Having obtained a crucial royal protection that allowed them to compete freely with their Parisia... more Having obtained a crucial royal protection that allowed them to compete freely with their Parisian rivals, the Erard brothers concentrated on enlarging their workshop in order to meet the growing demand for their pianos—not only in Paris, but throughout France. The firm hired numerous skilled workers from German-speaking Europe, enticing them by offering a good salary and a stable contract. The success of the Erard firm depended on recruiting, training, and supervising their numerous employees, and stocking their workshops with great quantities of specialised raw materials for instrument manufacture. The Erards developed relationships with musical instrument dealers, musicians, and music teachers as an important way to extend their instrument-building empire across Europe.
In these early years, the Erard firm adopted a surprisingly modern approach to marketing their sq... more In these early years, the Erard firm adopted a surprisingly modern approach to marketing their square pianos and piano organs. Numerous contemporary business concepts are already present, at least in nascent form. The Erards were keen to inspire brand loyalty among their customers, through the wooing of successful musicians, teachers, and dealers, and by offering substantial volume discounts. They also displayed a clear notion of customer service, providing their customers with a sort of mail-order catalogue and reassuring their clients on every detail, from the efficiency of the packing and transport to the quality of their products. The Erards even seemed to subscribe to today’s ‘the customer is always right’ attitude, complying with special requests from musicians. The amount of time and energy the Erards devoted to resolving such problems with their customers demonstrates that the notion of the instrument maker as a solitary artisan, toiling alone in his workshop oblivious to commercial concerns, is a romantic image born in the nineteenth century. The Erards were both artisans and merchants, a dual identity that was necessary in late eighteenth-century Paris, when a new consumer culture coalesced around the hundreds of boutiques of the capital.
One of the musicians who benefited from the Erard pianos made in London was Felix Mendelssohn (18... more One of the musicians who benefited from the Erard pianos made in London was Felix Mendelssohn (1809–47). Mendelssohn became close friends with Pierre and Céleste Erard, and may have been one of the few people familiar with Pierre’s homosexuality. Mendelssohn was not an immediate convert to Erard pianos, but developed a more favourable opinion of them on his 1829 tour of the British Isles and especially during his trips to Paris and London in 1832. In 1832, Pierre gave a gift of a grand piano to Mendelssohn and this piano had an important influence on Mendelssohn’s compositions and concert activity. A precious trace of Mendelssohn’s genius was carefully preserved by the Erard family in the form of an autograph manuscript of Mendelssohn’s Andante in A major, published as the fourth piece in the first volume of Lieder ohne Worte, op. 19b [MWV U 73].
Today the word ‘piano’ connotes a large instrument with a powerful sonority, capable of doing bat... more Today the word ‘piano’ connotes a large instrument with a powerful sonority, capable of doing battle with an entire orchestra in a romantic concerto. There are various features of the modern piano responsible for this image, including a case with a long wing shape reinforced by a cast iron frame, and the high degree of string tension that this frame makes possible. None of these features were present on pianos in eighteenth-century France, where the most common model was the rectangular-shaped piano carré (square piano), whose sound was scarcely more powerful than that of a harp. Before the French Revolution, the Erard firm produced square pianos and hybrid piano-organs. During this period, the Erards strengthened their ties with the French court, which resulted in several exceptional instruments made for Marie-Antoinette.
At the same time that Erard grand pianos were gaining a foothold in France, they were also findin... more At the same time that Erard grand pianos were gaining a foothold in France, they were also finding enthusiasts abroad, even in places where there were established local builders. The Erards shipped grand pianos to both Haydn and Beethoven, instruments that would have an important influence on foreign piano building and piano music. Beethoven’s Erard piano in particular influenced numerous works he composed in the following years. The circumstances surrounding Beethoven’s acquisition of his Erard piano have been the subject of much debate among musicologists. Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it had been thought that Beethoven received the piano as a gift in recognition of his international stature as a composer, as had presumably been the case for Haydn. More recently, it has been argued that the Erard ledgers prove that Beethoven, then a little-known and largely unappreciated composer in France, ordered the piano from Erard, but never paid for it. A closer reading of the Erard ledgers, however, reveals that the piano was indeed a gift from the Erards to Beethoven, although perhaps not for the reasons that had previously been assumed.
Following an apprenticeship with the Strasbourg-based Silbermann brothers, the young Sébastien Er... more Following an apprenticeship with the Strasbourg-based Silbermann brothers, the young Sébastien Erard moved to Paris to begin building keyboard instruments. There he benefited from the patronage of the duchesse de Villeroy, who offered him a workshop, where he was soon joined by his brother Jean-Baptiste. The Erards’ success with pianos motivated them to find a way of giving harpsichords the same expressive possibilities. Their innovations were considered a threat by musical instrument makers and dealers in Paris, who specialised in the import and resale of English pianos. In 1785, Louis XVI granted the Erards a royal privilege exempting them from membership in the guild which governed the activities of Paris instrument builders.
