The music room workshop harpsichords, spinets and square. The music room workshop harpsichords, spinets and square pianos. The name of an expert piano maker who, after long association with a famous old chicago industry, has been manufacturing fine pianos and playerpianos which bear his name a small industry of high ambitions. This piano has a compass of fff3, an english grand. William stodart historical records and family trees. Piano names s registry of international piano brand names. Piano manufacturers in new york between 1789 and 1911.
Compensating frame designed by james thom and william allen. The stodarts supplied the royal family with pianos, as the inscription on the nameboard states, and william s father taught music to the daughters of george iii. Brian stodart portable baby grand piano on the beach duration. This is the website of graham walker, dorset, uk who has had an interest in the early piano for over 30 years. Dec 18, 2015 the piano maker by kurt palka received. The title character is a french widow who appears to be. Dating from 1809 it is made by one of londons leading piano manufacturers, matthew and william stodart, and one of the few examples of this type of piano to. The piano was founded on earlier technological innovations in keyboard instruments. We are pleased to offer for sale this fine grand piano by william stodart. William stodart is first listed as a music store owner in richmond, va in 1818 where he sold music publications of new yorks william dubois. Robert stodart was one of the leading english piano makers in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
English grand piano, 181525, oak with mahogany and rosewood veneers and brass stringing, william. The piano buyer essentials series brings together in one place the very best and most important articles from our 30 years of publishing on the subject of buying and owning a piano. It does not dwell on details but gives beautiful descriptions to be savoured throughout. William howlett was one of the bestknown piano names in east anglia, where he claimed to be the only pianoforte maker, and also claimed to have been established at norwich in 1820. Grand piano made by william stodart maas collection. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. A chronological history of the piano piano time line. As such choosing the best piano makers is a subjective assessment but over the years we have listened to the views of pianists, tuners, players and sellers and compiled this combined wisdom into our list of the worlds best piano makers.
I thought that the author, who has written five novels before this one, would have been experienced enough to have realized the benefits of a simple structure focused on a primary theme. A rare five octave french square piano with a well preserved interior. A very interesting petite square piano, compass ffc 4. A patent for this was taken out by thom and allen and granted on january 15 1820, no. The piano maker takes us from ordinary situations to extraordinary developments. Forgotten very emotional on antique 1909 stodart piano by tyson eschenbach. This piano was sourced in italy in about 1981 and then became part the donors historic keyboard collection. William adam stodart was the son or possibly nephew of english piano maker robert stodart. Piano serial numbers identify the 1 age of your piano, the 2 piano s year of manufacture, as well as 3 the circumstances surrounding the production of your piano, including factory history, manufacturing processes, and company ownership and oversight. By continuing to use this site you consent to the use of cookies on your device as described in our cookie policy unless you have disabled them. Lorimer, sir robert stodart 18641929, architect, was born at 21 hill street, edinburgh, on 4 november 1864, the third and youngest son of james lorimer 18181890, regius professor of public law at edinburgh university, and his wife, hannah 18351916, daughter of james riddell stodart, writer to the signet. During this time they contracted with william and robert nunns to make some of their pianos.
A square piano by william and matthew stodart, london. A square piano by william and matthew stodart, london, 1807, the case later veneered with satinwood and with extensive later painted decoration, the lid exterior with a central oval panel depicting a classical scene of two maidens dancing with cupid, flanked by swans holding garlands of flowers, the front of the case with wreaths flanked by putti playing musical instruments, and centred by. William stodart square piano dated 1806 dumpster diving, musical instruments. Therefore, use this list as a starting point, and not as a final source. William stodart is first listed as a music store owner in richmond, va in 1818 where he sold music publications. Every systems page has a link to the applicable service manual or technical reprint, if one is available. The pace of the story is captivating and keeps you on edge. Inscribed william stodart maker to their majesties and royal familygolden square london. It is an amazing story that takes you well out of the ordinary. Recently restored in our workshops, a fine square piano by william stodart. Apr 15, 2016 the piano maker is an intriguing story told in a clean, straightforward way that is absolutely lovely and pageturning. He has undertaken the restoration of instruments for private collection and has also carried out research on early pianos and their makers over this period. William stodart, the founder of the company, was a relative of robert stodart, one. Prior to that time, the square grand piano was the preferred choice that dominated the american piano market.
