This pre-civil war Knabe and Gaehle square grand piano was built in Baltimore, Maryland around 1841 and transported to Mississippi via steamboat. Even though the piano was a mere thirty miles from the raging civil war battle of Vickburg, Mississippi, the piano quietly sat out the civil war. Interesting enough, General Robert E. Lee was a frequent honored guest at the Knabe family home in Baltimore. Francis Scott Key, (#1053), Woodrow Wilson and Herbert Hoover all owned Knabe pianos.
The MIDI file that is hopefully playing on your Web browser now, Frederic Chopin's Military Polonaise, has been edited and transposed to demonstrate the range of the Knabe and Gaehle square piano.
We spent 758 manhours restoring this 1841 Knabe & Gaehle square grand piano, (#1104), to its original condition. We are interested in your comment if you have restored a square piano or are familiar with Knabe & Gaehle or if you just want to talk piano restoration. Links to this page are welcome. Enjoy the site; there is a lot of information here.
Click on case in above picture or here to see pictures of work on piano case with animation.
Click on keyboard in above picture or here to see pictures of work on piano action with animation.
Click on newspaper article on the wall in above picture or here to see pictures of final assembly.
Click on logbook in above picture or here for technical specifications.
Click on calculator in above picture or here for interactive string calculator!
Click on portrait in above picture or here for information on Mr. Knabe
Link to One of our suppliers
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