INSTRUMENTS, ORCHESTRAS Collectionner la musique: Erudits collectionneurs [Collecting Music: Erud... more INSTRUMENTS, ORCHESTRAS Collectionner la musique: Erudits collectionneurs [Collecting Music: Erudite Collectors]. Edited by Denis Herlin, Catherine Massip, and Valerie De Wispelaere. (Collectionner la musique, vol. 3.) Turnhout: Brepols, 2015. [580 p. ISBN 9782503553276. i 100.] Illustrations, index.This book is the third volume in a series of proceedings from three successive conferences dedicated to the practice of collecting in the field of music. All three of these conferences took place at the Royaumont Foundation in France, an institution that holds the rich collection of musical autographs formerly belonging to the late pianist Francois Lang (1908-44). The first volume (Collectionner la musique: Histoires d'une passion, ed. Denis Herlin, Catherine Massip, Jean Duron, and Dinko Fabris [Turnhout: Brepols, 2010]), concentrated on the figure of the erudite collector of musical materials in Europe from the Renaissance to the twentieth century. The second volume, Collectionner la musique: au coeur de l'interpretation, ed. Denis Herlin, Catherine Massip, and Jean Duron [Turnhout: Brepols, 2012]), focused on performers who were also collectors, and whose collecting impulse was often an outgrowth of their historical approach to music. The third volume, like the first, is again dedicated to erudite musical collectors from the sixteenth century to the present. The eighteen articles that comprise the third volume are divided, somewhat artificially, into three parts: "Assembling and Constructing Knowledge" (p. 27; all translations are my own), "Erudition and Society" (p. 257), and "Erudite Collectors: Portraits" (p. 359).Although the majority of the collections described in this volume are composed of books and music scores (both autographs and early editions), some collections also include musical autographs such as composers' letters, and one article is devoted to collections of musical instruments. All articles are in French, including those by English authors on decidedly non-French topics, such as Graham Sadler's study of Charles Burney's music library.Many of the contributors to the volume share a similar methodology. The author begins with lists or catalogs of works that once made up a music library, a library that may or may not still exist. The author then proceeds to draw various conclusions from these lists in order to shed light on the collector and his possible motives. The analyses of the composition of these collections, however, are necessarily based on a certain amount of guesswork. The absence of instrumental works, for example, may indicate that the collector in question was not himself a practicing musician. But does the appearance of a book or a score in a collection necessarily mean that it was read, studied or used for a performance? Contributors to this volume are sensitive to this question to varying degrees.In her opening essay, Catherine Massip presents a wide survey of musical collectors, attempting to determine the moment when erudition and the necessary gathering of research materials are transformed into an actual passion for collecting. She does this by analyzing the correspondence of several collectors, for example that between nineteenth-century music publisher Aristide Farrenc (1794-1865) and the collector and music historian Gaetano Gaspari (1807-s81). Massip's considerable experience as head of the music department of the Bibliotheque nationale de France over many years is evident, as she retraces the history of collections that have enriched that library from the nineteenth century to the present, placing an emphasis on the dynamism and synergy between private and public collections. Indeed, many articles in the volume retrace the history of private collections that ended up in the Bibliotheque nationale de France, often by way of the library of the Paris Conservatoire, which merged its collections with the larger intuition in 1935. Massip ends her essay by underscoring the role of the individual collector's judgment, reminding the reader that the word "collection" is derived from the verb colligere, to choose. …
'FEW WERE moved; it was a weak succis d'estime." With these words, the violinist Jos... more 'FEW WERE moved; it was a weak succis d'estime." With these words, the violinist Joseph Bohm described the premiere of Beethoven's String Quartet in E flat Op. 127. Indeed, of the incongruities between original and present-day receptions of Beethoven's music, few are as striking as in the case of this quartet. This work, today referred to as 'of all Beethoven's works his crowning monument to lyricism',2 was generally viewed as incomprehensible by its first performers and listeners. In the brief review for the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, the critic admitted: 'opinions were divided on this matter [Op. 127], this writer not excepted, because it was understood and completely comprehended by the very few'.3 The traditional explanation for the failure to appreciate this work can be summarized as follows: there was scarcely enough rehearsal time for such a difficult work; and at the premiere, Ignaz Schuppanzighthe leader of the quartet-played particularly badly. However, subsequent performances led by Joseph B6hm and Joseph Mayseder, which were more carefully prepared, won widespread approval for the quartet.4 The foregoing interpretation of the events, while partly true, paints an incomplete picture of the first performances and raises more questions than it answers. For example: what were the other quartets in the repertory of the Schuppanzigh Quartet at this time, and were there any of comparable difficulty to Op. 127? How much rehearsal time was usually allocated to new quartets? What was wrong with the way Schuppanzigh played, and were there any who believed that he had played well? How much rehearsal time did the B6hm and Mayseder Quartets have, and were their performances also problematic? Who was providing Beethoven, at this time either nearly or completely deaf, with information on the quality of the performances? Finally, and perhaps most important: what were the specific difficulties that the original performers (see Table I) faced in interpreting this work?
