The incredible Érard, Pleyel, Gaveau archives collection testifies to nearly two centuries of music, from the late 18h century to the seventies.

Its document listing (manufacturing registers, plans, sales books etc.) provides extensive information on the three firms’ activity: serial numbers, manufacturing dates, information on possible repairs, rates applied, names of workshop managers, buyers and wholesalers, etc.

Famous names in the registers (Chopin, Liszt, Beethoven…) show the importance of these institutions in music history. Available data concern every production by Érard, Gaveau and Pleyel: pianos, harps, harpsichords, organs, accessories (stools and music stands) and, for Pleyel, talking machines (TSF: télégraphie sans fil, yesterday’s wireless…).

These archives are for each and everyone: those who wish to learn some more about their instrument, researchers desirous to study an instrument’s making.

The Érard, Pleyel & Gaveau archive collection was donated to the Museum of Music in 2009.

It hails from Érard, Pleyel and Gaveau, three emblematic French musical instrument making institutions. It has been representing a unified whole since their fusion in the middle of the 20th century:

• 1. Gaveau and Érard in 1959
• 2. Gaveau-Érard and Pleyel in 1961

It also contains documents on Bord, Herrburger Brooks Ltd and Cavaillé-Coll, commercial dealings firms bought or merged with Pleyel.

Note: Other archives from Érard (registers, correspondence) are conserved at the Palais Lascaris in Nice and at the Royal College of Music in London (books of harp sales by Érard in London).

The Érard, Pleyel & Gaveau collection is divided into two great parts:

The first one - about the three institutions - comprises technical documents (manufacturing registers, plans, nomenclature of parts…), account documents (books of sales, order registers…) and concert programs (Érard Concert Hall from 1881 to 1939, Gaveau Concert Hall from 1909 to 1942). It documents technical changes in instrument making for each firm as well as evolutions in the political, economic and artistic world. It spans across 1788 to 1983 for Érard, 1829 to 1976 for Pleyel and 1908 to 1974 for Gaveau.

The second one holds administrative documents on the Pleyel concert hall alone (opened on Rue Faubourg Saint-Honoré in 1927 by Pleyel). These documents recount the venue’s construction, subsequent building works, administration and artistic programming. This second part is not as yet included in the digitization campaign launched by the Museum of Music. Documents available on request (subject to their condition and communicability), please send an email to: musee@philharmoniedeparis.fr.

The Museum of Music digitized the Érard, Pleyel, Gaveau archive collection between 2011 and 2013.

Some documents cannot be digitized for technical reasons. They are accessible at the Cité de la Musique-Philharmonie de Paris subject to their condition and communicability (in virtue of privacy law, some recent documents cannot be communicated). Any accessibility request must be addressed to musee@philharmoniedeparis.fr.

Palazzetto Bru Zane – Centre de Musique Romantique Française (Center for French Romantic Music) and the Plan de Numérisation du Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication (Digitization Plan by the Ministry of Culture and Communication) financially supported the digitization of these archives.

Note: The plans are currently being processed and therefore non-accessible.