Late 1930s

  • Theodore E. Steinway and his brother William R. Steinway consider establishing a separate German Steinway company, to placate Hitler administration and acquire additional tax advantages.
  • Steinway Pianofabrik in Hamburg builds 1,000 – 1,5000 pianos every year, approximately 30% of Steinway & Sons’ total production.
  • Steinway & Sons is not the instrument of choice among German concert pianists: it occupies the third place, after Bechstein and Blüthner.
  • Steinway & Son hires industrial designer Walter Dorwin Teague to design Art Moderne Steinway grand pianos. These instruments, offered in bleached mahogany, bleached walnut, American walnut, mahogany, or the traditional ebony, do not sell very well.