During the years following the invention of the double-escapement action, Sébastien became too il... more During the years following the invention of the double-escapement action, Sébastien became too ill to manage the operations of the firm. With Sébastien indisposed, Jean-Baptiste took a more active role in the inventive work, and in particular with refinements to the double escapement action. Jean-Baptiste’s death in 1826, however, left Sébastien and Pierre deeply uneasy about the future of their family enterprise. Pierre understood that in order to ensure the perennity of the Erard firm he needed a successor, because the workers trained at the London branch would not necessarily be as motivated as would an Erard family member to invest their efforts and capital in the firm. Since Sébastien remained single, and Céleste childless and in any case living in Berlin, far from the family enterprise, Pierre would have certainly felt pressure to marry and found a family. However, Pierre’s homosexuality, kept secret from his family and only recently discovered, made marriage and the subsequent transmission of the family enterprise to a potential heir problematic. When Pierre returned to Paris after his father’s death, he came to the realisation that his father had been a poor manager who left the firm in a disastrous financial state. As a result, Sébastien threatened to close the Paris branch, but in the end maintained it while making drastic reductions in the workforce.
Establishing a piano manufacture in Paris required a substantial outlay of capital: for the vast ... more Establishing a piano manufacture in Paris required a substantial outlay of capital: for the vast properties on the rue du Mail, the machinery for making pianos and harps, the large quantities of raw materials, and the money to pay the 120 workers. The Erards relied heavily on credit to fund their commercial operations, confident that the quality of their instruments would bring in the income needed to pay their creditors. The French Revolution came at the worst possible time for their business. Foreign sales became impossible and domestic sales increasingly difficult; as a result, they had little income to offset their enormous investments. Faced with drastically reduced income, the firm still needed to pay their creditors and their workers, as well as maintain their properties. Moreover, the Erard empire was forcefully riven in two by the protracted state of war between the French Republic and Great Britain. The Treaty of Amiens gave the Erards a glimmer of hope. They quadrupled their stock of materials, rented new storerooms, enlarged their workshops and hired additional workers. The Erards’ enormous investments in their firm turned out to be a tragic miscalculation. Napoleon’s trade blockages exacerbated the Erards’ financial woes, and in February 1813 the Paris branch of the Erard firm officially declared bankruptcy.
For more than fifty years, the Erard firm had enjoyed relatively stable management in the hands o... more For more than fifty years, the Erard firm had enjoyed relatively stable management in the hands of Sébastien and Jean-Baptiste. Sébastien’s death in 1831, however, ushered in a volatile period of just over twenty years during which the direction of the firm would change twice. At first, Pierre took control of the enterprise, doing his best to maintain the firm’s reputation for innovation. But Pierre’s unexpected cognitive decline and early death resulted in the transfer of the firm’s management to his wife Camille, thrusting the future of the Erard manufacture into unknown territory.
Pierre Erard’s death meant that for the first time in over eighty years there was no longer an in... more Pierre Erard’s death meant that for the first time in over eighty years there was no longer an inventive genius running the Erard firm. But by assuming control of the firm, Camille became one of the only women of her time to run a large-scale international business and one of the few women to make her mark in the history of musical instrument manufacture. The recognition of her authority as head of the firm by musicians such as Richard Wagner and Clara Schumann gave Camille the confidence to undertake two ambitious and transformative construction projects. The first of these initiatives was to build a concert hall on the premises of the rue du Mail. The second was to construct a vast modern factory on the outskirts of Paris. In the end, a lack of innovation combined with increased competition from German and American piano builders was the cause of the eventual demise of the Erard firm.
Sébastien Erard’s most famous invention for the piano was the double-escapement action, which all... more Sébastien Erard’s most famous invention for the piano was the double-escapement action, which allows the pianist to rapidly repeat a given note without completely releasing the key, thus rendering the key and the hammer totally independent from each other. This action revolutionised the design of piano mechanisms and had a profound impact on music written for the instrument. Far from being an isolated discovery from the 1820s, Sébastien’s invention was the culmination of a lifetime of searching for ways to make the piano more responsive to the musician’s touch, all the while maintaining a powerful tone.
The first pianos, built by Cristofori in Florence near the turn of the eighteenth century, were a... more The first pianos, built by Cristofori in Florence near the turn of the eighteenth century, were already ‘grand’ pianos, their shape derived from that of the harpsichord. The invention gradually began to spread across the continent, and by the mid-1780s grand pianos were common instruments in London. This pan-European development stands in stark contrast to the grand piano’s reception in France, where the harpsichord reigned supreme. Indeed, until the 1760s, the piano—regardless of its size or shape—was almost completely absent from the French musical scene, and it was not until around 1810 that the grand piano became a frequently used instrument in France. Without a sonorous instrument capable of projecting an interesting palette of nuanced effects in a moderate to large space, it was difficult to develop an independent repertoire for the piano. The eventual adoption of the grand piano in France was largely due to the efforts of the Erard brothers, who were familiar with this type of instrument from their contacts with the Silbermanns in Strasbourg and English builders in London. The Erard grand piano responded to an increasing desire on the part of French musicians for pianos with a stronger tone, undoubtedly to better balance other string and wind instruments which were also evolving towards more sonorous models.
