The Weber Piano Company was a piano-making business located in New York City and East Rochester, New York from the middle of the 1800s until the start of the 1900s. It remained part of Aeolian-American in East Rochester, New York until 1985, when Aeolian-American closed down.
After that, the Weber name was sold to a piano company in South Korea called Young Chang. Young Chang later sold the Weber name to Samsung Group in 1987. Young Chang is still in charge of making the pianos, which are sold in two lines: Weber, which includes basic and mid-range pianos, and Albert Weber, which includes more advanced models.
History
The Weber Piano Company was started in 1852 by Albert Weber. He was born on July 8, 1829, in Heiligenstadt, Bavaria, and died on June 25, 1879, in New York. Weber moved to the United States when he was 16 years old. At first, he planned to support himself by teaching music and playing the organ. Later, he worked as an apprentice for Charles J. Holder, a piano builder, and then as a piano builder for the D.J. Van Winkle piano company. During this time, he gave music lessons in the evenings and played the organ in churches on Sundays. In 1851, Weber opened a small piano business on West Broadway and White Street in Manhattan. On October 1, 1851, he completed his first piano with two helpers, and by early 1852, they had made five more pianos. In 1852, Weber moved to a larger building at 103 W. Broadway & 28 Jones Street.
In 1854, a fire destroyed Weber’s workshop on Broadway. Despite this, Weber stayed in Manhattan and later moved to 103rd & 105 W. Broadway, and then to 155 W. Broadway. By 1864, Weber had gained success with a popular type of piano called the "square grand piano" and opened a larger factory at 41 Wooster Street in Manhattan. He expanded this factory several times. Between 1864 and 1869, Weber’s pianos became well-known in New York music circles. In 1869, Weber opened a large, luxurious showroom at 108 Fifth Avenue and 16th Street in New York City. This move surprised some competitors but helped establish the Weber brand as a top-quality product. The new location became a popular place for musicians to gather, and Weber became wealthy. Weber’s pianos were known for using high-quality materials and careful craftsmanship. He did not focus on new ideas but instead used proven methods of piano building. Weber’s pianos were also among the most expensive of the time. For example, a Rococo Weber Grand Piano in 1874 cost $1,400, which was about the price of a large house.
As Weber’s business grew, his pianos received recognition. The company won medals at the Philadelphia World’s Fair (1876), the London World’s Fair (1887), and the Paris World’s Fair (1889). Weber also advertised his pianos widely and is believed to have created the term "Baby Grand" to describe a small grand piano. Weber was described as a skilled pianist who loved music. He was well-educated and known for being a keen observer of people and events. He was also a social person and founded the Arcadian Club in New York. He was a member of other groups, including the Manhattan Club, the Palette Club, the Arion Society, and the Liederkranz Society.
Albert Weber died at the age of 50. He was very passionate about his work, but this affected his health. He worked long hours and also attended operas, theaters, and clubs at night. He lived a lively and unconventional lifestyle. His obituary said he was ill for nearly a year before his death, with the final nine weeks serious enough to make him stop working. At the time of his death, Weber lived at No. 32 West Nineteenth Street in New York, and his body was buried at Green-Wood Cemetery. Over 300 employees, friends, and family attended his funeral. Weber’s fortune, estimated at over $1 million (about $24 million in 2012 dollars), supported his wife, Martha Weber, and their three children: Albert Weber Jr., Martha Weber, and Robina Weber.
Less than a year after his death, a lawsuit was filed against Weber’s estate by a woman named Josephine Todd, who claimed she was his illegitimate daughter and that he had supported her throughout her life. She asked for $30,000 (about $702,983 in 2012 dollars). A jury ruled in her favor, and a New York State appeals court approved a settlement of $10,868 with interest.
Steinway & Sons, now one of the most well-known piano companies, was founded in 1853 by a German immigrant named Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg, only a few years after Albert Weber started his company.
