence, and from 1850 to 1940 there were nearly 20 piano manufacturers operating in the country. The most famous of these was Ernst Hiis-Ihse, who studied piano making in the Steinway Hamburg and Blüthner factories and established his own company in 1893. His piano designs gained international recognition. In 1950 the Communist-dominated Estonian government consolidated many smaller Estonian piano makers into a factory managed by Hiis, making pianos under the Estonia name for the first time. The instruments became prominent on concert stages throughout Eastern Europe and, amazingly, more than 7,400 concert grands were made. However, after Hiis’s death, in 1964, the quality of the pianos gradually declined, partly due to the fact that high-quality parts and materials were hard to come by during the Communist occupation of the country. After Estonia regained its independence in 1991, the factory struggled to maintain production. In 1994 Estonia pianos were introduced to the U.S. market. [1]

In 1994 the company was privatized under the Estonia name, with the managers and employees as owners. During the following years, Indrek Laul, an Estonian recording artist with a doctorate in piano performance from the Juilliard School of Music, gradually bought shares of the company from the stockholders until, in 2001, he became sole owner. Dr. Laul lives in the U.S. and represents the company here. In 2005, at its 100th-anniversary celebration, the Juilliard School named him one of the school’s top 100 graduates; and in 2015, the President of Estonia awarded Laul the Presidential Medal, in recognition of the contribution Estonia pianos have made to awareness of that country. [1]

While Indrek Laul developed the business at the North America, he invited Venno Laul, his father, to be the CEO of the factory from 2005. He built a team to bring the factory to a new level: two new piano models – L225 (2010) and L210 (2012) – were introduced, and an international network of representatives was established. Indrek’s mother, Reet Laul, headed the quality control team, and each piano was checked for its musical qualities by a family member. Indrek Laul became the factory's CEO in 2018, and his wife Triin-Maret Laul has been the Sound Specialist since 2013. [2]

In August 2022, as per the 2021 national survey conducted in the Republic of Estonia, Estonian Post, a state postal agency, issued the postal stamp and envelope to commemorate the Estonia piano as "a great and beloved item of the country." [3]

Characteristics

Concert pianist Marc-André Hamelin, after choosing an Estonia piano for himself, commented, "The level of craftsmanship in the Estonia piano can only inspire the highest respect and I have no doubt that this piano will continue to prove essential to sensitive musicians." [4]

Models

Estonia's pianos are performance quality acoustic grand pianos manufactured in the Republic of Estonia. Five models have been available for sale since 2012, offered in an ebony polish finish as well as a range of custom finishes. [5]

Grand and Upright Pianos

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References

  1. 1 2 "Estonia". Piano Buyer. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  2. ↑ "Our Team". Estonia Pianos. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  3. ↑ "Omniva: A stamp from the series 'Great Estonian Things' will be issued – the Estonia piano". www.omniva.ee. Retrieved 15 January 2025.
  4. ↑ Estonia piano Cunningham Archived 8 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ↑ "Our Pianos". Estonia Pianos. Retrieved 15 January 2025.

59°26′53.27″N24°43′48.46″E / 59.4481306°N 24.7301278°E / 59.4481306; 24.7301278

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