Ottorino Respighi's handwritten letter to Steinway & Sons (1926)

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A great Italian composer Ottorino Respighi sends warm praise to the famous Steinway & Sons piano factory in New York.

1. Letter of praise, written by the Italian composer Ottorino Respighi (1879 - 1936), for the piano factory Steinway & Sons, in New York. In Italian, with a typewritten translation in English. Three pages + The translation. 30.5 cm x 20.3 cm. 01/06/1926. Quality paper, exceptional handwriting, excellent condition. Single piece.

The Steinway piano is not an instrument: it is a world full of tones; it is magically obedient to the smallest nuances of human feeling.

What is expected, in general, from a piano, is that it translates all our emotions into so many sounds; but Steinway does more than that: it removes any barriers that may exist between musical emotion and its expression through harmonies.

The inner feeling and its expression through sound are no longer just parallel, but become a musical soul throbbing in countless notes.

Ottorino Respighi
For the company Steinway & Sons

2. Postcard showing a Steinway & Sons store in Los Angeles, California. In English. 8.5cm x 13.5cm. 06/17/1908. Excellent condition.

3. Advertisement by the New York newspaper The Independent for Steinway & Sons pianos. In English. 20.4 cm x 29.4 cm. 03/27/1920. Excellent condition.

If the question is to know which are the best pianos in the world, the answer of a professional musician would probably be Steinway & Sons, a symbol of prestige and perfection. Steinway & Sons has always used the best materials processed and assembled by the most competent carpenters.

The reputation of Steinway & Sons pianos was already established in the German community when its founder, Henry Engelhard Steinway (1797 - 1871), arrived in Manhattan with his sons in 1853, fleeing Germany where he had already produced 482 quality pianos. The new business expanded rapidly and further strengthened the brand's reputation.

The history of Steinway & Sons is a true American "success-story", the dream of every entrepreneur: a luxury product, produced on a small scale by specialist and proud employees, pianist customers who have recognized its quality throughout the world for over 150 years, a family business that started from nothing and expanded from old Europe to the United States... Anyway, a very interesting story.

This letter, which Ottorino Respighi wrote to the owners of Steinway & Sons, reads like a poem, a declaration of love to a woman. Rare are the opportunities to read such praise about a brand, especially from a customer.