An upright piano in the form of a bookcase, in which both the hammers and dampers are returned by. Grand piano, william stodart, london, about 18151820. His newest novel, the piano maker, recently arrived in bookstores. I thought that the author, who has written five novels before this one, would have been experienced enough to have realized the benefits of a simple structure. Compare what is described in the page against the player action in your piano. The case is veneered in mahogany, with brass inlay and rosewood crossbanding. This instrument restored in recent times, now requires further work. Aeolian affiliated albany american piano austria automatic organ baldwin baltimore beale piano belgium berlin bob pierce boston broadway bros built calif canada carl charles chicago chickering cincinnati circa city clavichord coin operated conn controlled davis disc england estey france frederick george germany grand piano haddorff hallet. He worked with john broadwood and americus backers on the design of what came to be known as the english grand action, and it was patented in stodart s name. If your are looking for piano history or genealogy help, then this is the place for you. After signing up to your membership i discovered my piano s actually worth a. This is another stodart grand piano but made about 31 years later than the example above. Stodart himself took out a patent in 1777 for a grand forte piano with an octave swell, and to produce various fine tones, together or separate, at the option of the performer. This firm became subsequently known as john, william, and matthew stodart, and on 29 january 1795 william took out a patent for his upright grand pianoforte of the.
The piano maker by kurt palka goodreads share book. Stodarts patented design in this piano was significant in the evolution of the fully metalframed piano of today from the woodenframed instrument. The jack wyatt museum has a more modernstyle mathusek spinet grand designed to resemble a square piano, and the serial number suggests that it was made as late as 1936. The piano was made by william stodart of london 18221824. Shadd, who, as far as anyone knows, is the nations only african american piano maker, has his highend, madetoorder. The nations only african american piano maker counts.
Contributor names hoogland, william, 1794 or 17951832, engraver. An upright piano in the form of a bookcase, in which both the hammers and dampers are returned by weight. William stodart grand piano for sale with a rosewood case and carved baluster. Throughout the piano manufacturing boom of the 19th century, the majority of piano manufacturing companies and factories in the state of. The piano maker is a strange book that never stops feeling like its written by someone making his best guess at what human behaviour and discourse look and sound like. The piano was designed by william stodart from a traditional design. Pipe organs have been used since antiquity, and as such, the development of pipe organs enabled instrument builders to learn about creating keyboard mechanisms for sounding pitches.
This invention was supposed to help keep the instrument in tune. This is referred to on pianos as makers to their majestys and royal family. Contributor names woodruff, william, active 18171833, engraver. Same address as stodart matthew and william, just below.
Most piano professionals have access to detailed information about these brands using a piano atlas to reference serial numbers, which are used to determine a piano s age using the year a piano was built. In sydney by the 1830s, not only was private music making a common pastime amongst those who could afford to purchase a piano, but also a ready supply of pianos was available. Piano makers and dealers in london during the 1820s and 1830s1. Adam stodart managed a new york piano manufacturing firm and dealership with william dubois from about 1822 until 1834. Piano name brands starting with letter s e book of piano. It is the story of one womans life journey from france in the time of the first world war to canada in the 1930s.
The piano maker by kurt palka wrecked my eyes reading. Sep 05, 2017 stodart grand piano played by mateusz lipinski. In many cases, companies used different player actions in different models andor at different times during the heyday of the player piano. John broadwood makes 5 12octave grand piano, london william stodart patents a large upright piano, a grand set on its head, london matthaus andreas stein and nanette streicher, children of johann andreas stein, move to vienna ibach established, schwelm 17945 haydn. After signing up to your membership i discovered my pianos actually worth a lot more than expected. View our library of professional piano restoration services, online piano museum and collection of rare antique instruments for sale.
Grand piano by matthew and william stodart, london, late 18th century, the case of mahogany with holly stringing, the fascia board and cheeks of satinwood with holly and ebony stringing and mahogany crossbanding, the five and a half octave keyboard, ff to c4. This was an easy and highly engaging book to sit out and enjoy the june sunshine this afternoon. Piano forte maker, and william allen, of castlestreet, in the same parish, piano forte maker. The ages and historical records of pianos sold in america part vi. William stodart square piano dated 1806 piano, antiques, vintage. Louisa was born in 1831, in saint ewe, cornwall, england, united kingdom. The piano maker is an intriguing story told in a clean, straightforward way that is absolutely lovely and pageturning. Stodart s father, robert, was a piano maker, who in 1777 patented the first british grand action, and it was from his maternal side that lorimer inherited his lifelong passion for music. This invention was supposed to help keep the instrument in tune by compensating for change in temperature. Any book worth reading once is worth reading again. The suspenseful, emotionally resonant, and utterly compelling story of what brings an enigmatic french woman to a small canadian town in the 1930s, a woman who has found depths of strength in dark times and comes to discover sanctuary at last. The jaymar specialty company is the other major manufacturer of toy pianos. It shows the tubular compensation frame invented by james thom and william allen, workman of william stodart.
