New Musical Instrument Rarity at the Liszt Ferenc Memorial Museum

The combined instrument is a windpipe harmonium and a piano in one, made in 1864 by Alexandre pére & fils in Paris. Liszt met Eduard Alexandre through Berlioz and ordered two combined instruments from him during his lifetime. The seven-octave piano was made by the Erard company, whose instruments Liszt popularized during his early years in Paris.

Liszt bought the largest combined instrument made by Alexandre in 1854, the Piano-Liszt named after him, which ended up in the music saloon of the Altenburg estate in Weimar. The first two keyboards and pedal of the three-manual pedaled instrument sounded the harmonium, while the third was used to play an Erard concert piano. Today the instrument is part of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde collection in Vienna. Liszt first used his second combined instrument, the two-keyboard Piano-Orgue made a decade later, in Rome. Later in 1872 it was sent to his home in Pest. Liszt left the instrument to the Liszt Academy in his will; it is now its property.

The instrument was restored by organist and musicologist, Balázs Szabó in 2012-2013 during which the exterior was reinforced and aesthetically restored, as was the whole harmonium, the missing and damaged parts were reconstructed, it was tuned, its original tone restored and the Céleste pedal was also removed and reconstructed.

The harmonium's reconstructed Prolongement-structure is truly a unique feature, which enables the player to hold down any note or accord while playing. This was an especially important tool for Liszt.

The restoration of the piano part of the instrument included the static reinforcement of the frame, the reconstruction of missing parts, the restoration of the exterior and of all elements affecting the overall sound. Special emphasis was placed on preserving the original period piano parts throughout the entire restoration process.

The restored instrument will be presented at a concert event hosted by the Liszt Memorial Museum held on October 12, 6p.m. at the Old Academy of Music Chamber Hall. During the event, we can find out about the special structure of the instrument and the most interesting phases of the restoration process, followed by a concert performed by Balázs Szabó presenting the musical opportunities of the piano-orgue through the works of Liszt and his contemporaries.