Audi’s design team decided to throw itself a massive challenge ahead of the company’s centenary celebrations: designing and re-interpreting the century-old grand piano.
Of chief concern to designers at Audi is the prequisite of preserving the instrument’s sound while making wholesale changes to the grand piano’s time-honored look and feel.
This is where they turned to a venerable name in piano manufacturing, Bösendorfer, to realize their daring concept.
The most striking piece of Audi’s grand piano is the massive single-piece lid that extends all the way to the base. One of the piano’s legs, as well as the pedal lyre, are built of slim aluminum pieces to lend a touch of lightness to the piano.
Other notable features include a wingless-keyboard with concealed hinges, a discreetly integrated keyboard lid handle, and rounded edges beneath the keyboard to protect the pianist’s knees.
The grand piano’s interior is where the designers dumped all conventions, opting for a grey-and-white color scheme (typical Audi colors) for the traditionally bronze-colored cast frame and burgundy felt damper strips.
The Audi Design grand piano will make its world premiere at the Audi centenary on 16 July, and will also be available for order from Bösendorfer’s catalogue for a price of 100,000 euros.