Musikforschung der Hochschule der Künste Bern, 2023
The circumstances surrounding Beethoven’s acquisition of an Erard piano in 1803 have been the sub... more The circumstances surrounding Beethoven’s acquisition of an Erard piano in 1803 have been the subject of much debate among musicologists. Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it had been thought that Beethoven received the piano as a gift in recognition of his international stature as a composer, as had been the case for Haydn in 1800. In 2005, Maria van Epenhuysen Rose seemed to refute this belief in an article arguing that the Erard ledgers prove that Beethoven, then a little-known and largely unappreciated composer in France, ordered the piano from Erard, but never paid for it. This interpretation, however, is based on a misreading of the Erard firm’s bookkeeping practices. The Erard brothers had consistent ways of indicating gifts in the sales ledgers, which are clearly present in the entry for piano n° 133 sent to Beethoven. In my close reading of the Erard ledgers, and in light of newly discovered documents in the Erard family archives, I demonstrate that the piano was indeed a gift from the Erards to Beethoven, although perhaps not for the reasons that had previously been assumed.
To compete with other piano builders, the Erard firm had a potential advantage in having workshop... more To compete with other piano builders, the Erard firm had a potential advantage in having workshops in two different countries. The success of the double-escapement action convinced the Erards to begin making pianos at their London branch. To maintain their position of dominance, the Erards relied increasingly on virtuoso pianists who would promote their instruments in concert. These artistic sponsorships were facilitated through performances at the salons Erard (later the Salle Erard) on the rue du Mail, which became one of the most important concert venues in Paris.
Having obtained a crucial royal protection that allowed them to compete freely with their Parisia... more Having obtained a crucial royal protection that allowed them to compete freely with their Parisian rivals, the Erard brothers concentrated on enlarging their workshop in order to meet the growing demand for their pianos—not only in Paris, but throughout France. The firm hired numerous skilled workers from German-speaking Europe, enticing them by offering a good salary and a stable contract. The success of the Erard firm depended on recruiting, training, and supervising their numerous employees, and stocking their workshops with great quantities of specialised raw materials for instrument manufacture. The Erards developed relationships with musical instrument dealers, musicians, and music teachers as an important way to extend their instrument-building empire across Europe.
In these early years, the Erard firm adopted a surprisingly modern approach to marketing their sq... more In these early years, the Erard firm adopted a surprisingly modern approach to marketing their square pianos and piano organs. Numerous contemporary business concepts are already present, at least in nascent form. The Erards were keen to inspire brand loyalty among their customers, through the wooing of successful musicians, teachers, and dealers, and by offering substantial volume discounts. They also displayed a clear notion of customer service, providing their customers with a sort of mail-order catalogue and reassuring their clients on every detail, from the efficiency of the packing and transport to the quality of their products. The Erards even seemed to subscribe to today’s ‘the customer is always right’ attitude, complying with special requests from musicians. The amount of time and energy the Erards devoted to resolving such problems with their customers demonstrates that the notion of the instrument maker as a solitary artisan, toiling alone in his workshop oblivious to commercial concerns, is a romantic image born in the nineteenth century. The Erards were both artisans and merchants, a dual identity that was necessary in late eighteenth-century Paris, when a new consumer culture coalesced around the hundreds of boutiques of the capital.
One of the musicians who benefited from the Erard pianos made in London was Felix Mendelssohn (18... more One of the musicians who benefited from the Erard pianos made in London was Felix Mendelssohn (1809–47). Mendelssohn became close friends with Pierre and Céleste Erard, and may have been one of the few people familiar with Pierre’s homosexuality. Mendelssohn was not an immediate convert to Erard pianos, but developed a more favourable opinion of them on his 1829 tour of the British Isles and especially during his trips to Paris and London in 1832. In 1832, Pierre gave a gift of a grand piano to Mendelssohn and this piano had an important influence on Mendelssohn’s compositions and concert activity. A precious trace of Mendelssohn’s genius was carefully preserved by the Erard family in the form of an autograph manuscript of Mendelssohn’s Andante in A major, published as the fourth piece in the first volume of Lieder ohne Worte, op. 19b [MWV U 73].
Today the word ‘piano’ connotes a large instrument with a powerful sonority, capable of doing bat... more Today the word ‘piano’ connotes a large instrument with a powerful sonority, capable of doing battle with an entire orchestra in a romantic concerto. There are various features of the modern piano responsible for this image, including a case with a long wing shape reinforced by a cast iron frame, and the high degree of string tension that this frame makes possible. None of these features were present on pianos in eighteenth-century France, where the most common model was the rectangular-shaped piano carré (square piano), whose sound was scarcely more powerful than that of a harp. Before the French Revolution, the Erard firm produced square pianos and hybrid piano-organs. During this period, the Erards strengthened their ties with the French court, which resulted in several exceptional instruments made for Marie-Antoinette.
At the same time that Erard grand pianos were gaining a foothold in France, they were also findin... more At the same time that Erard grand pianos were gaining a foothold in France, they were also finding enthusiasts abroad, even in places where there were established local builders. The Erards shipped grand pianos to both Haydn and Beethoven, instruments that would have an important influence on foreign piano building and piano music. Beethoven’s Erard piano in particular influenced numerous works he composed in the following years. The circumstances surrounding Beethoven’s acquisition of his Erard piano have been the subject of much debate among musicologists. Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it had been thought that Beethoven received the piano as a gift in recognition of his international stature as a composer, as had presumably been the case for Haydn. More recently, it has been argued that the Erard ledgers prove that Beethoven, then a little-known and largely unappreciated composer in France, ordered the piano from Erard, but never paid for it. A closer reading of the Erard ledgers, however, reveals that the piano was indeed a gift from the Erards to Beethoven, although perhaps not for the reasons that had previously been assumed.
