Jul 19, 202311 min
By Hannah Beckett
Studying piano manufacturers’ history is a bit like trying to escape from the middle of a spiderweb. With so many buy-outs, merges, and name changes, it can be very difficult to ascertain the actual age and quality of a piano. However, a general timeline of the industry can help provide context for the individual company histories, almost all of which started around the 19th century when the piano really began to take off as an in-home instrument.
The 1800s through the early 1900s saw an explosion of piano manufacturers across the east coast of America. With thousands of pianos being produced every year, the piano experienced its golden era in the years before the Great Depression. Instrument makers were moving to America from all over Europe, and father-son businesses were opening piano factories that produced some of the names we still see in the field today.
Nearly two hundred years later, we are seeing the dying remnants of American piano manufacturing before it moved overseas. Many of the pianos that are still in use today are from the Great Depression era, which marked large changes for the companies that were producing the bulk of America’s pianos. Due to the unstable economy, many of the independent piano manufacturers began to merge as a way to remain in business.
It was around this time that the Aeolian-American Corporation was formed. Aeolian had already merged with several other companies such as Knabe, Chickering, and Mason and Hamlin when it merged with the American Piano Company. This merger was the beginning of many, and the trading gets very difficult to track. Most of the smaller companies became part of a larger conglomerate, with only a few independent companies surviving on their own. As a result of this industry transformation over the decades, quality standards changed; many of these brand names stopped being made. The 1960s and 1970s introduced an increasingly Asian-dominated market, which is now producing many of the American names of the nineteenth century. The aim of this article is to give you a brief history of the American consoles of the past, and a look at what we can expect to find as we work on them today.
CHARLES WALTER/JANSSEN
Who: The Janssen name is owned by Charles R. Walter. C. G. Conn (an instrument manufacturer mostly specializing in brass instruments), owned the Janssen name at the time Walter bought it in 1969.
What: Walter continued to make Janssen pianos until 1980 and then introduced his own line of console and studio pianos. The first grand piano was made in 1997.
When: The Janssen Piano Company was formed in 1901 and operated independently until 1930 when it was merged with Horace Waters Piano Company. It was traded around to various companies until its purchase by Charles Walter in 1964.
Where: Elkart, Indiana
Status: Charles R. Walter is a family-owned and operated business making approximately 2,000 pianos a year under the names Janssen and Charles R. Walter. For more information, read the Charles Walter brand profile.
CHICKERING & SONS
Who: Jonas Chickering and his sons Thomas, Frank, and George.
What: Vertical and grand pianos.
When: The firm operated independently from 1823 until it was sold to the American Piano Company in 1908.
Where: Chickering pianos were made in Boston until the American Piano Company moved production to their factory in New York.
Status: Chickering pianos were still produced by the Aeolian-American Corporation until the Chickering name was sold to Sohmer & Co, now part of The Mason and Hamlin Companies.
Things to note: Chickering & Sons is credited as starting the first piano factory in America and is generally regarded as one of the finer instrument makers of the late 1800s.
CURRIER
Who: Originally named Westbrook Piano Company, the name was changed to Currier after Westbrook filed for bankruptcy and sold its assets.
What: Spinets, studio uprights and grand pianos.
When: Westbrook began in 1958 and only made it to 1968 before it was sold and the name changed. Once it was re-established, Currier was bought by the Kaman Corporation, makers of Ovation guitars and guitar strings, and discontinued in 1982.
Where: Columbia, South Carolina.
Status: Out of production.
Things to note: In April 1970, two months after production of Currier pianos had resumed, the factory was struck by lightning and burned down. Some of the last Curriers had an advanced scale design and a lightweight string frame called the “Strataphonic String Panel,” made of steel and medium-density fiberboard. Only a small number were made before the fire.
EVERETT
Who: John Church and Frank Lee
What: Vertical and grand pianos. While they made large amounts of pianos for in-home use, Everett was at one point a leader in concert piano manufacturing.
When: 1883-1989. The company was largely successful in its early years. By 1946 they had shifted their focus from producing concert grands to producing small pianos for every day use. The company was traded around for a bit until it landed in the hands of Yamaha in 1973. Yamaha produced Everett pianos until 1986, at which point Baldwin produced them to Yamaha standards until eventually the name was discontinued by Baldwin in 1989.
Where: Originally made in Boston, facilities moved to Michigan, and then in the Yamaha years, to Thomaston, Georgia.
Status: The Everett name is currently being used by Dongbei Piano Co. in China.
Things to Note: Everett patented a design called Balanced Tension Back (also known as dyne-tension scale) that allowed for more string tension, which produced better tone in their smaller pianos. This design contributed largely to their success in the 1940s.
GEO. STECK
Who: George Steck
What: All types of pianos.
When: Established in 1857, Steck operated independently until 1904 when they became part of the Aeolian company. Production of the name ceased for a time after they were eventually grafted in with Mason & Hamlin. In 1995 the Mason & Hamlin companies filed for bankruptcy and all assets were sold to the Burgett Brothers, owners of PianoDisc. Steck pianos were then made by various companies in China until the name was sold in 2015 to Edward Richards, RPT.
