Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum any Knabe enthusiasts/nerds/know-it-alls? [proud new owner]

Hello!

Looking for some obsessive fan-boy type Knabe enthusiasts to point me in the direction of specific history I'm not finding with my bumbling google searches.

Three? weeks ago I bought a knabe concert grand, Just picked it up two days ago! Umm I understand now why the pros charge what they do to move pianos hahaha. Moving it myself, I saved all of $500, but I now own a skidboard and a walkboard/ramp, so there's that. And, EA would approve of the sense of pride and accomplishment I now have from orchestrating my own self-move of my piano
if anyone's wondering, I didn't go the pro route partially because I thought I would save money, but more critically I didn't actually have the choice in the matter: the piano was located in a small town, and the only mover there who specialized in pianos was booked through August. I got a price on the piano itself that I did, because the seller is ALSO selling the entire house (probably a common story) and needed it gone in July. So genuinely it wasn't much of a choice, I found a good crew in the small town after getting all the parts myself, rented a truck, drove 360 miles, and got different help on the receiving end. I'll probably post a story of my piano-moving roadtrip adventure later.

Anyway, I'd love to really learn a lot more about my new baby!

For one, he's back home in Baltimore where he was built: do any of the original factories still remain, in any part? (even if converted to hipster lofts haha)

The serial No. is 38069, it's a full 9' concert grand. The internet very generally has "1890-1895" can I find out somewhere more specifically when? how many of that model?

what did the knabe concert grands of this era actually weigh?
I was told by the previous owner, "850-900#" but it's carved rosewood and, each of two sets of movers I hired to help me with muscle on both ends of the inter-state move all stated that there is NO weigh it was only 900# hahaha. Now for bragging rights I'd like to know just how much weight we moved! The most difficult part was rolling down 6 stairs from the porch, the second most difficult part was rolling back up the ramp into the van.

did the sostenuto pedal work the way the modern ones do (it might just be broken)?

umm, did knabe have an official matching bench? I could recreate it perhaps in the woodshop, if I had a photo

...that sort of thing.

Hi

Congratulations!
I understood how you feel about wanting to know everything— I feel the same way about my 1907 M & H

I can’t give you much information, unfortunately— But I can assure you your pisno weighs more than 990 pounds.

I would contact the Baltimore Historical Society. You can also search online for Knabe patents through the US Patent Office. You can complete the ‘contact us’ card with Knabe to see if they have any historical records

https://www.knabepianos.com/

You will appreciate this 1894 Knabe piano advertising card, for sale on eBay

https://www.ebay.com/itm/264682135295?hash=item3da048deff:g:rc8AAOSws6Ref8TY

Sorry I can’t provide anything concrete— just crumbles

Cool story. I can identify with buying equipment and trekking off to bring a piano home! But I probably wouldn't try it for a grand, let alone a concert grand.

Kudos to you for pulling it off!

It sounds like a handsome piano. Love to see some pictures.

I could only tell you two things, and you already know them: 1) built in Baltimore, and 2) people in this area love them.

My mentor (and now his widow) owned a partially-rebuilt Knabe concert grand. It had resided in the Lyric Theatre in Baltimore before he bought it. Rachmaninov's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini was premiered in that very location with the Philadelphia Orchestra and Stokoswki in 1934. In my mind, that is the same piano on which Rachmaninov played the premiere of his piece, but there is probably no way to really know... His widow wants to sell it, but who knows when that will happen. It currently resides in the Baltimore suburbs as well.

Actually, you could probably find a program from that concert, and it would probably state what piano was used. Likely it was a Steinway.

I'm a big Knabe fan and hope others will chime in soon. Do you have pics and/or recordings of your piano?

I am a huge fan of original Knabe pianos. When you post photos please be sure to include photos of the cast frame of the piano as well as the pin block and tuning pin area. Early 1890's Knabes should be modern, but I am interested in the details.

Enjoy your "new" piano.

The pinblock is probably morticed into the case (similar to Bechstein) and is a bear to replace, the sostenuto (as I recall) is a strange setup (unless I'm thinking of the Henry F. Miller concert grand). Should have quite some potential.

Peter Grey Piano Doctor

My piano teacher in the late 80s back in California had an 1890s-era Knabe concert grand in his studio. It was a wonderful sounding piano. However, I never got to play it; instead, we students used the Steinway D in the same room. Probably he wanted to keep the Knabe from getting too beat up.

I had one of these once...long time ago in a shop far, far away...

Peter Grey Piano Doctor

You MIGHT be thinking of a Henry Miller, Paul, but Knabe's of that time are unusual as well.

It was 35 or more years ago. Now that I've thought about it a little more I think I am thinking of the Miller (which BTW was an awesome piano). I can't quite recall the setup on the Knabe (which came after the Miller).

Peter Grey Piano Doctor

The old Knabe concert grand I remember had a sostenuto rod which had hinged tongues on it for each key, rather than the usual hinged tongues on the underlevers.

In speaking today with my mentor's widow, who now owns the Knabe concert grand (she is a pianist herself; he was a violinist and conductor), she said that the company that partially rebuilt the Knabe did some research and did indeed discover that it was the very piano used at the Lyric Theater in Baltimore for the premiere of Rachmaninov's "Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini" with the Philadelphia Orchestra and Stokowski with the composer at the piano. Of course, that research was likely done a few decades ago, and who knows who can vouch for that information now. However, the provenance of the piano can be traced directly to Peabody Conservatory, which used to lend pianos to the Lyric Theater since the theater itself did not own a concert grand.

If there is some sort of paper trail to this effect it could b e very useful.

The story I heard about my family's Bechstein B (what I grew up on) traced it back to Andrew Carnegie. Unfortunately though no proof could ever be found.

Peter Grey Piano Doctor

True, if there is any veracity to the claims made by the rebuilder, it was probably because they got the info from records at Peabody, but this was, at the latest, the early 1980's. Those records could possibly still exist. If Peabody did indeed loan out the piano to the Lyric, it's possible there was a paper trail with dates that corresponded to the Rach premiere. It might be worth trying to get in touch with Peabody to see if the records still exist, since this is possibly an instrument of historical importance; one of the most important pianist/composers of the early 20th century playing what is quite possibly his most well-known work for piano and orchestra.

I once had a SS model L signed by Rachmaninoff when SS used to sponsor private little concerts in the 30's in homes. The artist would sign the piano and (hopefully) some well-to-do invited guest would buy it.

Sold it at a good profit. Wish I had it now.

Peter Grey Piano Doctor