Jeremy Nicholas’s new book, The Great Piano Makers, is a superb new publication charting the history of all the great piano manufacturers over the past 300 years.
The book builds on several landmark works on the subject, including Alfred Dolge’s Pianos and Their Makers (1911), David Wainwright’s The Piano Makers (1975), and Cyril Ehrlich’s Piano: A History (1976). However, Nicholas delves more deeply into the fortunes of the various manufacturers and, of course, this work brings the subject fully up to date.
Following a foreward by leading classical pianist and composer Sir Stephen Hough, a comprehensive chronology and a detailed glossary, this 364-page hardback launches into a thorough examination of the life of Bartolomeo Cristofori — the man credited with inventing the piano.
A further 11 chapters then explore the stories behind more than 100 piano makers. Here we encounter all the great names. Those still around include Steinway, Bösendorfer, Kawai, Yamaha, C. Bechstein, Blüthner, Mason & Hamlin etc. But there are so many other companies that have made a contribution. Stein, Graf, Broadwood, Érard, Pape, Pleyel, Chickering and many more. And moving to recent times we have Maene, Stuart & Sons, Paulello, and of course Fazioli.
One chapter is entitled Eccentrics and Visionaries. Here Nicholas examines the work of those individuals who with their unique ideas have shaped the development of the piano, yet never established their own company. One such example is Pantaléon Hebenstreit, who lived around the same time as Cristofori. He was a famed dulcimer maker and performer and is thought to have strongly influenced the very first piano manufacturers.
Towards the end of the book there is a “fascinating facts” section which incorporates a number of random quotes and statistics relating to the instrument. For instance, one anonymous industry proverb outlines the Four D’s frequently cited when discussing the surpluses in the used-piano trade. “Downsizers don’t want them back. Debtors don’t want them back. Divorced people don’t want them back. And Dead people don’t want them back.”
Jeremy Nicholas is an award-winning broadcaster and music journalist. He writes for Gramophone and International Piano, and his other publications include biographies of Chopin and Godowsky, and four reference works on classical music.
The Great Piano Makers is well illustrated with getting on for 100 images. It is an easy and fascinating read and a great addition to the genre.
The Great Piano Makers is available from Chiselbury Publishing, Amazon*, and other good booksellers.
BOOK: The Great Piano Makers
Author: Jeremy Nicholas
Publisher: Chiselbury Publishing
ISBN-13: 978-1-917837-26-2
Format: Hardback (includes marker ribbon)
Pages: 364
Dimensions: 229 x 152mm
Language: English
Price: £35.00
Websites: Chiselbury Publishing, Jeremy Nicholas
* If you decide to purchase from Amazon using the above link, this may generate a small commission which will help to fund this extremely impoverished website.
Looks like a have-to-have book. Thanks for the heads up!
It’s “high time” that the world needs to know the piano basis upon which we stand today. Perhaps this lovely book will help turn the trend of the Western World’s neglect of pianos and instruction in the homes of the common man.