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Hi again everyone,

Since this year marks the 200th anniversary of Chopin's birth, I would like to share photos of a piano that he would very much have liked:











It is a Pleyel grand piano, made in 1846, and is a fine example by the famed French piano manufacturer.

I love its veneer very much, which is not rosewood but acajou mahogany. The piano would be absolutely stunning if it is restored.

Interestingly, all the Pleyels of that era featured dust covers. I can only speculate as to why it fell out of favor.


Like his music, Chopin certainly had a very good taste for his instrument; I would like to own and play it, to say the least.


Again feel free to share your thoughts about this piano. Thanks!

Apart from the beautiful musical qualities of Pleyel pianos, they have exquisite finesse and avoid the heavy embellishment of some of the German and American pianos of the second half of the 19th century. The acajou mahogany is a triumph.
The carved "cheeks" are characteristic of French pianos of the period and are seen in Renoir's paintings of pianists playing pianos.
The dust cover would have been eminently sensible. Dusting those "cheeks" would have been a veritable "cauchemar".

Thank you for this beautiful reflection on the anniversary year of Chopin's birth.

Robert.

This one looks like it was refurbished by pleyel at the end of the century.

the Pleyel logo in 1846 was quite different.

I have an 1844 I am restoring in acajou.

they are very nice but difficult to find in proper order.

I was just about to say the case looked very beautiful, almost as if it had been recently refinished. First time I heard of acajou mahogany.

I'll bet that the reason the "dust covers" fell out of style was that they buzzed and rattled. They look flimsy, and anything that is subject to buzzing in a piano, usually will.

I have always wondered what that inner lid looking thing was! Cool!

That is a gorgeous piano. I would love to grace the keys of that one!

I love that color of piano, matches well with the floor 8)

I wish some piano manufacturers would revert to this old style design, with the back of the piano resembling a rectangular shape rather than a curved one.

But of course, tastes changes with every generation, and I'm sure in 100 years we'll be seeing these designs more in common

C'est très magnifique, non?

With another French polishing and restoration, the piano would be truly breathtaking and be ready for another century.

Acortot, would you kindly share photos of your piano with us? I would be very interested in seeing them.

I wonder how much the dust cover generated rattles, but I can imagine that as the pianos evolved to create more sound, the rattles became louder as well.

Just noticing the house that piano is in. That looks to be a very very old home! Nice floors!

BTW Acajou is Mahogany in French

I was privileged to attend the Chopin Forum in London today, celebrating the 200th anniversary. A wonderful event. One of the sessions was a discussion on "Playing Chopin on the Pianos of his Time", with a beautiful Pleyel piano of 1839, which had been restored by and was lent by David Winston of the Period Piano Company. (You can hear the piano if you click the link.) The piano looked beautiful, and sounded wonderful; I have to say that I preferred it to the Steinway that was brought on later. Here are some pictures.

To the OP...

Is this one of Chopins actual pianos? Upon looking at the link posted above by David-G, that company restored "Chopin's 1846 Pleyel.

The piano you mention above is an 1846... Might it be Chopins?

Thanks

Chopin's 1846 Pleyel piano, which he brought to England for his concert tour of 1848, is now in the Cobbe Collection at Hatchlands Park in Surrey. You can read how it came to be there in this article from the Times.
Fascinating!

Amazing photos, David! Thank you for sharing; David Winston certainly did an excellent job on it.

To Acortot: I rather believe acajou is a special type of mahogany used by the French.

To Brandon: No, it is not Chopin's own piano. It probably was once owned by a wealthy upper-class family, judging by its character.

Acajou is French for Mahogany... there are different types of mahogany, like flamed for example.

the David Winston Pleyel is a beauty! holy cow.

how did it sound?

"(You can hear the piano if you click the link.) "

what you hear in the link is a viennese fortepiano BUILT by David Winston..NOT the pleyel.

Winston is famous for having restored Beethoven's Broadwood.

To be precise, the piano's veneer is flamed Cuban acajou.

I rather thought acajou was a kind of mahogany used by the French (therefore it means mahogany in French), but is it not?

Hello, are you sure its not the Pleyel sounding ?
Do you know the serial number of that David Winston piano ?
Its one of the most beautiful ones I saw yet.
I would love to be able to own one like that to practice Chopin everyday ...

Thanks

Nice Pleyel 13352 was started in 1846 and finished 6 February 1847, restored in the atelier of Isaac Oleg in 2006. Sold to Normant frères in Romorantin ?? difficult to read in the archives, but the city where Gaveau was born! It has 3 cordes and 6 and 3/4 octaves. Made of beautiful acajou (mahogany) ronceux. It has been altered in the Pleyel factory at a certain point, new Pleyel nametag, plate painted in gold (as to normal green), probably modern tuning pins.
The "dust" cover, which is a really bad name, had as function to harmonize the piano, since the construction made it so that the higher notes were unbalanced (much softer then lower notes) especially in bigger rooms or halls. This second soundboard, that is a thick board of full wood, so not resonating at all (thats why its called in French fausse table, false table or soundboard) made the sound of the lower notes going less far and the higher notes who are not covered by this wood sing completely.

Nah--just give the servants a small, soft watercolor brush, and have sweet dreams.