Following an apprenticeship with the Strasbourg-based Silbermann brothers, the young Sébastien Er... more Following an apprenticeship with the Strasbourg-based Silbermann brothers, the young Sébastien Erard moved to Paris to begin building keyboard instruments. There he benefited from the patronage of the duchesse de Villeroy, who offered him a workshop, where he was soon joined by his brother Jean-Baptiste. The Erards’ success with pianos motivated them to find a way of giving harpsichords the same expressive possibilities. Their innovations were considered a threat by musical instrument makers and dealers in Paris, who specialised in the import and resale of English pianos. In 1785, Louis XVI granted the Erards a royal privilege exempting them from membership in the guild which governed the activities of Paris instrument builders.
INSTRUMENTS, ORCHESTRAS Collectionner la musique: Erudits collectionneurs [Collecting Music: Erud... more INSTRUMENTS, ORCHESTRAS Collectionner la musique: Erudits collectionneurs [Collecting Music: Erudite Collectors]. Edited by Denis Herlin, Catherine Massip, and Valerie De Wispelaere. (Collectionner la musique, vol. 3.) Turnhout: Brepols, 2015. [580 p. ISBN 9782503553276. i 100.] Illustrations, index.This book is the third volume in a series of proceedings from three successive conferences dedicated to the practice of collecting in the field of music. All three of these conferences took place at the Royaumont Foundation in France, an institution that holds the rich collection of musical autographs formerly belonging to the late pianist Francois Lang (1908-44). The first volume (Collectionner la musique: Histoires d'une passion, ed. Denis Herlin, Catherine Massip, Jean Duron, and Dinko Fabris [Turnhout: Brepols, 2010]), concentrated on the figure of the erudite collector of musical materials in Europe from the Renaissance to the twentieth century. The second volume, Collectionner la musique: au coeur de l'interpretation, ed. Denis Herlin, Catherine Massip, and Jean Duron [Turnhout: Brepols, 2012]), focused on performers who were also collectors, and whose collecting impulse was often an outgrowth of their historical approach to music. The third volume, like the first, is again dedicated to erudite musical collectors from the sixteenth century to the present. The eighteen articles that comprise the third volume are divided, somewhat artificially, into three parts: "Assembling and Constructing Knowledge" (p. 27; all translations are my own), "Erudition and Society" (p. 257), and "Erudite Collectors: Portraits" (p. 359).Although the majority of the collections described in this volume are composed of books and music scores (both autographs and early editions), some collections also include musical autographs such as composers' letters, and one article is devoted to collections of musical instruments. All articles are in French, including those by English authors on decidedly non-French topics, such as Graham Sadler's study of Charles Burney's music library.Many of the contributors to the volume share a similar methodology. The author begins with lists or catalogs of works that once made up a music library, a library that may or may not still exist. The author then proceeds to draw various conclusions from these lists in order to shed light on the collector and his possible motives. The analyses of the composition of these collections, however, are necessarily based on a certain amount of guesswork. The absence of instrumental works, for example, may indicate that the collector in question was not himself a practicing musician. But does the appearance of a book or a score in a collection necessarily mean that it was read, studied or used for a performance? Contributors to this volume are sensitive to this question to varying degrees.In her opening essay, Catherine Massip presents a wide survey of musical collectors, attempting to determine the moment when erudition and the necessary gathering of research materials are transformed into an actual passion for collecting. She does this by analyzing the correspondence of several collectors, for example that between nineteenth-century music publisher Aristide Farrenc (1794-1865) and the collector and music historian Gaetano Gaspari (1807-s81). Massip's considerable experience as head of the music department of the Bibliotheque nationale de France over many years is evident, as she retraces the history of collections that have enriched that library from the nineteenth century to the present, placing an emphasis on the dynamism and synergy between private and public collections. Indeed, many articles in the volume retrace the history of private collections that ended up in the Bibliotheque nationale de France, often by way of the library of the Paris Conservatoire, which merged its collections with the larger intuition in 1935. Massip ends her essay by underscoring the role of the individual collector's judgment, reminding the reader that the word "collection" is derived from the verb colligere, to choose. …
'FEW WERE moved; it was a weak succis d'estime." With these words, the violinist Jos... more 'FEW WERE moved; it was a weak succis d'estime." With these words, the violinist Joseph Bohm described the premiere of Beethoven's String Quartet in E flat Op. 127. Indeed, of the incongruities between original and present-day receptions of Beethoven's music, few are as striking as in the case of this quartet. This work, today referred to as 'of all Beethoven's works his crowning monument to lyricism',2 was generally viewed as incomprehensible by its first performers and listeners. In the brief review for the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, the critic admitted: 'opinions were divided on this matter [Op. 127], this writer not excepted, because it was understood and completely comprehended by the very few'.3 The traditional explanation for the failure to appreciate this work can be summarized as follows: there was scarcely enough rehearsal time for such a difficult work; and at the premiere, Ignaz Schuppanzighthe leader of the quartet-played particularly badly. However, subsequent performances led by Joseph B6hm and Joseph Mayseder, which were more carefully prepared, won widespread approval for the quartet.4 The foregoing interpretation of the events, while partly true, paints an incomplete picture of the first performances and raises more questions than it answers. For example: what were the other quartets in the repertory of the Schuppanzigh Quartet at this time, and were there any of comparable difficulty to Op. 127? How much rehearsal time was usually allocated to new quartets? What was wrong with the way Schuppanzigh played, and were there any who believed that he had played well? How much rehearsal time did the B6hm and Mayseder Quartets have, and were their performances also problematic? Who was providing Beethoven, at this time either nearly or completely deaf, with information on the quality of the performances? Finally, and perhaps most important: what were the specific difficulties that the original performers (see Table I) faced in interpreting this work?