Where: Originally located in New York, Steck production moved to Aeolian factories and then to China.
Status: Pianos under this name are not currently being made.
Things to note: After joining the Aeolian Company, Steck was a major producer of Duo-Art reproducing pianos.
GULBRANSEN
Who: Axel Gulbransen
What: Piano and organ manufacture, including player pianos and electric organs.
When: The company was formed in 1904 and became one of the largest piano manufacturers in the pre-depression era. Following their production of the first electric organ in 1957, the company shifted its focus to technological advancements in both player systems and electric keyboards.
Where: Established in Chicago, pianos under the Gulbransen name are currently being made by Samick in one of their factories in Asia.
Status: Currently owned and produced by Samick.
Thing to Note: While Gulbransen pianos are still being made, the original company now specializes in selling designs for digital pianos and player systems to Asian companies. The company is also associated with QRS Music Technology. For more information, read the QRS brand profile.
J & C FISCHER
Who: Brothers John and Charles Fischer, immigrants from Vienna already experienced in piano making.
What: Fischer was one of the biggest piano manufacturers making about 5,000 pianos of all kinds a year.
When: In 1830, J. & C. Fischer was known as Nunns & Fischer due to their partnership with Robert Nunns. In 1840 the company was known as J. & C. Fischer and remained independent until they joined the Aeolian-American Corporation around the time of the Great Depression. From there the name was traded around into the 1980’s until it is almost untraceable.
Where: Fischer pianos were made in New York City until they were sold to Aeolian, which eventually sold the name to Wurlitzer. Wurlitzer sold to Baldwin who then produced a J. & C. Fischer piano in China.
Status: No longer being made.
Things to note: Fischer pianos are known for their beautiful cabinetry.
KNABE
Who: William Knabe
What: All pianos, including concert grand and square pianos.
When: The company was independent from 1835 until 1908 when it was bought by the American Piano Company.
Where: During its time as an independent company, Knabe was based in Baltimore, Maryland. Once sold to the American Piano Company, it was moved to their factories in Rochester, New York, and is still being made in Tianjin, China.
Status: Owned and produced by Young Chang.
Things to note: Knabe made great efforts to market themselves for the stage and were largely successful in establishing themselves as some of the leading concert piano manufacturers.
KIMBALL
Who: William Wallace Kimball
What: Pianos and organs
When: The company was formed in 1857 and reached was most successful in the early 1900s. Kimball gradually declined until it was finally sold in 1959.
Where: Kimball Piano and Organ Co. originated in Chicago and remained there until the company was eventually sold to the Jasper Corporation and transferred to Indiana.
Status: Out of production.
Things to Note: Kimball pianos are not generally known for their tone quality, but a surprising amount have survived over the years and are still circulating the market. The Jasper Corporation (now known as Kimball International) continued to build Kimball pianos until 1996. From 1966 through 2002, Kimball owned the Boesendorfer Piano Company in Vienna, Austria.
KOHLER AND CAMPBELL
Who: John Campbell (a machinist) and Charles Kohler (a factory organizer and businessman)
What: Pianos and player mechanisms
When: Kohler and Campbell created the company in 1896 and remained American- made until 1985 when they were bought by Samick in South Korea.
Where: The company was originally located in New York, but later transitioned to Granite Falls, North Carolina. They are now made in South Korea.
Status: Pianos are currently being made under the name Kohler and Campbell by Samick.
Things to note: Kohler and Campbell has dozens of other names associated with it, the most commonly recognized one would be “Brambach.”
KRANICH & BACH
Who: Helmuth Kranich and Jaques Bach
What: All types of pianos including the “Grandette,” one of the first baby grand pianos made.
When: Established in 1864, they were bought by Winter in 1946. Kranich & Bach was made by Aeolian for a time after Winter merged with them in 1966. Wurlitzer bought the name and produced the pianos for a time until Wurlitzer was bought by Baldwin in 1988 and the name was eventually retired.
Where: Originally based in New York, pianos with the Kranich & Bach label were made in the Memphis plant for Aeolian. Baldwin had them made in China before the name went out of production.
Status: Out of production.
MASON & HAMLIN
Who: Henry Mason and Emmons Hamlin
What: Mason and Hamlin began as a reed organ manufacturer known for their “organ harmonium”. It was only after the company had been producing organs for 25 years that they began to make pianos.
When: Founded in 1854, the company began making pianos in 1880.
Where: Manufacture began in Boston, then following their sale to the American Piano Company, they were moved to Rochester, New York. From there the company was moved around several times, each following a merger with another company. The factories that produced Mason and Hamlin pianos were scattered through the northeast coast including Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts.
Status: Still being made in Massachusetts.
Things to note: Mason and Hamlin was considered Steinway’s chief competitor.
