Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 27, 2026

Maene

Maene is a piano and harpsichord manufacturer based in Ruiselede, Belgium.

Last revised
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Maene is a piano and harpsichord manufacturer based in Ruiselede, Belgium.

The company was founded by Albert Maene-Doutreloigne and Zulma Doutreloigne in 1938. It is currently under the direction of their son Chris Maene.12

The company produces replicas of historical instruments34 and develops new instruments like the Barenboim piano, which contained no crossed strings.5678

From 2016 to 2022, Maene collaborated with architect Rafael Viñoly on a novel piano design with a curved ergonomic keyboard that could facilitate easier access to the lowest and highest notes simultaneously.910

A foot longer than a typical concert grand and like the Barenboim piano hosting no crossed strings, the Maene-Viñoly piano was completed in 2022 and premiered at the Verbier Festival played by Kirill Gerstein.11 In the months after Viñoly's death, the instrument was hosted at the Philadelphia Orchestra12 and featured at a Carnegie Hall concert in November of 2023 where it was played by Jonathan Biss.9

The company also provides keyboard instruments for the Queen Elisabeth Competition.13

References

References

  1. "About Pianos Maene". Maene. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  2. "Chris Maene". Chris Maene. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  3. Steinway Replica n°1 (1836 - 2006) at www.steinway.be
  4. Pianokonzert: Steinway No.1 Archived 2015-05-27 at the Wayback Machine at www.hambacher-schloss.de
  5. Daniel Barenboim reveals radical new piano design: 'I've fallen in love with it' in The Guardian, 26 May 2015
  6. Chris Maene & Daniel Barenboim launch new concert grand at Royal Festival Hall London Archived 2015-05-27 at the Wayback Machine at www.chrismaene.be
  7. Daniel Barenboim's bespoke piano is an absolute stunner - here's why, Classic FM, 14 November 2017.
  8. The 'radical' Barenboim piano unveiled, BBC audio/video at YouTube, 27 May 2015.
  9. Barron, James (28 November 2023). "A Piano With a Curved Keyboard Will Star at Carnegie Hall". The New York Times. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  10. "The Maene-Viñoly Concert Grand Piano". Chris Maene.
  11. Predota, Georg (31 July 2022). "Maene-Viñoly Concert Grand Piano "Ergonomic Keyboard"". Interlude. Interlude. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  12. "The Philadelphia Orchestra and Kimmel Center, Inc., to Display Maene-Viñoly Concert Grand Piano in its U.S. Debut at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts". The Philadelphia Orchestra. 1 June 2023. Archived from the original on 26 February 2024. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  13. Koningin Elisabethwestrijd 2015 Archived 2015-05-27 at the Wayback Machine at www.maene.be
External links