Neo-Bechstein

Neo-Bechstein or Bechstein-Siemens-Nernst-Flügel were a set of electric grand pianos that were primarily built by Walther Nernst in the 1930s. Improvising upon an electrical prototype by Oskar Vierling, the design was executed around 1922,[1] and the first of the set was marketed in 1931 to critical acclaim.[2] The mechanics of the piano were implemented by the C. Bechstein company and the valve electronics were created by Siemens & Halske. The design belonged to a newer generation of electric pianos that eliminated the presence of any sound board.

Neo-Bechstein grand piano at the Vienna Technical Museum

Description
Keyboard transmission scheme for electric radio piano, describing how the micro hammer is connected to the main hammer
Pickup mechanism

Smaller than the dimensions of an ordinary grand piano, the Neo-Bechstein measured about 1.4 metres (4 ft 7 in) in length[3] and belonged to a newer generation of electric pianos that eliminated the presence of any sound board.[4][5]

Thinner and shorter strings were grouped into 18 clusters[6] of 5 strings each. The clusters all converged towards a pickup[7] followed by a membrane-less microphone. The oscillations were correspondingly transformed into electrical signals in a varying alternating current, which was made to pass through an adjustable electronic circuit comprising electron tubes, capacitors, resistors, etc., that acted as a filter.[8] The filtered signal was then amplified with a three-tube valve amplifier and broadcast through a pre-built loudspeaker.[8]

The absence of a sound board and its substitution by electric amplification also meant a lighter framework and a lighter hammer action, which troubled conventional piano players.[9] This led to the usage of usual-sized hammers which struck a rail and which in turn drove a much smaller micro-hammer into the string itself.[10] The micro hammers were invented by Hans Driescher, an employee of Nernst.[9]

The instrument had two pedals. The right pedal acted upon the amplifier[11] and controlled the volume levels, which, coupled with the increased sustenance power of the instrument due to its lack of a sound board.[10] The left pedal generated either "cembalo" or "celesta" sound.[12] The instrument also had a speaker-cabinet fitted with a radio and a phonograph.[10]

Sound

The resulting sound was noted to be distinctly different from that of an acoustic piano. The absence of a sound board coupled with the usage of micro-hammers not only led to a reduction in sound-amplification that increased the quality of sound but also lessened damping, producing an increase in its sustaining power.[10]

The Neo-Bechstein was one of the pioneer devices to feature a clear demarcation between the musical instrument itself and the loudspeaker, in that the mechanics of the piano were no longer involved in the direct production of sound, unlike existing electric pianos. Furthermore, the quality of the loudspeakers was good enough to not have any characteristic sound of their own.[13] The instrument ushered in a new stage in acoustics development, wherein microphones and loudspeakers functioned well enough in stand-alone manner to be exploited for different approaches at the same time (reproducing and supporting).[13]

Manufacture

The Czech piano manufacturer Petrof, founded by Antonín Petrof in the town of Hradec Králové, acquired the license for the production of the instrument in 1932.[14] These were named and marketed in similar manner to the C. Bechstein, as the neo-Petrof.[15]

Estimates of the number of Neo-Bechstein pianos produced differ widely, from 150[2] to 15–20.[1] Nernst sought a single cash payment for his design but instead received a royalty-fee offer from Siemens and Bechstein.[1] Two functioning copies exist, one of which is displayed in the Vienna Technical Museum.[16]

Literature
  • Herrmann, Dieter B. (1972). "Walther Nernst und sein Neo-Bechstein-Flügel. Eine Episode aus der Geschichte der elektronischen Musik" [Walther Nernst and his neo Bechstein grand piano. An episode from the history of electronic mu]. NTM series for history of science, technology and medicine (in German). 9 (1): 40–48.
  • Schmitz, Hans W. (April 1990). "Der Bechstein-Siemens-Nernst-Flügel. Technische Beschreibung" [Bechstein-Siemens-Nernst wing. Technical description]. Das mechanische Musikinstrument (in German). 16 (49): 21–27. ISSN 0721-6092.
  • Supper, Martin; Castine, Peter (3 November 2008). "Peter Donhauser , Elektrische Klangmaschinen. Die Pionierzeit in Deutschland und Österreich (Electrical Sound Machines: The Pioneering Era in Germany and Austria). Böhlau, Wien, 2007. 978-3-205-77593-5" [Elektrische Klangmaschinen. Die Pionierzeit in Deutschland und Österreich]. Organised Sound (in German). Vienna: Böhlau. 13 (03): 270. doi:10.1017/S1355771808000381.
  • "Der elektrische Beethoven" [The Electric Beethoven]. Blätter für Technikgeschichtef technology (in German). Technical Museum Vienna: Technisches museum Wien. 69–70: 117. 2008. ISSN 0067-9127.
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References
  1. Coffey, Patrick (29 August 2008). Cathedrals of Science: The Personalities and Rivalries That Made Modern Chemistry. Oxford University Press. p. 159. ISBN 9780199717460.
  2. René Schils (14 December 2011). How James Watt Invented the Copier: Forgotten Inventions of Our Great Scientists. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 120. ISBN 978-1-4614-0859-8. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
  3. Bartel Hans-georg; Huebener Rudolf P (26 October 2007). Walther Nernst: Pioneer Of Physics, And Of Chemistry. World Scientific. p. 300. ISBN 978-981-4479-05-9. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  4. Thom Holmes (8 October 2015). Electronic and Experimental Music: Technology, Music, and Culture. Routledge. p. 29. ISBN 978-1-317-41023-2. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
  5. Schneider, Albrecht (26 December 2016). Studies in Musical Acoustics and Psychoacoustics. Springer. p. 77. ISBN 9783319472928.
  6. Schils, René (14 December 2011). How James Watt Invented the Copier: Forgotten Inventions of Our Great Scientists. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 119–121. ISBN 9781461408598.
  7. Robert Palmieri (June 2004). The Piano: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. p. 120. ISBN 978-1-135-94964-8. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  8. Hans-georg, Bartel; P, Huebener Rudolf (26 October 2007). Walther Nernst: Pioneer Of Physics, And Of Chemistry. World Scientific. p. 301. ISBN 9789814479059.
  9. Winckel, Fritz W. (1931). "Das Radio-Klavier von Bechstein-Siemens-Nernst" [The radio piano Bechstein-Siemens Nernst]. Die Umschau (in German). Frankfurt am Main. 35: 840–843. ISSN 0722-8562.
  10. Palmieri, Robert (July 2004). The Piano: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. p. 121. ISBN 9781135949648.
  11. Michael Kennedy; Joyce Bourne (22 April 2004). The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. Oxford University Press, USA. p. 510. ISBN 978-0-19-860884-4. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  12. "C. Bechstein: The legend lives on" (pdf). Markson Pianos. August 2012. p. 22. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  13. Eck, Cathy van (9 February 2017). Between Air and Electricity: Microphones and Loudspeakers as Musical Instruments. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. pp. 76–80. ISBN 9781501327629.
  14. International Piano Quarterly: IPQ. 5–6. London: Gramophone Publications. 2001. p. 49. ISSN 1368-9770. LCCN 97001118. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
  15. "Petrof Klaviere Berlin". Pianohaus-Listmann. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  16. Haas, Mag. Caroline. "Neo-Bechstein grand piano". Vienna Technical Museum. Technisches Museum Wien. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
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