IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ORGANS AND OTHER SIMILAR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edouard Alexandre, of Paris (Empire of France), and
of 45, Essex Street, Strand, London, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ORGANS AND OTHER SIMILAR MUSICAL
INSTRUMENTS."
"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Edouard 'Alexandre at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 30th
May 1857.
I, EDOUARD ALEXANDRE, of Paris, (Empire of France), and of 45, Essex
Street, Strand, London, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ORGANS AND OTHER SIMILAR MUSICAL
INSTRUMENTS," to be as follows:-
My improvements may be applied as well to the smallest musical instru-.
ments played on the knees, as to those of a larger size, on which the most
complete pieces and of the greatest length may be executed.
them a keyboard of any extent desired.
I can adapt to
With the small instruments the bellows are worked by one hand, whilst the
other hand is acting on the keys for producing the music.
larger size the bellows are worked as usual by means of pedals.
With those of a
A part of my Invention consists in applying to the portable organs cases or
bellows, governed either by pedals, or by means of straps actuated by the
knees. The cases or bellows serve to produce distant effects, and have the
advantage of giving to the sounds a greater duration as the performer desires,
Price Sd.1

page_text: and also to re-enforce the said sounds according to the expression which the
music requires.
Another part of my Invention consists in the employment of a valve for
every vibrating reed; consequently every fret commands as many valves as
there are rows of pipes in the instrument, but those valves only allow the
pipes to speak when the registers corresponding to the pipes are open. This
combination may be adapted to the several kinds or organs, principally to
those of which the several horizontal plans are hinged and kept closed by
means of hooks, so as to allow visiting the several parts without expense or
loss of time.
In order to obtain instruments in a perfect state of preservation, I use
metallic cases instead of the wooden ones usually employed, which are subject
to deterioration by reason of the atmospheric changes. The cases, which I
make of sheet iron or other metals, obviate those deteriorations; they may be
made of any size or shape whatsoever, and be made very simple or richly
ornamented.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Edouard Alexandre in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
30th November 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EDOUARD
ALEXANDRE, of Paris, Empire of France, and of 45, Essex Street, Strand,
London, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirtieth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twenty-first year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Edouard Alexandre, of Paris, Her special licence that I, the said Edouard
Alexandre, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as 1,
the said Edouard Alexandre, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ORGANS AND OTHER SIMILAR MUSICAL
INSTRUMENTS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Edouard
Alexandre, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under

page_text: my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal
Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the
date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Edouard Alexandre, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
My Invention refers to an improved construction of portable organs, which
consists in giving the tune, or imparting the blast, by means of either treadles
or a crank, still allowing the setting of a keyboard of the desired size and the
desired stops. My improvements may also be applied both to instruments,
upon which music is performed in the most complete manner and on the
highest pitch, and to smaller portable instruments, which are held upon one's
lap or upon a table.
One part of my Invention consists in the application to the said portable
organs of certain valves worked by treadles or "knee-pieces," so called from
their being worked by the knee, and by means of transmission bands suitably
disposed.
Fig. 1, in the annexed Drawing, is a vertical and transverse section showing
an arrangement which admits of such a combination. It is therein shown
that the said instrument is on the percussion principle, and admits of a series
of hammers a for the different notes. Every stop is provided as usual with
its valve b, opened or moved by means of registers operated upon by knobs c,
motion being imparted by the usual treadles c¹. In order to allow an easy
examination of the various parts in the instrument, the various plans or stories
are hinged, as shewn at d, and the joints are secured by hooks, which allows
an instantaneous view of all the various parts, and the putting of those
various parts together again without any trouble or expense. My bladed or
valve boxes are represented at e, Fig. 1, and are generally shut up, but they
readily yield and are opened on turning on their centre axis, when they are
acted upon by the levers shown in dotted lines; these levers are disposed, so that
upon being worked by one or two pieces f, which may be named treadles or
knee pieces, as they are operated by the knee, the moving of either of said
pieces will cause the valves e to open more or less rapidly according to the
rapidity of the imparted motion. Only one of these knee pieces f is repre-
sented in the Dmwing, but it will be easily understood that one may serve for
the high notes and another for the low ones, or that a single one may be

