Challen London

[Kaj]

Does anyone here have information about Challen uprighte with pedal system attached? I have only seen it on photos.
Kaj

[Bill Kibby]

That photo has been on the internet for years, it is unlikely that the pedlboard or pedalier is original, it was probably added later. I have never found any information to suggest that Challen made pianos with pedaliers, although several makers did.

They were mainly used for organists to practise on, but pulling the notes by wires like this would be a poor way of playing piano notes.

[vernon]

We've just given a new lease of life to an old Bechstein upright upon which some herbert had installed some sort of pedal mechanism. This entailed chopping off large bits of the innards and giving us a nightmare trying to restore the original Bechstein pedalwork.
His work seems to have been accomplished with choppers and penknives and many drills.. It plays quite nicely now.

[Kaj]

Thank you for your replies.
I know the history and purpose from the pedal clavichords to the modern pedal grand pianos and was just interested to know if Challen had this uprigth in the production line. After all, there is quite a lot of new music written for this type of piano.
Kaj