The piano supplanted the harpsichord because the action of its hammers on the strings could create sounds both piano e fortesoft and loudhence the name pianoforte, eventually shortened to piano. They started in the 1700s and have continuously held the seal by appointment to the british monarchy up to the present day. Broadwood by appointment a history by david wainwright. Original broadwood 1798 square piano for sale sold on 28th. The broadwood piano on 22 november 1816, a fine new grand pianoforte over eight feet in length and by the london firm of john broadwood and sons, the preeminent european pianomakers of the day was delivered to peterhouse as the private purchase of one of the fellows, professor william smyth m. Broadwood piano history research one of the primary uses of the records is for researching the ownership, history and original descriptions of the pianos made by john broadwood and sons. The broadwood piano on 22 november 1816, a fine new grand pianoforte over eight feet in length and by the london firm of john broadwood and sons, the preeminent european pianomakers of the day was delivered to peterhouse as the private purchase of one of. Over the last twenty years it has become more fashionable to leave original surfaces of antiques intact rather than strip and replace finishes, as expert after expert in such public forums as antiques road show drill into the viewing audience the financial importance of.
He wears what would appear to be far smarter clothes than the other men at work in the picture. The book is an excellent overview of the history of harpsichord and pianoforte making by the broadwood company in britain. On this site are the current pianos in production, the history of broadwoods, serial. Your pianos age is one of the most significant factors in determining your pianos value. A fan since childhood of the contemporary broadwood upright, goold formed a deep bond. No piano dated earlier than 1780 has been found that presents as authentic. See todays john broadwood pianos for sale, best offer and auction. It is now in marlow, buckinghamshire, but the broadwood porters book tells us that it was despatched on friday 31st july in that year to james summers, esq. Founded in 1728, here is a short history of the firm and its place in the evolution of the piano. The english piano maker john broadwood 17321812 was the first to develop the present heavier, more sonorous instrument. Australharmony broadwood pianos in early colonial australia. Over 12,000 piano names are included, some dating back to the early eighteen hundreds.
Surrey county council broadwood piano history research. When it comes to piano history, few stories can top the research i was doing about the victorian royal piano maker, isaac henry robert mott, whose instruments can be. John broadwood pianos are an inventive british firm with extreme variation in quality and style of upright and grand pianos from very old ones that arent really worth reconditioning if you want an allround piano, to very good grands from about 1893 onwards, and uprights from about 1900, mixed with indifferent ones. Burketshudi, whose name was originally spelt tschudi, was born on the thof march 1680 at schwanden blarus, switzerland. Its a fantastic piano i play professionally and tried a few pianos before i settled on this one because of its condition and tone. John broadwood pianos are an inventive british firm with extreme variation in quality and style of upright and grand pianos from very old ones that arent really worth reconditioning if you want an allround piano, to very good grands from about 1893 onwards, and uprights from. The firms first instruments were not pianos, however. John broadwood and the evolution of the piano practising. Numbers for most makers will go through a period when they are in four figures, and may resemble a year, for example, in 1791, broadwood square pianos had serial numbers in the 1700s and 1800s. In 1902, they experimented with printing a rag book on calico, which was subsequently sold to the edwardians who were enchanted by it. By 1780 broadwood was making square pianos after an original design. Broadwood decided to present the composer with his latest grand piano. Broadwood by appointment, a history, by wainwright david.
Broadwood piano history research surrey county council. Bach youtube amazing street pianist stuns passersby in shopping centre duration. The piano book is the bible of the piano marketplace. In mrs findlays broadwood square piano, author michael hannon traces the extraordinary history of his 1804 instrument, originally bought by mrs dorothy findlay, widow of a wealthy glasgow tobacco merchant in 1977 it reappeared at an irish auction where the authors mother bought it. In 17891790, erard numbers also resembled years, and around that time, southwells numbers, displayed on the front of the piano, were slightly. A book was published about the broadwood archives in 2006, and they had an exhibit along with our own pianohistory.
You can buy this book the broadwood barless piano by alastair laurence. The address broadwoods were asked to deliver the piano to when it was first despatched, and the method of delivery. The year 1978 marked the 250th anniversary of the firm which has the longest history of piano making in the world. The full name of the piano s purchaser and the selling price. Practising the piano john broadwood and the evolution of. Dec 10, 2015 in mrs findlays broadwood square piano, author michael hannon traces the extraordinary history of his 1804 instrument, originally bought by mrs dorothy findlay, widow of a wealthy glasgow tobacco merchant.
Aug 17, 2017 thomas broadwood and ludwig van beethoven. This handsome piano, number 53127, was made in 1841. Fires figure heavily in piano history, and when birdingbury hall burned down in 1859, one of the treasured possessions lined up on the lawn was a piano. Many books written about the piano give differentdates for the. Broadwood by appointment a history by david wainwright abebooks.