During the years following the invention of the double-escapement action, Sébastien became too il... more During the years following the invention of the double-escapement action, Sébastien became too ill to manage the operations of the firm. With Sébastien indisposed, Jean-Baptiste took a more active role in the inventive work, and in particular with refinements to the double escapement action. Jean-Baptiste’s death in 1826, however, left Sébastien and Pierre deeply uneasy about the future of their family enterprise. Pierre understood that in order to ensure the perennity of the Erard firm he needed a successor, because the workers trained at the London branch would not necessarily be as motivated as would an Erard family member to invest their efforts and capital in the firm. Since Sébastien remained single, and Céleste childless and in any case living in Berlin, far from the family enterprise, Pierre would have certainly felt pressure to marry and found a family. However, Pierre’s homosexuality, kept secret from his family and only recently discovered, made marriage and the subsequent transmission of the family enterprise to a potential heir problematic. When Pierre returned to Paris after his father’s death, he came to the realisation that his father had been a poor manager who left the firm in a disastrous financial state. As a result, Sébastien threatened to close the Paris branch, but in the end maintained it while making drastic reductions in the workforce.
Establishing a piano manufacture in Paris required a substantial outlay of capital: for the vast ... more Establishing a piano manufacture in Paris required a substantial outlay of capital: for the vast properties on the rue du Mail, the machinery for making pianos and harps, the large quantities of raw materials, and the money to pay the 120 workers. The Erards relied heavily on credit to fund their commercial operations, confident that the quality of their instruments would bring in the income needed to pay their creditors. The French Revolution came at the worst possible time for their business. Foreign sales became impossible and domestic sales increasingly difficult; as a result, they had little income to offset their enormous investments. Faced with drastically reduced income, the firm still needed to pay their creditors and their workers, as well as maintain their properties. Moreover, the Erard empire was forcefully riven in two by the protracted state of war between the French Republic and Great Britain. The Treaty of Amiens gave the Erards a glimmer of hope. They quadrupled their stock of materials, rented new storerooms, enlarged their workshops and hired additional workers. The Erards’ enormous investments in their firm turned out to be a tragic miscalculation. Napoleon’s trade blockages exacerbated the Erards’ financial woes, and in February 1813 the Paris branch of the Erard firm officially declared bankruptcy.
For more than fifty years, the Erard firm had enjoyed relatively stable management in the hands o... more For more than fifty years, the Erard firm had enjoyed relatively stable management in the hands of Sébastien and Jean-Baptiste. Sébastien’s death in 1831, however, ushered in a volatile period of just over twenty years during which the direction of the firm would change twice. At first, Pierre took control of the enterprise, doing his best to maintain the firm’s reputation for innovation. But Pierre’s unexpected cognitive decline and early death resulted in the transfer of the firm’s management to his wife Camille, thrusting the future of the Erard manufacture into unknown territory.
Pierre Erard’s death meant that for the first time in over eighty years there was no longer an in... more Pierre Erard’s death meant that for the first time in over eighty years there was no longer an inventive genius running the Erard firm. But by assuming control of the firm, Camille became one of the only women of her time to run a large-scale international business and one of the few women to make her mark in the history of musical instrument manufacture. The recognition of her authority as head of the firm by musicians such as Richard Wagner and Clara Schumann gave Camille the confidence to undertake two ambitious and transformative construction projects. The first of these initiatives was to build a concert hall on the premises of the rue du Mail. The second was to construct a vast modern factory on the outskirts of Paris. In the end, a lack of innovation combined with increased competition from German and American piano builders was the cause of the eventual demise of the Erard firm.
Sébastien Erard’s most famous invention for the piano was the double-escapement action, which all... more Sébastien Erard’s most famous invention for the piano was the double-escapement action, which allows the pianist to rapidly repeat a given note without completely releasing the key, thus rendering the key and the hammer totally independent from each other. This action revolutionised the design of piano mechanisms and had a profound impact on music written for the instrument. Far from being an isolated discovery from the 1820s, Sébastien’s invention was the culmination of a lifetime of searching for ways to make the piano more responsive to the musician’s touch, all the while maintaining a powerful tone.