I discovered this author as part of the canadian summer reading challenge by the county of brant library. The stodart piano company of new york has its roots going back as far as 1819 when adam stodart immigrated to america. To withstand tension there is a cagelike structure of metal tubes above the strings. This portrait is printed upon fine china paper and impressed unto a large sheet of paper and with wide, full margins as published in london by f. Boalch, makers of the harpsichord and clavichord 14401840. This piano is serial number 243 and has a compass of fff4, an english double action, felt. Other pianoforte manufacturers such as broadwoods soon began to produce. If product placement is any measure, then somethings going right.
On this site are the current pianos in production, the history of broadwoods, serial numbers and a letter from beethoven. Even if the name on your piano is a real maker, only a minority of piano makers have ever published dates of their serial numbers, and many of these are incorrect or misleading, so on this page, i have only included dates for which i have some evidence. Born and raised in austria, he now lives in port hope. Stodart s father, robert, was a piano maker, who in 1777 patented the. Of course, you have to be aware that there is no absolute winner in this category. He first showed enthusiasm for architecture, and for the company of craftsmen, when his father leased and repaired the castle of kellie, fife, as a. Edward william stodart s, lolita is an original 19th century stipple engraving published in 1892.
Homais, which for me was a slow start, however as the story flashes back in time i became immersed in her life as a portrait of a strong woman emerged. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the piano maker. William stodart was born in 1866, at birth place, to william aitchison stodart and louisa ann stodart born warne. The casework is in mahogany with a black line inlay, with two drawers and standing on six turned legs. They had been piano makers in the old country, but america was particularly good to this immigrant family. Grand piano by matthew and william stodart, london, 1795. Travelling to the academy how to book sign up to our mailing list attending events hiring student performers. Top 10 best piano makers in the world fire inside music. The explanation for this is quite simple art cannot be measured in a scientific way. The piano maker refers to the novels female protagonist, helene giroux, who mysteriously appears in a small french village in the easterly canadian province of nova scotia. The bulk of these patents come from e brinsmeads book, when time permits i will add more patents and bring it up to modern times. I spent over 3 hours last night looking for some basic information about how much i should sell my small upright piano for. Mar 10, 2015 the best piano makers build timeless instruments that produce unrivalled sound, be that power, tone or range. William was born on july 24 1833, in peebles, scotland, united kingdom.
Dec 11, 20 brian stodart portable baby grand piano on the beach duration. Oct 03, 2019 in this article, we will list the top 10 best piano makers in the world. I had never heard of this author and am sure glad that he was square a on the bingo card. We use cookies to give you the best possible experience on our website. Summary print shows a woman playing an upright piano or piano forte manufactured by g. Jan 08, 2016 the piano maker is a strange book that never stops feeling like its written by someone making his best guess at what human behaviour and discourse look and sound like. Lorimer, sir robert stodart 18641929, architect oxford. Forgotten very emotional on antique 1909 stodart piano by tyson eschenbach duration.
Grand piano by matthew and william stodart, london, late 18th century, the case of mahogany with holly stringing, the fascia board and cheeks of satinwood with holly and ebony stringing and mahogany crossbanding, the five and a half octave keyboard, ff to c4, with ivory naturals faced with boxwood mouldings. William stodart and son, in consequence of the various piracies of their surname, find it necessary to acquaint the public, that, neither have they note, nor had they ever, the moat remote connexion with any other pianoforte maker, and that all instruments of their manufacture bear the full inscription, william stodart and son, no. It wasnt till i stumbled across your piano calculator website that i finally got some answers. Search the worlds most comprehensive index of fulltext books. Please note that this is a working list and not all data is complete. The stodarts supplied the royal family with pianos, as the inscription on the nameboard states, and williams father taught music to the daughters of george iii.