John Broadwood

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John Broadwood (born 6 October 1732 in Oldhamstocks (Scotland); died 17 Jul 1812)London (England), is the founder of the piano manufacturer Broadwood and Sons.

He inherited his father James Broadwood's (b1697) profession, that of a wright or carpenter/joiner, and as a young man walked from Oldhamstocks in the Scottish Borders, to London where he worked for the harpsichord maker Burkat Shudi. He proceeded to marry Shudi's daughter Barbara. They had 4 children, then Barbara died. John Broadwood then married Mary Kitson and had a further 6 children. Many of his descendants were involved in the pianoforte manufacturing in England, some were involved in the British Army in India during the reign of Queen Victoria. Others emigrated to Australia, where Broadwood descendants still live. The Broadwood family tree can be clearly traced back to circa 1580.

Burkat Shudi died in 1773, and John Broadwood took control of the company from his brother-in-law in 1783.

Broadwood and his acquaintances William Stodart and Americus Backers are credited with devising the English Grand Action, an early piano action, and of taking piano design from the box piano to a prototype grand piano. In time his sales of pianos exceeded those of harpsichords, to the point that he ceased to manufacture harpsichords in 1793.

Broadwood's other technical innovations in piano manufacture include:

adding a separate bridge for the bass notes
patenting the piano pedal in 1783
expanding the then-standard five octave range upwards by half an octave, in response to a request of Dussek, and then by half an octave downwards

As a company, Broadwood and Sons prospered, and was passed into the hands of his sons, James Shudi Broadwood and Thomas Broadwood. It is the oldest extant piano manufacturer in the world.