Johann Heinrich Silbermann

Johann Heinrich Silbermann (24/27 September 1727, Strasbourg, France — 15 January 1799, Strasbourg), also known as "Jean Henry," was a prolific German maker of clavichords, harpsichords, spinets, and fortepianos, as well as an organist and composer. The youngest son of Andreas Silbermann (1678—1734), he came from a distinguished family of instrument-builders and worked in Straßburg with his elder brothers, Johann Andreas Silbermann (1712—1783) and Johann Daniel Silbermann (1717—1766). Jean Henry's engraved metal nameplates read: "Jean Henry Silbermann · Facteur de Forté-Piano & · de Clavecins 17xx · à Strasbourg." Unlike his siblings, who directly continued their father's oeuvre and made organs, Johann Heinrich was more interested in stringed keyboard instruments, thus apprenticing in Freiberg, Saxony, with his uncle, Gottfried Silbermann (1683—1753), a renowned maker long considered as the pianoforte inventor. Jean Henry subsequently reproduced most aspects of Gottfried's model, centered around the harpsichord-shaped piano in the Cristofori tradition. Silbermann possibly provided some training or guidance to Jean-Kilien Mercken (1743—1819), who originated from Austria and migrated to France, with some clear parallels in the construction of their pianos; however, no evidence exists that definitively connects Mercken to Silbermann. Contemporary sources highly praised Jean Henry's builds, with Johann Nikolaus Forkel writing a glowing biography in the 1782 edition of his Musikalischer Almanach für Deutschland, stating that "both [Silbermann's] harpsichords and pianos, as well as the other instruments with keyboards and pedals, partly invented by him, are outstanding for their fine workmanship and beautiful tone." More details on Silbermann's "recently designed" inventions are in the 1783 almanac Strasburgische Gelehrte Nachrichten ("Strasbourg Scholarly News" published between 1782 and 1785): "an unusually large harpsichord at 16-foot pitch, a forté-piano en pédals, and a forté-piano manuel." The article describes a high demand for Johann Heinrich's instruments in France, Germany, Switzerland, Lettonia (modern Latvia), Russia, Sweden, England, and India. Silbermann got married circa 1760 and had two sons; his eldest, Johann Friedrich (1762–1805), also became an instrument-maker. [u]Jean Henry Silbermann instruments[/u] 1765 Bentside Spinet at Bachhaus in Eisenach, Thuringia, Germany. Compass: FF–f3 c.1765–70 Bentside Spinet at Kunstmuseum Den Haag in the Hague, Netherlands. Restored by the Museum in 1952 and 1958. Compass: FF–f3 1767 Bentside Spinet at Germanisches Nationalmuseum in Nuremberg, Germany. Compass: F–f3 1767 Bentside Spinet at University of Erlangen–Nuremberg in Bavaria, Germany. Compass: FF–f3 1775 Fretless Clavichord at Germanisches Nationalmuseum in Nuremberg, Germany. Compass: FF–f3 1775 Fretless Clavichord at Musikinstrumentenmuseum in Berlin, Germany. Two instruments in the collection, both dated circa 1775. Compass: FF–f3 1775 Fretless Clavichord at Gesellschaft Der Musikfreunde in Vienna, Austria. Compass: FF–f3 1785 Bentside Spinet at National Music Museum in Vermillion, South Dakota, USA. Formerly owned by Wolfgang Ruf in Emmetten, Switzerland. Compass: FF–f3