IMPROVEMENTS IN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
Year: 1863

page_text: Louis Etienne Dorgal, Jules Francois Guesne, and Francois Core, all of
Paris in the Empire of France.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Clark at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 30th
September 1863.
I, WILLIAM CLARK, of 53, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex,
Engineer and Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to the combination of a piano and an organ or
harmonium in one and the same case or instrument, and in such manner that
both instruments can be played by the same set of keys at the same time, or
either instrument independently of the other. This combination is particularly
applicable to upright pianos requiring no alteration of form or in the case.
In such pianos the parts of the wind instrument are disposed in the lower part
of the case in front of the line of the strings of the piano and furnished with
bellows and parts comprised in such musical wind instruments, the bellows
being actuated by a treadle or treadles as usual. The keys of the instrument.
have communication with the hammers of the pianos much as usual, while
[Price Sd.]

page_text: at same time forks extending from the back ends of the keys take on to
upright rods underneath nuts or projections placed thereon, and by which the
rods are lifted when the keys are depressed, these rods communicate with
and lift the valves of the wind instrument, which are operated on simul-
taneously with the hammers of the piano. If it is desired to play on the
piano only a thumb rod is pressed back which is in connection with all the
upright rods communicating with the valves, as before mentioned, throwing
them out of their vertical position and withdrawing them from the forks on
the keys, which therefore discontinue to act on them. On the contrary, if it
is desired to play the wind instrument only, the valves are put in connection
with the keys by pulling out the thumb rod and pushing back a similar thumb
rod in communication with the hammers of the piano, which are all lifted so
as to touch or nearly touch the strings, and in such positions that they will not
be acted on by the keys and other parts of the action. Leaving the keys both
in communication with the hammers of the piano and the valves of the wind
instrument of course results in the action of the performer on the one set of
keys producing music from both instruments simultaneously. Similar com-
binations may also be produced in pianos of other forms, but which it is
unnecessary to further describe.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Clark in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 30th
March 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME. I, WILLIAM
CLARK, of 53, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer and
Patent Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirtieth day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-seventh year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said William Clark, Her special licence that I, the said William Clark,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William
Clark, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN MUSICAL INSTRU

page_text: MENTS, a communication to me from abroad by Louis Etienne Dorgal, Jules
Francois Guesne, and Francois Core, all of Paris, in the Empire of France,
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Clark, my
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under 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 per-
formed, 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 William Clark, do hereby declare the
nature of the 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, reference being had to the two Sheets of Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
This Invention relates to the combination of a piano and an organ or
harmonium in one and the same case or instrument, and in such manner that
both instruments can be played by the same set of keys at the same time, or
either instrument independently of the other. This combination is particularly
applicable to upright pianos, requiring no alteration of form or in the case.
In such pianos the parts of the wind instrument are disposed in the lower
part of the case in front of the line of the strings of the piano and furnished
with bellows and parts comprised in such musical wind instruments, the
bellows being actuated by a treadle or treadles as usual. The keys of the
instrument have communication with the hammers of the piano much as usual,
while at same time forks extending from the back ends of the keys take into
upright rods underneath nuts or projections placed thereon, and by which the
rods are lifted when the keys are depressed; these rods communicate with
and lift the valves of the wind instrument, which are operated on simul-
taneously with the hammers of the piano. If it is desired to play on the
piano only a thumb rod is pressed back communicating with all the upright
rods in connection with the valves before-mentioned, throwing them out of the
vertical position and withdrawing them from the forks on the keys, which
therefore discontinue to act on them. On the contrary if it is desired to
play the wind instrument only the valves are put in communication with the
keys by pulling out the thumb rod and pushing back a similar thumb rod
which is in communication with the hammers of the piano, which are all
lifted so as to touch or nearly touch the strings, and in such position that they
will not be acted on by the keys and other parts of the action. Leaving the
keys both in communication with the hammers of the piano and the valves of

