I remember a square Broadwood on the beach of New Zealand in the movie "The Piano". The waves were breaking around the legs. At that time I wasn't aware that squares were made in England or in Europe for that matter. Great movie but very strange. Carl Meyer ----- Original Message ----- From: "Clark" <caccola@net1plus.com> To: <pianotech@ptg.org> Sent: Saturday, December 02, 2000 11:29 AM Subject: Re: Broadwood > Kristinn asks: > > > How many models are there? > > We answers: how many keys and pedals would you like? > > > > The Square Pianoforte > > > > The earliest recorded Broadwood sqaure was sent out of the workshop > > to 'Miss Pelham at Brighthelmstone' on 9 August 1770. This was the > > simple Zumpe pattern with the English single action and the > > 'over-damper', of five octaves FF to f^3. The case was veneered in > > Mahogany with fruitwood stringing, and measured 5 ft 2½ ins by 1 ft > > 9¼ ins. > > > > In 1783 John Broadwood took out an English patent (No. 1379) for > > eight developments in pianoforte manufacture. These concerned the > > action, the dampers, the arrangement of hammers, two or more > > soundboards, the soundboard with soundpost, the arrangement of wrest > > pins, the forte pedal and the sordino pedal. The last controlled a > > piece of wood hinged to the case, lying along the soundboard bridge. > > > > The first recorded sale of a piano with the brass under-damper is on > > 29 September 1783, when Miss Gibbs of Cork bought one for £21. > > > > The first mention of a pedal is in relation to a square which Mr > > Robert Buckley of Manchester ordered on 24 March 1786 for Mr Keynes > > of Deans Gate: 'It is to have a pedal the wire of which is to come > > through the cheek and not to have leather.' For the wire 'to come > > through the cheek' implies that the device was to be worked by a > > stop-knob beside the keyboard rather than a foot-pedal. > > > > Other customers demanded other old-fashioned controls. Thus as late > > as 26 May 1796 a Mr. Bartolozzi ordered 'a pianoforte ornd. without > > addl. keys with 2 pedals to act by the knee, one of them to raise the > > lid, the other the dampers.' Apedal 'to lift the lid' was similarly > > ordered by Lord Despencer in 1797. > > > > In 1784 John Broadwood introduced other patented innovations, for in > > that year he made No. 200 (now in the possession of C.F. Colt) with a > > double soundboard and soundpost in the style of a violin. Not many of > > these seem to have been made, and few survive. It is particularly > > interesting, therefore, that in the patent specification, this > > innovation is described as 'the most essential part of the said > > improvements on the said instrument'. The expansion of production is > > demonstrated by the fact that although pianos of this period were not > > numbered on the nameboard *consecutive numbering for squares, as for > > grands, was introduced in 1796), the Notebook on dating gives No. 409 > > as having been made in 1785; this implies that in one year, the > > factory made as many square pianos as had been made in the previous > > fourteen years. > > > > The other datings given in the notebook are: > > > > 488 591 901 1266 2000 > > 1785 1786 1788 1790 1793 > > > The English double action was introduced into squares in the 1780s > > and offered as an optional alternative until the early years of the > > nineteenth century, when it superseded the single action. > > > > Broadwoods were offering 'additional keys' on the square from late > > in 1793, bringing the keyboard up to 5½ octaves (up to c^4 or 'CC in > > alt'). John Broadwood wrote to a correspondent in Charlestown on 13 > > November 1793: 'We have just begun to make some of the small > > Pianofortes up to that compass.' (Harding credits this development to > > William Southwell of Dublin in 1794, but Cg8Kdwoods began earlier.) > > > > Cases were becoming more decorative from 1794; thus in October of that > > year Pascal Taskin bought four squares, 'one plain and three inlaid'. > > By 1790 Broadwood was supplying actions to be fitted into cases by > > furniture manufacturers: thus on 2 March 'Mr Chippendale for a P.F. > > to be put in a sideboard, £18 18s.' > > > > By 1814 most square pianos were 5½ octaves and the case had become > > more substantial (and larger: 5 ft 6 ins by 2 ft 1½ ins). The > > instrument had six legs, was sometimes decorated with brass mouldings > > and borders, had built-in drawers for music, and a forte pedal > > suspended from the case. > > > > The first metal hitch-pin plate was applied to a square piano by > > Samuel Hervé while working for Broadwoods in 1821, and this became > > general practice the following year. From the mid 1820s most squares > > were six octaves (FF to f^4) and measured 5 ft 7½ ins by 2 ft 2 ins. > > > > Production of the square ceased in 1866 at No. 64161. > > - Wainwright, David. "Broadwood by Appointment". London, > Quiller Press. 1982. p.326-7
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