Robert Wales, Pianomaker

[Gill the Piano]

Have you got any records re a pianomaker called Wales in about 1830/40 in London (I think) please, Bill? I have a lady trying to date a large upright with silk front and cornice which sounds v. similar to an 1840s Collard which I tuned some years ago.

[Bill Kibby]

Sounds about the right period for Robert Wales, who also made pianos for Monro & May. Or it could be J. Wales, they both disappeared around the 1840s. I look forward to more details of the piano. Any addresses on it? They might help with dates, and identify which Wales it is.

[Gill the Piano]

Thanks for that, Bill. Sorry, should've said; I think it was Robert Wales. Was he London based?

[Bill Kibby]

Yes, he was at Hampstead Road from the 1820s, and had moved to Charles Street by the 1840s, so "circa 1835" would be a very rough guess.

[Bill Kibby]

Here is Pam and Brian's photo of the piano, a typical Cabinet Piano of about 1825. These huge instruments were about nine feet tall, and not made with the ordinary working man in mind. Robert Wales was in business from at least 1822 to 1843.