page_text: employed in an instrument for all or part of the stops.
The bladed valves
are chiefly calculated to produce musical effects at a distance, and to impart
to the sounds more or less duration according to the operator's desire, still
allowing at will the swelling of the said sounds.
Another part of my Invention consists in the use of a valve for each
vibrative reed, and consequently each key when touched will act upon as
many valves as there are stops in the instrument; but these stops will not
allow any sound to be produced unless the registers corresponding to the stops
are opened. Fig. 2 of the annexed Drawing is a vertical section, showing
the said arrangements, whereby it appears that the reeds g, which constitute
the stops, are in a chamber h full of air, through which the blast gets into the
instrument by lifting the valve i; the blast is blown by any suitable blowing
apparatus. When any of the stops is to sound I open the corresponding
register, which is shown in dotted lines, for the third stop, where the register
is supposed to be open, the other stops being completely mute so long as their
corresponding registers are shut up. In order to open the registers, the knob k
is drawn, the shank of which is jointed to a lever ¹ vibrating on a pivot, and
the opposite end of which rests upon a cross piece mounted on an horizontal
cylinder, which bears opposite to a corresponding register another cross
piece resting upon the register which is to be acted upon. The blades g are
each of them covered by a valve m, bound squarely to the lever o by a rod n.
The valves of a same note, corresponding to the different stops, are all con-
nected to a same key, but these notes will give no sound unless the stops are
opened; thus in the instance shown at Fig. 2, although the four valves m are
open, the one corresponding to the stop supposed to be open will sound alone,
but were two, three, or even the four stops open, then the four valves would
sound. The valves may be kept shut up, either as shown in the Drawing by
a spring p, or by any other suitable arrangement. The valve q of the reser-
voir q', intended to produce expression, is opened at will by a knob as the
registers are. Instead of the arrangement, which consists in effecting the
blowing by means of treadles, the same motion may be imparted by one hand
whilst the other hand is acting upon the keyboard.
Figs. 3 & 4, show two vertical sections of this new combination, which I
name organine. The keyboard of this instrument is similar to that of small
organs; the vibrative reeds are set upon a small board r.
The blowing appa-
ratus sis double, and worked by holding its knob or handle with the left
hand whilst the right one plays music upon the keys t of the keyboard; thus
being double it will send in a continuous blast, and by letting the register u
slide, and using the air from the reservoir v, expression may be obtained. As

page_text: this instrument when played upon may be held either on one's lap or upon the
table, I have contrived two small boards v¹, which are hinged beneath it,
being held open or shut by means of a swivel z, or any other like contrivance.
When held upon one's lap, the two small boards v¹ must be left open, and the
operator's knees thrust between. The blowing apparatus is operated upon by
the left hand, and after opening upon one or more stops, the keys on the key-
board are acted upon with the right hand, and thus sound is obtained. On
travelling, and in case the instruments are to stay in damp places, where the
boxes might be damaged, I substitute for wooden boxes sheet iron or other
metal boxes, so that the accidents caused by atmospheric changes may be
obviated. Such boxes may, of course, be of any form and of any size, and
consequently hold the largest as well as the smallest musical instruments
such as organs, pianofortes, organines, accordeons, and other instruments of
the same description. These boxes may be made very plain, or richly carved,
according to all requirements.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in
which the same is or may be carried into effect, I wish it to be distinctly
understood that what I claim as my Invention, and as being already secured
by the herein-before recited Letters Patent is,-
First, my improved construction of portable organs, of any size, where the
air is blown in by means of an apparatus operated upon either by the feet or
the hand, having a keyboard of any desired length and any number of stops.
Secondly, the application of the above described valve boxes to the said
portable organs.
Thirdly, the use of valves for each vibrative reed, and each key operating
upon as many valves as there are stops in the instrument without any change
in the fingering, which is always very easy whatever may be the number of
stops.
Fouthly, the use, for portable organs of any size and form whatever, of
sheet iron, copper, or other suitable metal boxes, as has been described.
In witness whereof, I, Edouard Alexandre, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this 30th day of November, One thousand eight hundred and
fifty-seven.
ED. ALEXANDRE. (L.s.)