neumeyer & co.

[John Delacour]

At 7:33 PM +0100 5/2/02, antares wrote:
>NEUMEYER. Gebr. Berlin, Germany, 1905
>
>That's all it says in the Pierce Piano atlas.
>
>Here in Europe Neumeyers are not really outstanding, you hardly see them
>anymore.
>In the past I have tuned quite a number of them and I can remember 
>that the tuning pins were a problem because the drilled holes in the 
>iron frame were a little narrow or maybe simply too small, causing 
>extra friction between frame and pins. Not a bad piano, not a great 
>piano. sort of middle of the road and probably not too expensive in 
>'those' days.

Yes, I have never come across a really nice Neumeyer but it was a 
firm that tried some interesting things at different times in its 
history.  The later uprights (post 1900) can be quite acceptable and 
standard, but I've seen earlier Neumeyers with triple overstringing 
(four bridges at different levels) and small grands with no bracings 
and things like that.  I like to see these oddities that were finally 
killed off at the end of the century, like the beautifully made old 
Kaps with Helmholtz resonators in the extreme treble.

Talking of oddities, I finally tracked down an 1870s Brinsmead 
upright with the patent tuning system this week and today paid the 
lady the £100 it's worth to me.  The hammers are like new except for 
the dust, so it will be fun to work on.  The tuning "dollies" are 
parallel with the strings and slidable in a massive flange integral 
with the string plate.  A long hexagonal nut draws the dolly up and 
the string is hooked onto the bottom of it.  Everyone who has 
experience of this system says it's excellent, so I hope to confirm 
that when I've had a good look in a strong light.  It looks very 
solid and tidy, and this piano is pretty well in tune after ten years 
of neglect.

I'll take some pictures and make them available.

cf. <http://www.uk-piano.org/history/brin_f4.gif> -- though mine is 
quite a bit different.

JD