PianoGen

Plus a wealth of historical and practical information about pianos in general.

This new PianoGen website is still under construction, so we apologise in advance for any errors we may not have corrected yet. Our active research is aimed at antique British pianos, so although we attempt to help with other enquiries, and try never to throw away any kind of piano information, we do not normally deal with Player Pianos, Modern Pianos, Harpsichords, Organs or Trolleybuses.	Many of the published dates of piano serial NUMBERS are incorrect. The dates of exhibition MEDALS that are shown on many pianos do not indicate the year of manufacture of the piano. There may be DATEMARKS hidden inside your piano which would give clues to the age or the origin of the instrument.	BILL KIBBY I have been making music since the fifties, and gigging since the Shadows and Beatles era of the sixties, beginning with the college "Beat Group". I was brought up in a family where making music was almost as natural as breathing, and there were no pieces of paper, or discussions of notes, keys or scales, etc.. It was all about listening, and making sounds! (Theory came later.)	This DEMO track has me playing piano, organ, acoustic guitar, electric guitar and bass. The drums are electronic, I'm no great drummer! A couple of years ago, I played guitar and bass on David Wright's album "Walking With Ghosts", which was voted "Synth Album Of The Year", and we also did a benefit concert in aid of the Fisher Theatre, Bungay, Suffolk in November 2006.
Our computer and our card and paper files are at your disposal, we do not charge anything just for answering an EMAIL Original ARCHIVES are simply not available to trace the origin of most individual pianos, and unless your piano maker is one of the very few, we can only base reports on what we can find out from the instrument itself.	We can compile a REPORT on design and approximate age, for twenty pounds, and this may assist you in obtaining a VALUATION from auction houses, etc., but it is impossible to guess the vaue without inspection by a tuner because if, for example, the tuning pins are loose, this may cost more to repair than the value of the piano. It's fair to say that although I am fascinated by Victorian pianos, they rarely fetch as much as £90 at local auctions here, unless they have been professionally restored, indeed many fetch less than £20.	I was among the first teenagers of the sixties, and got my first guitar in 1960, when I had already been dabbling with ukulele, clarinet, piano, and having a go at Dad's banjo. A few years later, while on holiday, we heard recordings of an organist, and Dad explained that as well as two or more keyboards, there was also a pedal keyboard, which enabled the organist to play bass parts with his feet. Listening, I was surprised to find that I understood exactly what was being played: I soon began playing electronic organ myself, and worked as an organ salesman / demonstrator.	The Sunday afternoon gigs at The Welcome pub in Lowestoft were great fun, because nobody ever knew which instruments I would turn up with, or what sort of music they would hear, but although the regulars certainly seemed to appreciate it, the venue was not really big enough to justify the budget so, sadly, it ended after an enjoyable year-and-a-half. This is part of the write-up in the Lowestoft Journal for my playing at the opening night of the Casa Mia piano bar in Southwold, the beautifully re-vamped Dutch Barn restaurant. Hope to get back to see Skii again soon!
The PianoGen service depends on DONATIONS - large or small - but in this age of computers and instant access, there are still very few methods of making international payments for small budgets. UK sterling cheques should be made payable to PianoGen. Otherwise, you can simply mail Bill some bills in your local currency, or use PAYPAL. WANTED: Any kind of paperwork or information about pianos, such as ads, articles, books, booklets, catalogues, diagrams, directory listings, ephemera, exhibition catalogues, guarantees, handbooks, letterheads, music with piano ads on it, newspaper ads, pamphlets, photos, pictures, posters, pricelists, receipts, record sleeves, trade cards, warranties, etc.. We have no full-time staff to answer telephone enquiries on 01502 531178, and it is not usually possible to answer an enquiry fully and instantly on the phone. Also, our budget does not allow us to call everybody back, so EMAILS are probably the best way to contact us. Please do not use the heading "PIANO" for emails or photos, we get hundreds of these, use the piano's name, or a proper subject heading.	We offer a wide range of BOOKLETS on historical and practical subjects, but these are often made up to order from sections of our files rather than off-the-peg editions, so it can sometimes take up to five weeks to review the information before printing. Many people feel frustrated if their piano has no name on the front, or is one of the vast majority which are not listed on the internet, but many PIANO NAMES are meaningless anyway. Keeping an old piano in direct sunlight, or within five feet of a heater, will almost certainly cause serious, permanent, irreparable DAMAGE. FAMILY RESEARCH: Since the seventies, we have received many GENEALOGY enquiries from descendants of pianoforte makers but unless their ancestors were in business in their own name, we often cannot find information by active research, although we probably have more chance than anyone else of some useful snippets of information turning up here at random.	