Upright piano
Trade Name
Karl Hiller
Distributor
Aengenheyster Ltd.
Date1890-1920 ca.
Place MadeBerlin, Germany, Europe
Serial No.02918
SignedKarl Hiller, BerlinAengenheyster Ltd. Sole Agents, Sydney
MarkingsPunched on top left corner of soundboard and written in pencil on underside of key slip: 02918
Written in pencil on underside of fallboard: 2918
DescriptionThe name Karl Hiller appears to be a fictious trade name, not related to Karl Hiller the Breslau (Wroclaw) piano dealer. Upright pianos with false trade names inlaid in the fallboard in brass, along with the name of the distributor, were available on the international market before WWII. This piano was apparently sold in Sydney, Australia, before making its way to Custer, in western South Dakota. The case is designed in an Art Nouveau manner, often called Jungenstil in German-speaking areas.
Compass: AAA-a4 (7 octave) 85 notes
Two pedals: Left: soft (half-blow); Right: damper
Construction:
Case veneered in mahogany with incised lines on the keywell and bracket style legs. Upper and lower panels are framed; the upper panel has tulip-like carvings on the upper corners and incised horizontal lines top center.
Cast iron frame, identical to modern frames except in the pin area.
Tuning pins extend through a brass plate, which is bolted in place.
Bridges and nuts are in four sections corresponding to the frame: AAA-b, c-a1, b-flat-d-sharp3, and e3-a4.
Bridges are double pinned throughout.
The treble bridge is tapered at the lower end and extends about 110 mm beyond the strings.
Bass bridge cantilevered.
The two nuts in the bass consist of metal rods mounted to a raised section of the cast iron frame and are single pinned.
The treble section has pressure bars.
Soundboard grain runs from lower left to upper right.
There are two brass double candle holders.
Action:
Modern upright action, without stickers
The capstans are flathead screws, inserted into a wood block and covered with cloth at the back of the key.
The capstan block directly contacts the whippen assembly, taking the place of stickers.
The hammer return spring consists of a rope mounted to the hammer flange and a spring hook mounted to the hammer butt.
Modern hammers.
Dampers:
Compass AAA-c3
Modern dampers
Keyboard:
The naturals have one-piece plastic cvoers.
Sharps are stained wood
Key levers are weighted
Stringing and scaling:
AAA-b overstrung
AAA-AA: Single strung, steel wound with copper
BB-flat- d: Double string, steel wound with copper
d-sharp-a4: Triple strung, steel
Cataloging description, Rodger Kelly, 1991
DimensionsLength: 1450 mm (4' 9-1/16")
Width: 622 mm (2' 1/2")
Height: 1210 mm ( 3' 11-5/8")
Keyboard:
Three octave measure: 490 mm
Width of heads: 21 mm
Published ReferencesRodger S. Kelly, A Catalog of European Pianos in the Shrine to Music Museum, MM Thesis, University of South Dakota, 1991, p. 152-153.
Credit LineBoard of Trustees, 1975
Object number01281
On View
Not on view