Weber and Steinway had many similarities. Both companies were founded by German immigrants, both started by making square pianos, both focused on high-quality instruments, and both were based in New York City, a major center for piano manufacturing. In the late 1800s, Steinway and Weber were close competitors. For example, in an 1874 New York Times piano buying guide (possibly a paid advertisement), Steinway and Weber were the top two brands mentioned. The article also listed other high-quality piano makers, such as Chickering, Knabe, and Decker Bros.
One example of Weber’s rivalry with Steinway occurred when the piano industry tried to stop the sale of fake pianos. By 1876, about 60,000 to 70,000 pianos and organs were made and sold in the United States each year. Many strong brands existed, but counterfeit pianos made with poor materials were also being sold cheaply.
To address this problem, representatives from 65 piano and organ manufacturers met in January 1876 to form the Piano, Organ, and Music Trade Association of New York. When voting for leaders of this group, an unexpected result happened: Joseph P. Hale and Albert Weber were elected as directors. Weber later wrote that all 65 companies voted openly, and the results were counted publicly, but "the men who expected to get elected did not get enough votes!" Weber, who admired the American system of social mobility that helped him rise in society, joked: "The poorest is as much entitled to an office as the richest, if he gets the votes."
The election of Weber and Hale upset some of the largest piano makers, who wanted to control the industry group. Representatives from Chickering, Decker Brothers, Mason & Hamlin, Steinway & Sons, and some smaller companies left the group and formed their own organization called the Piano-forte and Organ Manufacturers' and Dealers' Protective Association of New-York.
The reason for the unexpected election was likely that smaller piano companies had the majority of the votes and chose leaders they believed would support their interests. Weber was seen as a rising success story, having grown from a small business owner to one of New York’s most prominent piano makers with luxurious showrooms on Fifth Avenue and strong endorsements. Joseph P. Hale had also risen from humble beginnings but focused on making pianos more affordable for the middle class through new production methods. Both Weber and Hale were seen as threats to larger, more established companies like Steinway.
Weber, always bold, did not think industry groups were necessary, even though he was elected to lead one. He wrote: "About a month ago a society was projected. I did not believe in it. I had fought my…"
Weber Pianos Today
Instruments made by Young Chang today have modern designs and are very different from the original nineteenth-century Weber designs. The older Weber designs would be considered out of date today, especially when considering how efficiently they can be made.
Young Chang continues to make Weber pianos, which are sold in two product lines: Weber, which includes entry-level and mid-level pianos, and Albert Weber, which is a high-quality line of pianos.
Albert Weber pianos are premium instruments and are among the best pianos made by Young Chang. Starting in 1995, the Albert Weber line was designed by an international team under the guidance of Joseph Pramberger, who was once the Vice President of Manufacturing for Steinway & Sons. Pramberger passed away in 2003, but Young Chang still uses his designs.
Today, Albert Weber pianos are made in South Korea on a separate production line from other Young Chang instruments. Parts used in these pianos come from the Americas, Europe, and Asia. These pianos include a solid AAA Alaskan Sitka spruce soundboard, Renner Blue hammers, Renner action, and Roslau strings. Compared to similar-sized Young Chang pianos, Albert Weber pianos use higher-quality materials and have lower tension strings and softer hammers. These features create a "warmer" sound, similar to the "Weber Tone" that Weber advertised in the late nineteenth century. Albert Weber pianos also have a longer warranty (fifteen years) than Young Chang and Weber pianos (ten years).
Today’s Weber pianos are entry-level and mid-level instruments and are more affordable than Albert Weber pianos. In general, these pianos are similar to Young Chang pianos, except for the name. This similarity happened in 2008, when Young Chang hired American piano designer Delwin D. Fandrich to redesign their product lines, including both the Weber and Young Chang piano lines. Since 2013, both Albert Weber and Weber pianos have been made by Hyundai Development Company as Premium Edition models.