Petrof 5’-3” Baby Grand Piano built in the Czech Republic.

  Petrof is the largest piano manufacturer in Europe today, building nearly 6000 pianos annually. They are known for their warm, rich singing tone, full of color. At the time this model was built, there was a huge currency advantage for Czech Republic factories in all industries because they were not yet on the Euro. Labor rates were very low and there were no duty taxes to pay. The price of these pianos was only a fraction of that of other European instruments and sometimes even less expensive than pianos from Japan. This is no longer the case. Economic conditions have changed dramatically, and the current model has a full MSRP of $93,966. Petrof model Bora Ebony Polish.

This piano is in excellent condition – structurally and aesthetically. It is a one-owner, bought locally in 2000 from the Petrof authorized dealership and has lived its entire life here in Albuquerque. It is happily acclimated and well-adjusted to our unique and arid climate. It was cared for and cherished in its role as the focal point of the formal living room. It was hardly played so there is minimal wear in the piano-action, trapwork and other moving parts. All we have done to service the piano is to regulate the action, pitch-raise and concert tune. The original adjustable Artist bench is included.

Petrof grand pianos built in the 2000’s used Renner piano-action parts mounted to Petrof-made action frames called Petrof/Renner actions. Renner builds high-performance piano-actions that are used in some of the finest pianos built worldwide. This model V has one of these actions so the piano plays accurately, expressively and as smooth as a warm knife through butter. Renner action parts tend to be more reliable too and service-free. The keys are solid spruce and individually weighted. It uses a seven-ply beech pinblock that is more tolerant of manufacturing anomalies than other types of pinblocks are, so all of the tuning pins in this piano are nice and tight, and ought to remain so for decades to come. The rim is also constructed from beech. The soul of the piano is the soundboard and it is constructed from long-grained Bohemian spruce. The plate is wet sand cast, meaning a true casting and not a more cheaply made V-pro plate. The Petrof factory is well-known for its quality workmanship.

The Petrof Piano Co. was established in 1864 by Antonin Petrof, born at Hrádec Kralové, Czechoslovakia in 1839. Antonin learned piano building from his uncle in Vienna and returned home to build his own pianos. The Czechs have long been known for their musical instrument building skills and vibrant music industry. The company grew and over the years moved into larger facilities and acquired other plants. Upright pianos came along in 1883 followed by player pianos. Family members began participating in the business. Antonin, Jr. joined the firm in 1908; Vladimir in 1914. Antonin, Sr. lived until 1915. Younger Petrofs Ivan and Dimitrij apprenticed in 1928. The company prospered and their pianos consistently earned prizes at international exhibitions. They embraced the advancement of technology and production became more sophisticated.

1939 brought WWII and the factory converted to war production and afterward in 1947 the State Ministry of Industry took over the company. All businesses in Czechoslovakia were nationalized this way and the Petrof family was forced out. Antonin, Jr. passed away in 1964 after his release from Communist imprisonment. With the Velvet Revolution in 1989 and the fall of the Soviet Union afterward, many state-run factories were able to become private businesses again. Fourth-generation Jan, son of Dimitrij, initiated the privatization process in 1991 in order to reclaim the company and in 2001 the factory was successfully passed into the hands of the Petrof family as the fifth generation was also admitted.

Petrof pianos were first imported into the US in 1985 by Geneva International based in Wheeling, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. Initially, they had a difficult time convincing piano dealers to carry a piano brand built in a communist country. Geneva’s response was “I’d argue that Czechs were not communists but rather were an invaded nation.” The tumbling of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989 resulted in an independent Czech Republic and the Petrof piano began receiving the appreciation as a high-end piano it sorely deserved.

The wide tail expands the size of the soundboard for more tone.

Beautifully finished on the inside, too.