Ludwig Bösendorfer (10 April 1835 – 9 May 1919) was an Austrian piano manufacturer, son of

Ignaz Bösendorfer Ignaz Bösendorfer (July 28, 1796 – April 14, 1859) was an Austrian musician and piano manufacturer, who in 1828 founded the Bösendorfer company in Vienna-Josefstadt. Biography The son of a carpenter, he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts ...

and inheritor of his father's company

Bösendorfer Bösendorfer (L. Bösendorfer Klavierfabrik GmbH) is an Austrian piano manufacturer and, since 2008, a wholly owned subsidiary of Yamaha Corporation. Bösendorfer is unusual in that it produces 97- and 92-key models in addition to instrument ...

. He modernized the construction of the company's pianos, and made the company well known beyond Austria.

Life

Bösendorfer was born in Vienna in 1835. He attended the

Vienna Polytechnic Institute TU Wien (TUW; german: Technische Universität Wien; still known in English as the Vienna University of Technology from 1975–2014) is one of the major universities in Vienna, Austria. The university finds high international and domestic recogn ...

, and then worked in his father's company, taking it over in 1859. In 1860 the company moved to a new factory in Türkenstraße in

Alsergrund Alsergrund (; Central Bavarian: ''Oisagrund'') is the ninth district of Vienna, Austria (german: 9. Bezirk, Alsergrund). It is located just north of the first, central district, Innere Stadt. Alsergrund was incorporated in 1862, with seven suburbs. ...

, Vienna."Bösendorfer, Familie"
''Oesterreiches Musiklexikon Online''. Retrieved 12 September 2022.History
''Bösendorfer''. Retrieved 12 September 2022. He moved away from the customary Viennese pianos (described in ''

A Dictionary of Music and Musicians ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and theo ...

'' as "the cheaper build and mechanism identified with Vienna"): from 1870,

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...

frames were used in piano construction, and from 1878 he produced pianos with English mechanism. In 1870 the factory moved to Graf Starhemberggasse in

Wieden Wieden (; Central Bavarian: ''Wiedn'') is the 4th municipal district of Vienna, Austria (german: 4. Bezirk). It is near the centre of Vienna and was established as a district in 1850, but its borders were changed later. Wieden is a small region ...

, Vienna, and the sales rooms moved to , in the

Innere Stadt The Innere Stadt (; Central Bavarian: ''Innare Stod'') is the 1st municipal Districts of Vienna, district of Vienna () located in the center of the Austrian capital. The Innere Stadt is the old town of Vienna. Until the city boundaries were expa ...

, where in 1872 a concert hall,

Bösendorfer-Saal Bösendorfer-Saal (Bösendorfer Hall) was a concert hall in Vienna, Austria, on Herrengasse in the Innere Stadt of the city. Connected with the Viennese piano manufacturer Bösendorfer, it was opened in 1872, and many famous musicians performed the ...

, was opened. Famous musicians gave concerts and recitals there, which contributed to the success of the business. He was known to composers including

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...

and

Anton Bruckner Josef Anton Bruckner (; 4 September 182411 October 1896) was an Austrian composer, organist, and music theorist best known for his symphonies, masses, Te Deum and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-Germ ...

. Pianos were sold worldwide, and the company supplied pianos to royalty. From 1870 he was an honorary member of the

Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde The Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Wien (), also known as the Wiener Musikverein (German for 'Viennese Music Association'), is an Austrian music organization that was founded in 1812 by Joseph Sonnleithner, general secretary of the Court Theat ...

in Vienna, and from 1878 was one of its directors. In 1889 he initiated the Bösendorfer Piano Competition, which took place annually until 1945. He took part in the

1862 International Exhibition The International Exhibition of 1862, or Great London Exposition, was a world's fair. It was held from 1 May to 1 November 1862, beside the gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society, South Kensington, London, England, on a site that now houses ...

in London, the

1873 Vienna World's Fair ) , building = Rotunda , area = 233 Ha , invent = , visitors = 7,255,000 , organized = , cnt = , org = , biz = , country = Austria-Hungary , city ...

and the 1900 Paris Exposition. Bösendorfer married twice, surviving both wives; there were no children. In 1909 he sold the company to the musician and banker

Carl Hutterstrasser Carl Hutterstrasser (11 June 1863 – 29 March 1942) was an Austrian piano manufacturer, owner of the company Bösendorfer. He was also a musician and sportsman. Life Hutterstasser was educated at the Akademisches Gymnasium in Vienna, and from 18 ...

. He died in Vienna in 1919, and was buried at the

Vienna Central Cemetery The Vienna Central Cemetery (german: Wiener Zentralfriedhof) is one of the largest cemeteries in the world by number of interred, and is the most well-known cemetery among Vienna's nearly 50 cemeteries. The cemetery's name is descriptive of its ...

."Hutterstrasser, Familie"
''Oesterreiches Musiklexikon Online''. Retrieved 12 September 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bosendorfer, Ludwig 1835 births 1919 deaths Businesspeople from Vienna Bösendorfer Piano makers Burials at the Vienna Central Cemetery