John Broadwood & Sons is an English

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

manufacturer, founded in 1728 by

Burkat Shudi Burkat Shudi (variants: Burkhart, Burkhardt, Schudi, Tschudi, Tshudi) (13 March 1702 – 19 August 1773) was an English harpsichord maker of Swiss origin. Biography He was born in Schwanden in the Canton of Glarus, and arrived in England in 17 ...

and continued after his death in 1773 by

John Broadwood John Broadwood (6 October 1732 – 17 July 1812) was the Scottish founder of the piano manufacturer Broadwood and Sons. Life Broadwood was born 6 October 1732 and christened 15 Oct 1732 at St Helens, Cockburnspath in Berwickshire, and grew up i ...

Early history

John Broadwood (1732–1812), a Scottish joiner and cabinetmaker, came to London in 1761 and began to work for the Swiss

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...

manufacturer Burkat Shudi. He married Shudi's daughter eight years later and became a partner in the firm in 1770. As the popularity of the harpsichord declined, the firm concentrated increasingly on the manufacture of pianos, abandoning the harpsichord altogether in 1793. Broadwood's son,

James Shudi Broadwood James Shudi Broadwood (20 December 1772 – 8 August 1851) was a piano maker in Middlesex and a magistrate in Surrey. His son, Henry Fowler Broadwood (1811–1893), took control of the family piano-manufacturing business in 1836. He was also th ...

, had worked for the firm since 1785, and, in 1795, the firm began to trade as John Broadwood & Son. When Broadwood's third son, Thomas Broadwood, became a partner in 1808, the firm assumed the name of John Broadwood & Sons Ltd, which it retains to this day. The firm's busiest time period was during the 1850s, when approximately 2,500 instruments were produced annually.

Innovations

Broadwood produced his first square piano in 1771, after the model of Johannes Zumpe, and worked assiduously to develop and refine the instrument, moving the wrest plank of the earlier pianoforte, which had sat to the side of the case as in the

clavichord The clavichord is a stringed rectangular keyboard instrument that was used largely in the Late Middle Ages, through the Renaissance, Baroque and Classical eras. Historically, it was mostly used as a practice instrument and as an aid to compositi ...

, to the back of the case in 1781, straightening the keys, and replacing the hand stops with pedals. In 1785

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...

, later to be third President of the United States, visited Broadwood in Great Pulteney Street,

Soho Soho is an area of the City of Westminster, part of the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century. The area was deve ...

, to discuss musical instruments. In 1789, at Jan Ladislav Dussek's suggestion, he extended the range of his

grand piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

beyond five

octave In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...

s to CC in the treble, and again to six full octaves in 1794. The improved instruments became popular with musicians such as

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have le ...

, who used them on his first visit to London in 1791.

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

received a six octave Broadwood in 1818, a gift from Thomas Broadwood, which he kept for the rest of his life. Although his impaired hearing may well have prevented him appreciating its tone, he seems to have preferred it to his Erard which had a similar range. Above the company label on the front edge of the pin block the following text can be read: ″Hoc Instrumentum est Thomae Broadwood (Londrini) donum propter ingenium illustrissime Beethoven.″ his instrument is a gift from Thomas Broadwood of London in recognition of the most illustrious genius of Beethoven.

Frédéric Chopin Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; 1 March 181017 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period, who wrote primarily for solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown as a leadin ...

played Broadwood instruments in Britain, including at the last concert of his life given at Guildhall, London, in 1848. Although he liked Broadwoods, he appears to have preferred the French make

Pleyel Ignace Joseph Pleyel (; ; 18 June 1757 – 14 November 1831) was an Austrian-born French composer, music publisher and piano builder of the Classical period. Life Early years He was born in in Lower Austria, the son of a schoolmaster named Ma ...

1980s and 1990s

After a long period of decline ending in near bankruptcy, the business was rescued in the mid 1980s by a consortium headed up by Geoffrey Simon, a keen amateur pianist and successful businessman from Birmingham. Mr Simon took on the mantle of CEO and under his stewardship John Broadwood & Sons entered a period during which a number of innovations were developed. These included the limited edition 'Linley piano' an upright piano designed by Viscount Linley and his partner Matthew Rice, plus the design and patenting of the 'barless' grand piano in 1997 which was manufactured by Birmingham firm of Ladbrooke Pianos, who produced half a dozen a year.

2000s

The company holds a royal warrant as a manufacturer and tuner of pianos. Following the death of Geoffrey Simon in 2006, the company was acquired in 2008 by Alastair Laurence, a piano builder and technician with family ties to the Broadwood firm dating back to 1787. To coincide with the change in ownership, new restoration and conservation workshops are now located at Finchcocks, Goudhurst, Kent, England.

Broadwood archives

The company's archives are held at the Surrey History Centre.

References

External links

*
John Broadwood & Sons Piano Manufacturers
– Surrey County Council

John Broadwood & Sons Grand Piano (16000, London 1843)
– ''The Piano in Polish Collections'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Broadwood And Sons British Royal Warrant holders Companies based in Kent Piano manufacturing companies of the United Kingdom British brands Piano makers