Rieger–Kloss date their establishment to 1873, by the Rieger brothers; they claim a common history with
Rieger Orgelbau up to the end of
World War II. Following the war, the Czechoslovak government
expelled the Ethnic German owners and workers of the original firm from
Czechoslovakia, and
nationalised the Rieger company. In 1948 they were merged with the workshop of
Josef Kloss, which had also been nationalised, to form a new company called 'Rieger–Kloss'. The workers and owners of the original firm founded a new firm in Austria as 'Rieger Orgelbau'. Rieger–Kloss met with success at the
World Exhibition Expo 58, which led to 46 commissions in republics of the
Soviet Union. The company became privately owned in 1994. Floods in July 1997 halted production for four weeks and caused great damage to property. They have built over 600 organs using pneumatic,
electro-pneumatic and
tracker action, and made a large number of restorations of historic instruments. They are now active in
America and
Asia. They build organs in the full range of sizes, from
portative organs and compact instruments to large
cathedral instruments, and employ about 70 people. They also make
guitars and there is a company of the same name which makes
pianos. In 1997 the production facilities of the company were severely damaged. 2011 entrepreneur Jakub Škrbel took over the company. The company went bankrupt in 2018. == The Rieger–Kloss School of Organ Building ==