Golden Age of the Piano

Last updated

The Golden Age of the Piano refers to a "golden age" extending from the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century during which composing and performance on the piano achieved notable heights; [1] or to the decades between roughly 1890 and 1920, in which pianos were manufactured and sold in great quantities, particularly in the United States. [2]

Among the artists associated with the Golden Age of the Piano are Vladimir Horowitz, Glenn Gould, Wanda Landowska, Myra Hess, Arthur Rubinstein, Alexander Brailowsky, Ignacy Jan Paderewski, Josef Hofmann, Percy Grainger, Alfred Cortot, and Van Cliburn. [3]

The term is also used to describe the decades in which the piano became ubiquitous in U.S. middle-class households and certain types of public spaces. "The end of the 19th century and the start of the 20th century has often been called 'The Golden Age of the Piano'", Randy Rowoldt wrote in the Small Home Gazette in 2018. "In an age before radio and television, and in a time when only the wealthy could afford a record player, the piano was a sign that a family had achieved middle-class respectability." [2] Hundreds of piano manufacturers were founded between 1880 and 1910 to serve the burgeoning market. In 1892, for example, the country's total estimated production was 100,000 pianos, most made by manufacturers in and around New York City and Boston. [4]

The arrival of the phonograph in the early 1900s and commercial radio in the 1920s exerted steadily growing pressure on piano makers. Total U.S. sales for the industry peaked around 300,000 in 1924, representing roughly $100 million in revenue ($1,580,000,000 today [5] ) [6] and decreased steadily thereafter. In the final year of the Roaring Twenties, piano makers sold an estimated 115,000 instruments. [7]

Notes

  1. ↑ "Remember the Golden Age of Piano?". WRTI. February 27, 2017. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  2. 1 2 "The Golden Age of the Piano — Twin Cities Bungalow Club". bungalowclub.org. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  3. ↑ "The golden age of the piano". medici.tv. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  4. ↑ Moses, John (1895). History of Chicago, Illinois. Munsell & Company. p. 448.
  5. ↑ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–" . Retrieved April 16, 2022.
  6. ↑ "Illinois Industries and Resources: Musical Instruments". Illinois Business Review. Vol. 7, no. 2. Bureau of Economic and Business Research, University of Illinois. February 1950. p. 3. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Business & Finance: Piano Glissando". Time . August 15, 2009. Archived from the original on August 15, 2009. Retrieved January 30, 2022.

Related Research Articles

Rational Machines is an enterprise founded by Paul Levy and Mike Devlin in 1981 to provide tools to expand the use of modern software engineering practices, particularly explicit modular architecture and iterative development. It changed its name in 1994 to Rational Software, and was sold for US$2.1 billion to IBM on February 20, 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Levi Addison Ault</span> Canadian-born businessman (1851–1930)

Levi Addison Ault was a Canadian-born American businessman and bureaucrat whose career was closely associated with the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, where he earned the nickname "Father of Cincinnati's parks".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Convocation Center (Northern Illinois University)</span>

Northern Illinois University's Convocation Center is a 10,000-seat multi-purpose arena, at 1525 W Lincoln Hwy, in DeKalb, Illinois, USA. The arena opened in 2002. The Convocation Center is home to both the Northern Illinois Huskies men's basketball and women's basketball teams, volleyball, Wrestling, gymnastics, and women's indoor track and field squads. Previously, the basketball teams played at the Chick Evans Field House. The Convocation Center also houses many other events including the opening convocation ceremony for freshmen, concerts, job fairs, expositions, and the annual graduation ceremony.

The Trinity Health Arena is a 3,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Muskegon, Michigan, United States. It was built in 1960 in partnership with philanthropist and industrialist Louis Carlisle Walker at a cost of $2 million, and on October 27, 1960, was formally gifted to the City of Muskegon. Mr. Walker provided $1 million and the City provided $1 million toward the cost. It is currently home to the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the United States Hockey League, Muskegon Risers SC of Major Arena Soccer League 2, and the West Michigan Ironmen indoor football team. The Arena will change its name to Trinity Health Arena after a corporate decision to rename Mercy Health facilities Trinity Health.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CEFCU Arena</span> Arena in Illinois, United States

CEFCU Arena, formerly known as Redbird Arena, is a 10,200-seat multi-purpose arena located in Normal, Illinois, on the campus of Illinois State University. Built in 1989, the building is notable for its use of a Teflon-coated roof that gives off a "glow" during night events. Three Illinois State Redbirds athletic teams use the facility as their home court: men's basketball, women's basketball, and women's volleyball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Littlejohn Coliseum</span> Arena in Clemson, South Carolina

The Littlejohn Coliseum is a 9,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Clemson, South Carolina, United States. It is home to the Clemson University Tigers men's and women's basketball teams. It is also the site of Clemson graduations and the Clemson Career Fair. It is owned and operated by Clemson University and hosts more than 150 events per year including concerts, trade shows, galas, and sporting events.