After the closure of Aeolian American in 1985, Mason & Hamlin was moved under new ownership to Haverhill, Massachusetts. In 1996 the Burgett family, inventors of the PianoDisc system, purchased the company and have returned Mason & Hamlin to quality production standards. For more information, we recommend reading An Insider's History of Mason & Hamlin, written by Bruce Clark, the senior design engineer at Mason & Hamlin.
SOHMER & CO
Who: Hugo Sohmer
What: All kinds of pianos including squares and player pianos.
When: Founded in 1879, Sohmer made it all the way to 1982 before selling to Pratt, Read & Co.
Where: Originally located in New York City, the company also had branches in Connecticut and Pennsylvania.
Status: The Sohmer name is currently being used by Samick Music Corporation in Korea.
Things to note: Sohmer is credited with making the first "baby" grand piano. They also made pianos with aliquot stringing and bridge agraffes.
STORY AND CLARK
Who: Hampton L. Story began his business with a music store selling other well known-brands of pianos. After he retired, his son Edward Story took over the business with Melville Clark.
What: First it was making reed organs, then they expanded to making vertical and grand pianos.
When: 1859 was the start of Hampton Story’s music store, 1880 marked the expansion of their organ manufacturing, 1930 began their success in piano manufacturing, and they are still making them today.
Where: Manufacture began in Burlington, Vermont, and then expanded to Chicago, London, and Berlin.
Status: Story and Clark is currently owned by QRS Music Technologies.
Things to Note: Melville Clark began QRS Music Technology in 1900 when he developed what we know of today as the “player piano.” Story and Clark still manufactures piano rolls for their player pianos, but has adapted to modern technology and now offers all kinds of player technology.
WEBER
Who: Albert Weber
What: All types of pianos.
When: Weber started making pianos in 1852 and by 1882 had an enormous six-story manufacturing plant in the heart of New York City. In 1903, Weber merged with the Aeolian Piano Company, and pianos were made under that name until the 1980s, when the name was sold to Young Chang.
Where: After the close of the Weber facility at 155 W. Broad Street, New York, production was moved to Aeolian Hall at 362 Fifth Avenue.
Status: Young Chang still makes a piano under the Weber name.
Things to note: Although the Weber name is still being produced by Young Chang, the Weber piano is made with a lower-tension scale and softer hammers, giving it a warmer sound than the Young Chang consoles.
WINTER & CO.
Who: Julius Winter
What: Grand, upright, player, and spinet pianos.
When: Winter & Co. was established in 1899 and purchased Heller & Co. in 1901. They began producing their “Master Player” piano in 1904 and eventually acquired several other companies, including Ivers & Pond, Kranich & Bach, Conover Cable (originally Schiller Cable Piano Co), and Hallet & Davis before they merged with the Aeolian-American Corporation in 1966.
Where: Winter had two factories in New York that were used to make their pianos both during their time of operating independently and while they were part of Aeolian.
Status: The Winter & Co. brand was discontinued in the 1980s after Aeolian went out of business.
Things to note: Winter is credited with the invention of the spinet piano around 1931. While this is not much of a claim to fame by a technician’s standards, the spinet piano helped keep the piano industry alive during the Great Depression, when production slowed to a trickle.
WURLITZER
Who: Franz Rudolf Wurlitzer, an eighth-generation instrument builder.
What: Grand and upright pianos, and player pianos including the Apollo, a reproducing piano.
When: Wurlitzer began in 1856 as an importer of German pianos. In 1881, Wurlitzer made its first piano. Remarkably, Wurlitzer was one of the few companies to survive the Great Depression, and eventually in 1985 bought Aeolian and all the assets that came with its Memphis factory. Just a few years later in 1988, however, Wurlitzer was bought by Baldwin. Baldwin had some Wurlitzers made by the Korean company, Samick, and then by the Chinese company, Sejung.
Where: Wurlitzer had factories in New York City and Cincinnati, Ohio.
Status: Baldwin discontinued the Wurlitzer name in the early 2000s.
Things to note: After Wurlitzer acquired the Aeolian Memphis plant, the trading game becomes confusing and difficult to follow. Wurlitzer kept making some of the piano brands that came with Aeolian, and they also had Young Chang make some of their pianos. Once Wurlitzer was sold to Baldwin, the name came in contact with many other names in the mixing pot of piano makers, including Story & Clark, Kranich & Bach, and Samick.
VOSE & SONS
Who: James W. Vose
What: Vose & Sons primarily made square pianos until the early 1900s, when their focus switched to upright, grand and player pianos.
When: James Vose started the company in 1851, and in 1889 his son William became president of the company. The last pianos under the name Vose & Sons were built in 1982, and then the name died when the Aeolian-American Corporation went out of business.
Where: Vose & Sons had a huge factory in Boston that operated until 1920, at which point a bigger factory was built in Watertown. Ironically, it was not long after the factory had been built that the Great Depression hit and the company joined the Aeolian-American Corporation.
Status: Vose & Sons was bought by Edward Richards and produced briefly by Dongbei in China, then distributed in the U.S. These pianos are not being distributed currently.