P I A N O   3 0 0
Celebrating Three Centuries of People and Pianos

 

Pianos and Objects in the Exhibition:

Miscellany

[Instruments]    [Composers' Manuscripts and Early Editions]  

Miscellany

A Piano Maker's Tool Chest, 1890-1920 made by Henry O. Studley, Quincy, Massachusetts. Lent from a private collection

Made from scraps of material (ivory, ebony, mahogany, mother of pearl) left over from pianos, this chest ingeniously holds more than 300 tools vital to the craft of piano building.

The Diary of William Steinway. Lent by Archives Center, National Museum of American History

William Steinway, one of the sons of the dynasty's founder Heinrich Steinway, emerged as the entrepreneurial genius of the family. He kept this diary from 1861 to 1896, faithfully recording the family business's survival through hard times and the active musical life of New York City.

Contract between Anton Rubinstein and Steinway & Sons for US Concert Tour, 1872-73. Lent by the International Piano Archives at the University of Maryland.

Manufacturers often sponsored concert tours of leading artists to promote their instruments. The fiery Russian virtuoso Rubinstein played 215 concerts in 239 days before he returned to Europe exhausted but wealthy.

Presentation locket containing the hair of Franz Liszt and Anton Rubinstein, presented to Ossip Gabrilówitsch by his teacher, Theodor Leschetitzky. Late 19th century. Lent by Raymond A. White.

African Jazz, No. 5. 1990. Quilt by Michael A. Cummings. Lent by the Artist

Song Composers. Pen-and-ink drawing by Al Hirschfeld. Lent by the National Portrait Gallery.

Portrait of Louis Moreau Gottschalk, c. 1860. Lithograph by Sarony and Knapp. Lent by the National Portrait Gallery.

Production Book from the Chickering Factory, Boston, 1865. Lent by Archives Center, National Museum of American History

 

[Introduction] [Performances, Tours and More] [Exhibition] [Timeline]
[Credits] [Donors and Collaborators ] [Play Some Music!] [Piano Resources]

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