Piano bench owned and used by Thelonious Monk
date: label: Date
content: 1962
name: label: Manufactured by
content: Baldwin Piano Company, American, founded 1862
label: Used by
content: Thelonious Monk, American, 1917 - 1982
notes: label: Caption
content: Although he had long had the admiration of his fellow musicians and dedicated fans, Thelonious Monk’s move to Columbia Records in 1962 signaled his acceptance by mainstream jazz audiences. This piano and bench figured in many of Monk’s successes during the middle and late phases of his career. In late 1962, he purchased the instrument from Baldwin’s New York showroom using the money from his first Columbia advance payment. Monk’s Baldwin was the first and only piano he ever owned, after spending his earlier career practicing and composing on rented instruments or house pianos in nightclubs. Monk likely used this instrument to compose many of his later compositions, including well-known pieces like "Green Chimneys," "Stuffy Turkey," and "Ugly Beauty."
label: Description
content: A piano bench owned and used by Thelonious Monk. The bench is brown with a cushioned, white vinyl seat. The seat has a large tear in the middle and the underlying foam is visible. The bench is stained brown and has ogee curved edges where the cushion meets the bench. The legs of the bench are unadorned.
place: label: Place made
content: Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Composers (Musicians)
label: Topic
content: Instrumentalists (Musicians)
label: Topic
content: Jazz (Music)
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Musical Instruments
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of T.S. and Gale Monk in memory of Thelonious Monk
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2018.89.2
objectType: label: Type
content: benches
label: Type
content: grand pianos
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No Known Copyright Restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: wood, metal, foam, vinyl
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D: 19 5/16 × 33 7/16 × 15 9/16 in. (49 × 85 × 39.5 cm)