Amazingly, broadwood still has most of its archive records of sales from the 1770s onwards. The beethoven broadwood celebrates two anniversaries world. Broadwood archive, porters book, monday 1 april 1833 ref. In 1902, they experimented with printing a rag book on calico, which was subsequently sold to. Researchers are welcome to visit surrey history centre to find out details about pianos for themselves, or we can carry out research on their behalf, using our. Broadwood was born 6 october 1732 and christened 15 oct 1732 at st helens, cockburnspath in berwickshire, and grew up in oldhamstocks, east lothian. Many pianos like this were exported to france after the revolution, as well as to america where possession of a fashionable broadwood signified ones elevated status and good.
Piano tuning was a recognised job in the piano factories by the beginning of the 19th century, and two of broadwood s journeymen fought a duel on primrose hill in 1809 over the tuning of a piano with no result. Reading the historical record from an early broadwood grand piano. The first known broadwood grand piano dates from 1781. They have a long history that has been central to the development of the modern day piano as we know it, starting from its beginnings in the harpsichord trade. The evolution of the broadwood grand piano, 17851998. A brief history john broadwood made his first square piano between 1778 and 1780, with two extant 1780 pianos now in canada and switzerland. Weve over 200 pages and videos of information which we hope youll find helpful. New book on an 1804 broadwood square piano early piano. John broadwood was the major author of this progress, and his shop, aided by. The piano was not a great success at the time, and broadwood only produced 40 units. Despite lack of sales, the manxman is still an important element in the history of the upright piano.
The exact date when your piano was finished in broadwood s london workshops. Discover your pianos age and country of origin with our 5 star accuracy guide to ensure the quality and. John broadwood, the harpsichord and the piano jstor. He inherited his father james broadwood s b1697 oldhamstocks profession, that of a wright or carpenterjoiner, and as a young man walked from oldhamstocks to london, a distance of almost 400 miles 640 km, where he worked for the. The story of the first pianos and how they caused a.
John broadwood pianos historical and archive services. The piano was built in 1796 in london during a period of rapid advancement in the art and science of piano making. Books by michael cole, river thames, john broadwood, biography, the. If you need any of our services, please check the links below.
He inherited his father james broadwoods b1697 oldhamstocks profession, that of a wright or carpenterjoiner, and as a young man walked from oldhamstocks to london, a distance of almost 400 miles 640 km, where he worked for the. The first years of production saw a ramping up of numbers from six per year in 1780 to 100yr by 1784 according to michael cole2. John broadwood, a scottish joiner and cabinetmaker, came to london in 1761 and began to work for the swiss harpsichord manufacturer burkat shudi. The beethoven broadwood celebrates two anniversaries. Sister wendys american collection selected works grand piano. John broadwoods first piano 1773 was a square instrument modeled after those of johann zumpe, a germanborn pianoforte maker who worked for a time with shudi and who built the first square pianos. See more ideas about piano, piano history and old pianos. Broadwood pianos information roberts pianos oxford. Apr 19, 2014 a short history of the broadwood piano company. A plate in wainwrights book on the broadwood company shows a tuner at work in broadwoods factory in 1842. This lavishly illustrated book comes with a specially commissioned cd, including the only publicly. Around the turn of the twentieth century there appeared the small book a description and history of the pianoforte by alfred j. The number books act as an index to the porters books. Based to its serial number, the instrument was made in 1823.
In 1817 leading piano maker thomas broadwood, fourth son of john broadwood, set off on an extended tour of switzerland, austria and germany. The square piano, with strings parallel to the keys, was the most popular domestic piano until the early19thcentury perfection, in philadelphia, of the upright piano. History of piano tuning by gill green ma uk piano page. A fascinating celebration of the piano, including tales of its masters from mozart and beethoven to oscar peterson and jerry lee lewis, told with the expertise of composer and author of temperament, stuart isacoff. Those of us who live in the uk will still come across ancient and delapidated broadwoods in churches and homes. Info room at an archives day at finchcocks, kent in 2006. Each piano is manufactured with a unique serial number that is recorded for future reference of not only when it was made but also where. Goolds piano was made by broadwood, an english pianomaker so confident that it sent one of its grand pianos as a gift to beethoven.
Insurance companies made special maps to show places with a high risk of fire, and piano factories were one of the worst, because of the huge quantities of timber and other inflammable. Grand piano john broadwood, a scottish cabinetmaker, took over burkat shudis harpsichord company in 1771, and the business went on to become the worlds largest piano manufacturer. In vienna he met beethoven, then 47, who was by then quite unwell and starting to become deaf. Reading the historical record from an early broadwood. The broadwood is a grand fortepiano contained in an oak jointed framed case with dark stringing on the exterior surfaces. List of books and articles about piano history online. This guide provides references to serial numbers, dates of manufacture, factory locations, a brief history of many manufacturers and other pertinent information. Edwards sydney marked e 30 and delivd to farlows to be tates that the piano was to be shipped. In 1977 it reappeared at an irish auction where the authors mother bought it. Broadwood white pianos information roberts pianos oxford. Broadwood by ap pointme nt, a history, by wainwright david.