The first pianos, built by Cristofori in Florence near the turn of the eighteenth century, were a... more The first pianos, built by Cristofori in Florence near the turn of the eighteenth century, were already ‘grand’ pianos, their shape derived from that of the harpsichord. The invention gradually began to spread across the continent, and by the mid-1780s grand pianos were common instruments in London. This pan-European development stands in stark contrast to the grand piano’s reception in France, where the harpsichord reigned supreme. Indeed, until the 1760s, the piano—regardless of its size or shape—was almost completely absent from the French musical scene, and it was not until around 1810 that the grand piano became a frequently used instrument in France. Without a sonorous instrument capable of projecting an interesting palette of nuanced effects in a moderate to large space, it was difficult to develop an independent repertoire for the piano. The eventual adoption of the grand piano in France was largely due to the efforts of the Erard brothers, who were familiar with this type of instrument from their contacts with the Silbermanns in Strasbourg and English builders in London. The Erard grand piano responded to an increasing desire on the part of French musicians for pianos with a stronger tone, undoubtedly to better balance other string and wind instruments which were also evolving towards more sonorous models.
Musikforschung der Hochschule der Künste Bern, 2023
The circumstances surrounding Beethoven’s acquisition of an Erard piano in 1803 have been the sub... more The circumstances surrounding Beethoven’s acquisition of an Erard piano in 1803 have been the subject of much debate among musicologists. Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it had been thought that Beethoven received the piano as a gift in recognition of his international stature as a composer, as had been the case for Haydn in 1800. In 2005, Maria van Epenhuysen Rose seemed to refute this belief in an article arguing that the Erard ledgers prove that Beethoven, then a little-known and largely unappreciated composer in France, ordered the piano from Erard, but never paid for it. This interpretation, however, is based on a misreading of the Erard firm’s bookkeeping practices. The Erard brothers had consistent ways of indicating gifts in the sales ledgers, which are clearly present in the entry for piano n° 133 sent to Beethoven. In my close reading of the Erard ledgers, and in light of newly discovered documents in the Erard family archives, I demonstrate that the piano was indeed a gift from the Erards to Beethoven, although perhaps not for the reasons that had previously been assumed.
To compete with other piano builders, the Erard firm had a potential advantage in having workshop... more To compete with other piano builders, the Erard firm had a potential advantage in having workshops in two different countries. The success of the double-escapement action convinced the Erards to begin making pianos at their London branch. To maintain their position of dominance, the Erards relied increasingly on virtuoso pianists who would promote their instruments in concert. These artistic sponsorships were facilitated through performances at the salons Erard (later the Salle Erard) on the rue du Mail, which became one of the most important concert venues in Paris.
L'introduction de la harpe à double mouvement à Londres, à travers les registres de la maison Era... more L'introduction de la harpe à double mouvement à Londres, à travers les registres de la maison Erard par Jenny Nex Conservateur du Musée des instruments, Royal College of Music, Londres (traduit de l'anglais par Robert Adelson)
Depuis le XIV e siècle, alors que le compositeur Guillaume de Machaut décrit l'orgue comme « le r... more Depuis le XIV e siècle, alors que le compositeur Guillaume de Machaut décrit l'orgue comme « le roi des instruments », les instruments à clavier occupent une position privilégiée dans la culture musicale occidentale. Le clavecin est l'instrument obligatoire et omniprésent jusqu'à la fin du XVIII e siècle, dans le salon aristocratique ainsi qu'à l'opéra. Ensuite, le piano devient le véhicule des pensées les plus profondes et intimes des compositeurs du XVIII e siècle jusqu'à nos jours, et sert comme l'instrument principal des amateurs et des salons bourgeois. Aujourd'hui, l'influence dominante des claviers dépasse les frontières mêmes du domaine musical : la machine à écrire, le clavier de l'ordinateur et des téléphones tactiles dépendent tous d'une disposition de touches ou de boutons qui permet un mode de saisie commun pour actionner divers mécanismes, de la même façon que le dispositif d'un clavier musical permet une technique de jeu commune sur des instruments aussi différents que le clavicorde et l'orgue. Dans cette exposition le public peut voir et entendre de nombreux pianos, clavecins, clavicordes et orgues exceptionnels récemment acquis par le musée, provenant de la partie pianistique du Fonds Gaveau-Érard-Pleyel (déposé au palais Lascaris par le Groupe AXA en 2009), de la célèbre collection de l'Association Ad Libitum (déposée au palais Lascaris en 2011) et de plusieurs dons récents. Parmi ces pièces phares de l'exposition notons le clavecin de Jean-Marie Dedeban (Paris, c. 1770, anciennement conservé au Musée Smithsonian à Washington) et le piano en forme de clavecin de Sébastien Érard (Paris, 1795), le plus ancien exemplaire de ce modèle en état de jeu. D'autres pianos, de Walter, Schätzel, Pleyel, Boisselot et Bechstein seront joués dans un cycle de concerts, et l'exposition se terminera avec le premier concert, après sa restauration méticuleuse, du clavecin rarissime de Claude Labrèche (Carpentras, 1699).
