Steinway vs Grotrian
Grotrian, sold in this country as Grotrian-Steinweg, is one of the great German makers, and it shares its roots with Steinway more directly than any other name.
A shared history
Both firms grew from the same workshop. Heinrich Steinweg founded the business in Braunschweig, Germany, in 1835 before he left for New York and became Steinway. His son Theodor kept the German firm going, and when he too left for America in 1865, Wilhelm Grotrian took it over. Steinway later went to court over the “Steinweg” name, which is why the pianos are sold simply as “Grotrian” in North America.
Tone
Grotrian is known for a warm, refined, singing German tone, and its best grands are held in very high regard, spoken of alongside Bösendorfer and Hamburg Steinway. Steinway has the bigger name and, to many ears, more power and projection. Both are top-end, hand-built pianos.