John Broadwood & Sons Ltd.

BiographyBroadwood & Sons was among the most prominent of the major piano manufacturers, and was certainly the most renowned within the United Kingdom. The firm was founded in 1782 by John Broadwood, a Scottish cabinetmaker, who had relocated to London in the early 1760s, where he gained employment with the Swiss harpsichord builder Burkat Shudi. Their first grand fortepianos were constructed in 1784 with the two focusing exclusively on the manufacture of these instruments from 1793 onward. The firm became officially branded as John Broadwood & Son in 1794, recognizing the contributions of Broadwood’s son, James, who had been involved in building for nearly a decade prior. A second name change to John Broadwood & Sons came in 1808 when another of Broadwood’s sons, Thomas, joined the firm. In 1901, the name was incorporated to become John Broadwood & Sons Ltd., of which it still remains. The first Broadwood square pianos emerged in around 1775 with improvements from Johannes Zumpe’s first instantiations of the alternative design including implementing the first pedals into the instrument. Production of square pianos ceased in 1866. Perhaps Broadwood’s most notable contribution to piano design was in regard to the extension of the keyboard from its earlier four- or five-octave compass. By 1794, the first six-octave fortepianos were in use by notable composers of the time, with the first seven-octave versions following in 1820. Broadwood was also pivotal in developing the notion of the “grand” piano, which first emerged in common parlance in 1777. An extensive series of documents pertaining to the history of this firm are located in the Surrey County Council Archive Office in Surrey, England, United Kingdom. Broadwood pianos, especially in comparison to those of their Austrian and German competitors, were known for their robust construction and full tone.