Écrire l’opéra au féminin : créativité et controverse à l’époque de la Révolution française, 2017
La Révolution française favorise rêves et ambitions chez les femmes et la transition entre Ancien... more La Révolution française favorise rêves et ambitions chez les femmes et la transition entre Ancien Régime et nouveau contexte politique leur donne l’opportunité de se redéfinir. Femmes de théâtre et femmes de lettres embrassent les principes égalitaires et libertaires de la Révolution avec enthousiasme et accèdent au domaine de l’opéra, monde alors dominé par les hommes, exposé aux intrigues politiques et aux querelles esthétiques. Malgré ces obstacles, les opéras des femmes sont parmi les plus joués à Paris. Cette présence affirme donc leur droit à une carrière publique et à l’expression artistique, bien qu’elles soient perçues comme une menace et rebelles à leur condition. Ce phénomène, dont la période s’étend de 1770 à 1820 environ, restera inégalé en Europe et pour les siècles suivants. À partir des années 1820, la défaite des femmes sera d’autant plus poignante qu’elles étaient convaincues que leurs succès trouveraient confirmation dans la génération suivante. Cet ouvrage s’intéresse aux phénomènes qui ont rendu possible cette floraison d’opéras de femmes. La première partie se concentre sur celles qui ont réussi à faire représenter leurs opéras sur scène : elle donne un aperçu des auteures et de leurs œuvres, expose les moyens par lesquels les femmes ont pu acquérir leur éducation musicale, présente les obstacles institutionnels qu’elles ont dû surmonter pour voir leurs opéras produits sur les théâtres parisiens et traite des problèmes associés à l’affirmation de leur autorité et de la paternité sur leurs œuvres. La deuxième partie est une étude détaillée du cas d’Isabelle de Charrière, témoin du succès de ses collègues féminines dont elle partagea les ambitions, mais qui ne réussit pas à surmonter les obstacles qui se sont dressés sur son parcours malgré ses efforts.
Autographes musicaux du XIXe siècle: L’album niçois du Comte de Cessole — Nineteenth-Century Musical Autographs: The Niçois Album of the Count of Cessole, 2020
In the history of music in Nice, one document has acquired mythical status: the album of musical ... more In the history of music in Nice, one document has acquired mythical status: the album of musical autographs belonging to the Count Eugène de Cessole (1805-1876), a passionate dilettante musician. This album, preciously preserved by the Cessole family, contains the signatures of the most illustrious composers of the time, including Berlioz, Czerny, Donizetti, Glinka, Gounod, Liszt, Mendelssohn, Mercadante, Meyerbeer, Offenbach, Rossini and Verdi. The Count of Cessole possessed one of the most prestigious collections of violins in the first half of the nineteenth century, and for this reason his album contains the autographs of countless virtuoso violinists such as Paganini, Alard, Artôt, Bazzini, Becker, Bériot, Bull, Ernst, Lafont, Léonard, Sivori, Spohr and Vieuxtemps. The proximity of Cessole's salon (Palais de la Place Saint-Dominique, now Place du Palais) to the Nice Opera House also explains the presence of autographs of the greatest opera singers of the time, such as Lablache, Lind, Maurel, Melba, Nilsson, Patti, Tamburini, and Tamagno. The originality of this album is that it is not a simple « guest book » of signatures; each artist adds a small musical autograph, whether it is a musical enigma of a few measures or an entire piece. This edition presents for the first time these works, many of which are unpublished, accompanied by rich illustrations and historical notes to bring to life the musical salon of the Cessole family.
Sébastien Erard’s (1752–1831) inventions have had an enormous impact on instruments and musical l... more Sébastien Erard’s (1752–1831) inventions have had an enormous impact on instruments and musical life and are still at the foundation of piano building today. Drawing on an unusually rich set of archives from both the Erard firm and the Erard family, Robert Adelson shows how the Erard piano played an important and often leading role in the history of the instrument, beginning in the late eighteenth century and continuing into the final decades of the nineteenth. The Erards were the first piano builders in France to prioritise the more sonorous grand piano, sending gifts of their new model to both Haydn and Beethoven. Erard’s famous double-escapement action, which improved the instrument’s response while at the same time producing a more powerful tone, revolutionised both piano construction and repertoire. Thanks to these inventions, the Erard firm developed close relationships with the greatest pianist composers of the nineteenth century, including Hummel, Liszt, Moscheles, and Mendelssohn. The book also presents new evidence concerning Pierre Erard’s homosexuality, which helps us to understand his reluctance to found a family to carry on the Erard tradition, a reluctance that would spell the end of the golden era of the firm and lead to its eventual demise. The book closes with the story of Pierre’s widow Camille, who directed the firm from 1855 until 1889. Her influential position in the male-dominated world of instrument building was unique for a woman of her time.
Erard: Empire of the Harp/ Erard : L'empire de la harpe, 2022
Sébastien Erard (1752-1831) is considered the father of the modern harp, and with reason. His two... more Sébastien Erard (1752-1831) is considered the father of the modern harp, and with reason. His two major contributions to the construction of the instrument are still the basis of today’s models: the mechanism of forked discs that shorten the vibra- ting length of the strings by a semitone; and the double action, which allows the harpist to play in all keys. The Erard firm’s hegemony resulted not only from the evident musical and technical superiority of these inventions, but also from their ambition to market these instruments across the globe. Through the business and family archives, as well as numerous rare instruments, this book tells the exciting story of this Erard empire. https://shop.camac-harps.com/en/product/adelson-robert-erard-the-empire-of-the-harp/
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