page_text: the wind instrument of course results in the action of the performer on the
one set of keys producing music from both instruments simultaneously. Similar
combinations may also be produced in pianos of other forms, but which it is
unnecessary to further describe.
This Invention thus consists in the combination of a piano and organ in one
instrument, and also in the arrangement of the various parts of the organ, the
bellows and mechanism connected therewith being in the lower part of the
case between the plane of the strings and the panels. The Invention further
consists in placing the whole in connection with the piano so as to form one
and the same instrument and using but one key board as usual. The
sounding tubes and compartments are arranged with a view to obtain sounds
of greater power and purity. The advantages presented by this Invention may
be summed up as follows:-First, possibility of adapting an organ to all
existing pianos without changing their form or dimensions, or even modifying
the mechanism; secondly, economy in manufacture, inasmuch as the organ or
simplified in its arrangement, and the two instruments are contained in one
case; thirdly, the facility with which the organ or piano may be played on,
either separately or together.
This Invention is illustrated in the accompanying Drawings, Fig. 1, Sheet 1,
of which is a sectional elevation of the instrument on line A, B, Fig. 2, the
whole of the organ being shown; Fig. 2 is a partial section of the instrument
on line C, D, Fig. 1, showing the organ and piano united in a single case;
Fig. 3 shows the mechanisin for placing the notes of the organ in connection
with the keys of the piano; Fig. 4 shows mechanism for preventing the
hammers from acting, as also to completely neutralize them, according as they
are acted on by the pedal or register. Fig. 5, mechanism for increasing or
diminishing the power of tone of the organ, at same time preventing the wind
from acting on the strings of the piano; Fig. 6, mechanism for opening and
closing the valve of the air reservoir according as to whether it is to be made
use of or not; Fig. 7 shows a frame divided into two parts and carrying the
couplings for uniting at will either the basses or trebles of the organ and
piano; Fig. 8 shows a front view of the pedals, which are arranged so as to
be all in the same plane when not in use; Fig. 9, Sheet 2, shows a front view
of the instrument with part of the case removed in order to show the arrange-
ment of the bellows with their levers and pedals, as also the arrangement of
the organ stops; Fig. 10 is a transverse section of same on line A, B, Fig. 9;
Fig. 11 shows a back view of a series of sound compartments, separated one
from the other, which are made of a single piece of thin wood, producing
sounds of great power and purity; Fig. 12 shows a longitudinal section of one

page_text: of these cases; Fig. 13 shows a front view of same case with its vibrating
plate or reed stop; Fig. 14 is a sectional view of the case showing its interior
form; Fig. 15 shows a piece of thin wood to form a case such as seen at
Figs. 11, 12, 13, and 14; this may be effected by the aid of a mandril or core,
on which the wood, previously damped and heated by steam or otherwise, is
lapped round and is afterwards glued in the ordinary manner; Fig. 16 shows
a horizontal section of a semi-cylindrical case made, as above described, of
thin wood and arranged for either a fixed or movable reed, according to
whether the instrument be an harmonium or organ; Fig. 17 is a side elevation
of Fig. 16; Fig. 18 shows a plan of a tube or pipe to which may be applied
either a fixed or movable reed, as for Figs. 16 and 17; Fig. 19 is an end
view of tube, Fig. 18, formed of a single piece and possessing great sonorous-
ness, which renders it especially applicable to church organs. The same
letters of reference in both Sheets indicate the same or analogous parts seen
in different positions.
a, organ case containing two and-a-half sets of harmonium reeds; b, bellows,
arranged in such manner that their movement requires no expenditure of
power other than that necessary to work them; c, air chambers furnished with
valves for distributing compressed air into the several compartments of the
organ; d, air reservoir for regulating the action of the bellows on the stops of
the organ; e, arrangement of pedal levers for working the bellows and termed
"bellows mechanism"; f, registers for connecting the organ to the piano;
g, organ solo registers for stopping the action of the piano hammers when it
is wished to hear the organ only with the bass or treble of the piano separately.
or lastly, with both parts together; h, registers for acting on the valves of the
various organ stops, such as flute, hautboy, English horn, clarionet, bass, and
others; i, register forte for regulating the power of sound of the organ;
i. expression register for preventing the admission of wind into the reservoir
in order that the bellows shall act directly on the organ stops with greater or
less energy at the will of the performer; k, register mute for moderating the
action of the wind on certain bass notes of the organ, such as the English
horn; 1, upright admission wires for acting on the valves of the reservoir and
air chamber; m, emission wires arranged in such manner that each one com-
municates with a lever of one of the organ valves and with the corresponding
key on the finger barrel; n, piano mechanism, properly so called; o, fixed bar
extending throughout the length of mechanism n; p, rest bars, two in number,
superposed on bar o, which are moved either by the registers or piano pedals,
according as it is desired to prevent the action of the hammers or simply
moderate their effect; q, line or plane of the strings of piano; r, sound cases

page_text: for the several organ stops: r', sound board of thin wood running throughout
the extent of the organ stops; s, lever valves communicating with each of
cases r; t, keys furnished at their back end with a fork into which the con-
necting rod or wires m engage; u, system of lever pedals for acting direct
on the piano mechanism or on the "celeste" in order to moderate the action
of the hammers; v, pedals of the bellows on a line with those of the piano;
x, channel for placing the bellows in communication with the, air chamber;
y plates serving the double purpose of regulating the power of sound of the
organ both in the bass and treble, and also of preventing the wind acting on
the strings of the piano; z, valve for retaining, admitting, and discharging
air.
Having described the nature of this Invention, and the manner of per-
forming the same, I declare that what I claim, as the Invention to be protected
by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent, is,
First, the arrangement and combination of an harmonium or ordinary
organ and piano, in the manner and for the purpose herein-before described,
and as represented in the accompanying Drawings.
Secondly, I claim the peculiar arrangement of the sound cases or tubes,
whether applied to those organs with moyable reeds or tongues, termed
harmoniums, or to ordinary organs with fixed reeds or pipes.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Clark, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.
Witness,
JAMES DAISH
53, Chancery Lane,
London.
W. CLARK. (L.S.)