Schreiber from Murdoch,Murdoch & Co.

[stemmr]

i am trying to date a Schreiber upright #38267, manufactured by Murdoch, Murdoch Co. London 461 and 463 Oxford st. Any information will be relished.

[Bill Kibby]

Murdochs were retailers, their pianos were made by several factories. They were at that address in the thirties and forties, but I do not have the date range. What makes you think they made a Schreiber piano?

There was a German piano maker named Schreiber, and Barratt & Robinson used the name, as did the Challen factory, so the name is not helpful on its own.

Would you please give us the complete, exact wording on the piano.

It would help if you could post photos here to show us what the piano looks like, or email them to me.

Have a look at
http://pianohistory.info/datemarks.html

[stemmr]

here are some pictures

[Bill Kibby]

This appears to be an Edwardian piano, perhaps around 1903, so have a look at
http://pianohistory.info/edwardian.html

The serial number doesn't help, we have no number dates for Schreiber, and Murdoch pianos don't follow the same numbers. However, this is the nearest I can recall seeing to the numbers published for "Spencer-Murdoch", which would suggest 1905. That would suggest that this piano was made for Murdoch, and the name Schreiber is meaningless.

The majority of Murdoch pianos then were vertical-strung, this one is overstrung, so perhaps it is by Schreiber, Berlin? The action may be marked on the rear with the action makers' name and number, and I may be able to date this.

There may be dates inside, see
http://pianohistory.info/datemarks.html

[stemmr]

I visited pianohistory.info before posting here, and found alot of useful information there. Didnt realize I would be consulting the source. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us, and I will continue my search for the truth.

[vernon]

The name "Schreiber" appears to be in genuine Deutscherbuchstaben that suggests it was made in Germany for export

[stemmr]

upon further disassembly, I found some panels and the #1 key were signed Schreiber 6916, and the #85 key has 6919. The harp is also stamped Patent Duplex Schreiber Resonator, with the # 363B. sorry about the terrible pictures.

[Bill Kibby]

All I can add is that it certainly looks like a German piano.

[stemmr]

Since I am in the process of refurbishing as I speak, is my piano a rarity in the US, or a nice conversation starter. 1903 doesnt make it the oldest piece in the house, but being from Germany makes it the most traveled. Thanks for all of the info Bill, keep on sharing the knowledge. You too Vernon, be cool.

[Bill Kibby]

I doubt if many Edwardian pianos can be described as rare, but it is perhaps unusual. I don't have any way to evaluate its rarity over there!

I would be interested to know of you find any markings on the action.

[stemmr]

33604 is engraved on the action case.

[Bill Kibby]

Don't suppose there is any sign of the action maker's name to go with that?

Incidentally, I don't think Murdoch was at 461 & 463 much before 1918, so perhaps they sold it secondhand.

[stemmr]

no name anywhere on the actions