The world's oldest surviving piano manufacturer is celebrating the 200 years since it gifted Beethoven with the piano that inspired his late piano sonatas, by hosting a series of events.
In 1817, Thomas Broadwood of John Broadwood & Sons met the then 47 year-old composer in Vienna, who was suffering from near total deafness and was too poor to purchase his own piano. Broadwood decided to surprise him with a grand piano, sending it from London to Vienna on a journey by boat and on horseback.
Beethoven composed his late piano sonatas (opp. 106, 109, and 110) on the instrument, writing in a letter to Broadwood: ‘I shall look upon it as an altar upon which I shall place the most beautiful offerings of my spirit to the divine Apollo.’
To commemorate the 200 year anniversary of the event, John Broadwood & Sons is hosting a series of events across Europe, including a run of UK concerts and talks at the Royal Academy of Music and Finchcocks in Kent, who will be donating all profits to Help Musicians UK.
See below for the full list of UK events:
28 and 29 April: Clarke Clavier Collection, Norfolk – Japanese pianist Mariko Koide performs on an 1812 Broadwood grand
2 and 9 May: Royal Academy of Music, London – Lunchtime recitals by Yehuda Inbar and Amiran Zenaishvili
7 to 8 May: Royal Academy of Music, London – Talk and demonstration by Dr Alastair Laurence, chairman of John Broadwood & Sons
27 May: Finchcocks, Kent – Paul Roberts performs Beethoven and Debussy on a 1921 Broadwood steel barless grand
10 June: Finchcocks, Kent – Julian Trevelyan plays Beethoven on early Broadwood grands, with commentaries from Dr Alastair Laurence
In 1817, Thomas Broadwood of John Broadwood & Sons met the then 47 year-old composer in Vienna, who was suffering from near total deafness and was too poor to purchase his own piano. Broadwood decided to surprise him with a grand piano, sending it from London to Vienna on a journey by boat and on horseback.
Beethoven composed his late piano sonatas (opp. 106, 109, and 110) on the instrument, writing in a letter to Broadwood: ‘I shall look upon it as an altar upon which I shall place the most beautiful offerings of my spirit to the divine Apollo.’
To commemorate the 200 year anniversary of the event, John Broadwood & Sons is hosting a series of events across Europe, including a run of UK concerts and talks at the Royal Academy of Music and Finchcocks in Kent, who will be donating all profits to Help Musicians UK.
See below for the full list of UK events:
28 and 29 April: Clarke Clavier Collection, Norfolk – Japanese pianist Mariko Koide performs on an 1812 Broadwood grand
2 and 9 May: Royal Academy of Music, London – Lunchtime recitals by Yehuda Inbar and Amiran Zenaishvili
7 to 8 May: Royal Academy of Music, London – Talk and demonstration by Dr Alastair Laurence, chairman of John Broadwood & Sons
27 May: Finchcocks, Kent – Paul Roberts performs Beethoven and Debussy on a 1921 Broadwood steel barless grand
10 June: Finchcocks, Kent – Julian Trevelyan plays Beethoven on early Broadwood grands, with commentaries from Dr Alastair Laurence