The Mid-America Center is an arena and convention center located in Council Bluffs, Iowa, just five minutes from downtown Omaha, Nebraska. The arena's maximum capacity is about 9,000 for concerts and 6,700 for ice hockey and arena football. The arena continues to provide free parking. Caesars Entertainment began managing the Center in 2012, taking over from SMG.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Betty Engelstad Sioux Center</span>

The Betty Engelstad Sioux Center is an indoor arena located in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It is adjacent to the larger $100 million Ralph Engelstad Arena in the University Village development.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ocean Bank Convocation Center</span> Home to the FIU Panthers basketball and volleyball teams

Ocean Bank Convocation Center is a 5,000-seat multi-purpose arena at Florida International University in Westchester, Florida. It was opened on February 1, 1986, and is home to the FIU Panthers basketball and volleyball teams. It was originally named Sunblazer Arena, but was renamed Golden Panther Arena when FIU's athletic teams changed their nickname from Sunblazers to Golden Panthers in 1987. It was renamed Pharmed Arena in 2004, and then was briefly named FIU Arena in 2008 before being renamed to U.S. Century Bank Arena. The facility reverted to the FIU Arena name again from 2014 to 2018 before being renamed the Ocean Bank Convocation Center in 2018.

Houck Stadium is an 11,015-seat multi-purpose stadium in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. It opened in 1930 and was named after famous Missouri resident Louis Houck. Today it is home to the Southeast Missouri State University Redhawks football team and women's soccer team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Athletics Center O'rena</span> Multi-purpose arena in Auburn Hills, Michigan

Athletics Center O'rena is a 4,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is home to the Oakland University Golden Grizzlies men's basketball, women's basketball and volleyball teams. The court has a distinctive "blacktop" color first used in the 2015–16 season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christy Mathewson–Memorial Stadium</span>

Christy Mathewson–Memorial Stadium is a 13,100-seat multi-purpose stadium at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Originally built in 1924, the stadium was renovated and renamed in honor of Mathewson in 1989. It is home to the Bucknell Bison football team from the Patriot League and the Lewisburg Area High School Green Dragons football team. It is named for Christy Mathewson, a Bucknell alumnus who went on to become a Hall of Fame pitcher for the New York Giants in the early 20th century. Mathewson was on the Walter Camp All-American football team as a kicker while a student at Bucknell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibbs Stadium</span>

Gibbs Stadium is a 13,000-seat multi-purpose stadium in Spartanburg, South Carolina. It opened in 1996 and is home to the Wofford College Terriers football team. It is also formerly the home to the Spartanburg High School varsity football team. It is home to the 30th largest college football scoreboard in the nation at 1,485 square feet (138.0 m2). It was named for the Gibbs family, long-time donors to Wofford, for their $1 million donation to build it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sojka Pavilion</span>

Sojka Pavilion is a 4,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. It was built in 2003 and is home to the Bucknell University Bison basketball teams, replacing nearby Davis Gym. It is named for Dr. Gary Allan Sojka, a former president of the university who remained at the university as a professor of biology after the end of his term, until his retirement in 2006. It features locker rooms, a hardwood playing surface, concession stands, LED video boards, a team store, and a Jumbotron.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minneapolis Auditorium</span>

Minneapolis Auditorium was an indoor arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It hosted the NBA's Minneapolis Lakers from 1947 until they moved to the Minneapolis Armory in 1959. The arena held 10,000 people and was built in 1927. The building fell into obscurity after the opening of the Met Center in suburban Bloomington. It was demolished in 1988 to make way for the Minneapolis Convention Center.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">USANA Amphitheatre</span> Outdoor performance venue in West Valley City, Utah, United States

The USANA Amphitheatre is an outdoor amphitheater, located in West Valley City, Utah. The Amphitheater is named after USANA Health Sciences, a manufacturer of nutritional supplements. It offers a view of the Wasatch Mountains. The venue opened July 2003.

Eureka is a brand of the Chinese company Midea Group that manufactures vacuums for all households. The company manufactures vacuum cleaners, including uprights, cordless, canisters, sticks and handhelds. Eureka also manufactures aftermarket vacuum accessories, such as bags, belts and filters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saluki Stadium</span> Stadium in Illinois, USA

Saluki Stadium is a stadium on the campus of Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. It is primarily utilized by the Southern Illinois Salukis football team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Josiah Sleeper</span>

Josiah Sleeper (18??–1946) was an American businessman who founded Sleeper's College in Chester, Pennsylvania, in 1910.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Ryle</span> American businessman

William Ryle II (1834–1881) was an English silk manufacturer who lived in the United States.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.