Original Instrument

Grand pianoforte by John Broadwood & Sons

This original English grand piano was built by the Broadwood firm in London in 1806, and uses the typical English grand piano action developed by Americus Backers, Robert Stodart, and John Broadwood during the 1770's and 80's. Broadwood was one of the foremost English builders of the early 19th century, and Haydn, Beethoven, Dussek, and many other important composers were familiar with Broadwood pianos.

The instrument is tri-chord strung throughout, and has 3 pedals: a divided treble and bass damper lift, and an una and due cords pedal, with the stopper on teh side of the keyboard to select how many strings to strike when this pedal is operated. The compass is 5 1/2 octaves from FF-c’’’’: a typical compass for the period.

This instrument was acquired from the Colt Clavier Auction in 2018, and was restored by Paul Kobald in Amsterdam in 2022, with its inaugural concert held at Het Concertgebouw in Amsterdam on 26 June 2022.