PIANO PLAYING: In the course of my other work with pianos, I gradually spent more time playing piano, and here is this month's sample of my original PIANO PIECES. A CD is available but it is not studio quality, hence the price £5 including postage. (Payments as above.) I now have regular work providing relaxing piano music for restaurants such as the one at the Cliff Hotel, Gorleston, but I am always glad of opportunities to pursue a more energetic multi-instrumental entertainment featuring piano, organ, synthesizer, guitars, banjos, glockenspiel, mandolin and vocals, pre-recording my own backings where appropriate. As for that eternal , infernal question "What kind of music do you do?", it's... "MORE VARIETY THAN YOU'VE EVER HEARD ANYWHERE FROM JUST ONE MUSICIAN" ...including a few 90s & 80s, lots of 70s, 60s, 50s, 40s, 30s, 20s, Edwardian, Victorian, Music Hall, Traditional, Folk, Old Time, Ballroom, Latin American, Rock, Blues, & especially Ballads, plus a few Classical and Opera themes, & even some Hymns & Carols if required.	BREATHE IN! Have you noticed that when someone wants to squeeze through a small space, they often say "breathe in"? Many amateur singers adopt the same approach when they take a breath, raising their shoulders and sucking their stomachs in. It is difficult to see any logic in this, and a moment's thought should tell you that in order to take in air, you need to expand your lungs, not contract them. Lungs are quite long, extending from the shoulders right down past the ribs, but at their top ends, they are in a restricted space, with very little room for expansion between the bones. In order to breathe properly, you need to expand the bottom of the lungs, and this is done with the aid of your diaphragm. Experienced singers should be able to increase their waistline by several inches, and this is easy to spot when a good singer is breathing in. Good tone and good projection depend upon good breathing! Another thing about tonal quality is the need to operate your throat in such a way that the sound does not all come through your nose. Try singing with your nostrils held shut, and see what you learn from the experience.
We sometimes deal with over a thousand emails per week, so please do not expect us to go onto your site to set things up! If you want help, it is up to you to see that your system is set up to allow emails from bill@pianogen.org or our replies to you will be lost. If you are not on the internet, you can write to us at... Beth & Bill Kibby-Johnson Walnut Cottage 255 Raglan Street Lowestoft NR32 2LA (UK) LOCAL SERVICES IN EAST ANGLIA: Pianist & Multi-Instrumentalist Bass Player Pianoforte Tuning & Repairs Lessons in Creative Musicianship: Piano and other keyboards, Guitar and other fretboards.	THANKS!... to Barrie Heaton for getting us onto the internet in the first place, and to our friend and neighbour Louis Barfe, music historian, radio presenter and "listening drummer" for his help in setting up this page. Thanks also to the many people who helped in the past with piano information, including the Aberdeen City Librarian, Alastair Laurence, Andrew Garrett, Bernard Watts, Bill Dow, Bill Roope, Billy Little, Bowes Museum, Christie's Ltd., Colt Clavier Collection, Dick Burnett, Ernest Daynes, Eduoard Robbins, Finchcocks, Frances Collard, Gill Green, Guildhall Library, Jay Mallory, John Davis, Kenneth Mobbs, Lionel Sims, Mary Thrower, Miss Berry, Monika Barns, Monington & Weston Ltd., Morley Galleries, Musical Museum Brentford, Philips Ltd., Robert Kirkman, Rod Watt, Royal Archives at Windsor, Roy Sagar, Sotheby's Ltd., Stephen Kirkman, Tania Staite, and the Victoria & Albert Museum.	WOT, MAKE IT?? Nobody seems to make anything anymore. We went to a model shop, but they didn't have any modelling materials, only models. We went to an art shop, but they didn't have any paint, brushes, etc., only finished artwork. We went to a needlework shop, but they didn't have materials, only ready-made needlework. We went to a "music shop", but they didn't have any sheet music or instruments, they only sold CDs. And where on earth will I find someone who can make me some electronic projects? ME? - M.E. I spent fourteen miserable years suffering from Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) with no useful help of any kind at all from the National Health Service. If you know anyone in this same plight, do please email me for a FREE document that may possibly help them to make a rapid 80% recovery in a few weeks, as I did. It's worth a try!	JUST INTOLERANCE Be warned, there is a growing menace which threatens to undermine the whole internet system as well as your home PC: It is known as "Just Intolerance", and it works like this: You say "I'll JUST have one more look at that site" and the message comes up "Cannot find server". You say "I'll JUST print this before I catch the train" and the ink cartridge runs out. You say "I'll JUST find that document before I go out" and it isn't there. You say "I'll JUST play one more level of this game" and the machine crashes. You say "I'll JUST save this before I close down" and the hard-drive dies. NEVER EVER, under any circumstances, use the J word anywhere near your PC or laptop, or it will retaliate with instant and vicious effect.