Broadwood & Son Upright Piano
date: label: date made
content: 1814 - 1816
name: label: maker
content: John Broadwood & Son
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: This upright piano was made by John Broadwood & Sons in London, England around 1815. It is an upright grand in a rectangular case. The case stands on legs, and the entire instrument is over 8 feet tall. This piano is serial number 658 and has a compass of CC-c4, Broadwood upright action, leather hammers, triple-strings, 2 pedals on a lyre: keyboard shift, dampers (split pedal: Bass and treble dampers), wood frame with five iron bar braces, rosewood case on legs, and a silk front panel.
label: Description (Brief)
content: <p>
label: Description (Brief)
content: John Broadwood (1732-1812) founded in 1782 what became the oldest and longest-lived firm of English piano makers. Originally a cabinetmaker, he came to London from his native Scotland and in 1761 went to work for harpsichord maker Burkat Shudi, becoming a partner in the firm in 1770, and the firm's director in 1782. </p>
label: Description (Brief)
content: The Broadwood & Shudi harpsichord company had begun manufacturing small square pianos sometime after Broadwood became prominent in the firm, and in 1795 (after 64 years), the company made its last harpsichord, and changed its name to John Broadwood & Son. During its peak years, from roughly the 1820's - 1850's, the Broadwood became the exemplary "English piano," played by all the famous musicians of the time. The company pioneered in greatly increasing the quantity of pianos which could be produced by hand craftsmen, without factory machines, while at the same time introducing many technical improvements to the power and dynamic flexibility of the instrument. Yet ironically by the latter part of the 19th century a tendency to stick with "traditional" designs and technologies, knocked the firm out of its prominent position among piano manufacturers. Broadwood pianos are no longer made by the original firm, but are manufactured by The British Manufacturing Company Ltd., in England, which also makes Knight, Bentley and Welmar.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
label: Location
content: Currently not on view (fabric fragment; piano; top)
label: Location
content: Currently not on view (base)
place: label: Place Made
content: United Kingdom: England, London
setName: label: See more items in
content: Culture and the Arts: Musical Instruments
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content: Music & Musical Instruments
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content: Pianos
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Hugo Worch
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: MI.303529
label: catalog number
content: 303529
label: accession number
content: 62559
label: serial number
content: 658
objectType: label: Object Name
content: piano
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: rosewood; silk (case material)
label: Physical Description
content: wood; iron (frame material)
label: Physical Description
content: leather (hammers material)
label: Physical Description
content: unknown (strings material)
label: Physical Description
content: brass (inlay material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 260 cm x 113.3 cm x 55.6 cm; 102 3/8 in x 44 5/8 in x 21 7/8 in
label: Measurements
content: overall: 80 in x 46 in x 22 in; 203.2 cm x 116.84 cm x 55.88 cm