The Historic Piano Collection	Click photo for larger picture	Concerts and Events The Spring 2009 Schedule is up.
housed in the  former Stevens Library Building Main St, Ashburnham, MA. 01430 (next to the Ashburnham Town Hall) See Map for Directions

	Published Articles	Excerpts from Grove Article	Commentary on the Collection
	Background of the Collection	Changes in Piano Keyboard Range	Compact Disc Recordings
	A Different Perspective on Piano History	An interesting link.	How a Piano Works

The Frederick Collection of Period Grand Pianos includes over twenty original pianos in playing condition, specifically, the sorts of pianos known to important composers from about 1790 to 1907. At present, there is no comparable collection of period, playing grand pianos in the United States. Most museum collections that include pianos focus on their decorative appearance rather than their musical value. Such instruments are rarely used for performance; perhaps two or three pianos in each of the other major collections in this country are maintained in regular playing condition. The following points clarify the purpose of the Collection

• Piano was the most important solo instrument, for which the most music was composed, from the late 18th through early 20th centuries.

• Music from the late 18th through early 20th centuries represents the core of present-day piano repertory.

• Until around World War I, piano design was constantly changing. As in clothing fashion and furniture design, changes in taste do not necessarily mean improvement. Piano design changes reflect not only shifts in musical taste, but also ideals of technical perfection rooted as much in the Industrial Revolution as in music.

• Every composer wrote for the pianos he knew, capitalizing on particular musical effects available from those instruments. The same music played on a significantly different instrument will have a different sound, and not necessarily one the composer would have preferred.

• To hear and/or play the piano literature on an instrument such as it was conceived for, is to discover important features of the music. Effects unavailable on the standard modern piano (bass/treble balance, clarity of bass tone, tone-color changes over the dynamic range) become evident, enriching one’s appreciation and enjoyment of the music.

• Built on the Frederick Piano Collection, the Historical Piano Study Center offers lecture-recitals, master classes, seminars, workshops, tours and recordings.

• Located in a handsome, handicapped-accessible, renovated 1890 former public library building, the Collection is conveniently accessible to persons who value its resources, including pianists, musicians who perform with piano accompaniment, music scholars, teachers, students, music critics, piano technicians, builders of historic instrument replicas, concertgoers, and interested members of the general public.

For further information on the Historical Piano Concert Series, The  Historical Piano Study Center or any other item on this page please send e-mail to the .

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