Technicon / Piano Gymnasium
date: label: date made
content: ca 1885
name: label: maker
content: Brotherhood, James
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: <p>This technicon or piano gymnasium was made by James Brotherhood, in New York, New York, about 1885. It is an apparatus on a wood base with a series of exercises designed to develop strength and pliability in various muscles and ligaments of the forearm, fingers, muscles, and wrist, especially those used in playing the piano and other musical instruments. The technicon features U. S. Patent #327918 dated October 6, 1885, by James Brotherhood, for an exercising device for musicians.</p>
label: Description (Brief)
content: <p>John Howard Foote (1833-1896) was a musical instrument dealer with shops in New York City and Chicago. The technicon was listed in an 1885 catalog as “The Brotherhood Technicon or Pianists’ Hand Gymnasium.” As advertised in the Foote catalog, the technicon was “Indespensable [sic] to pianos players of every grade” and “The only invention which developes [sic] perfect technique.” There were three models for teachers that ranged from $22.50 to $35.00. A student model was available for $15.00</p>
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: New York, New York City
setName: label: See more items in
content: Culture and the Arts: Musical Instruments
label: See more items in
content: Music & Musical Instruments
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Gertrude G. Laing
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: MI.66.144
label: catalog number
content: 66.144
label: accession number
content: 261929
objectType: label: Object Name
content: technicon / piano gymnasium
label: Object Name
content: technicon
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: fabric (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 16 in x 23 9/16 in x 17 in; 40.64 cm x 59.84875 cm x 43.18 cm