The brass inlay on the nameboard reveals that this somewhat special piano was built by Carl Rönisch (1814–1892) in Dresden, for Nicholson & Co. During the late-19th and early-20th centuries, Nicholson & Co. was one of the largest and most respected Australian music publishers and importers of musical instruments. Through their stores in Sydney and Melbourne, they acted as the sole Australian agents for Rönisch.

While it is possible this piano might have been specially made for Nicholson’s to show at the International Exhibition in Melbourne in 1880, there is documentation that it was definitely displayed at the Melbourne Centenary Exhibition of 1885. After that, the instrument was used for gala social events, musical soirees, and performances given in the concert rooms of Nicholson’s premises.

The several unique features of this piano probably mean it would have cost an enormous sum to make in 1880:

• The piano is unusually long for its time, being only slightly shorter than a Steinway Model D;
• The Piano Guild insignia inside the case is a rare inclusion in production model Rönisch pianos;
• The foot of the lid stick is opulently decorated with a brass fitting depicting Pan as the God of Music;
• The instrument is veneered in expensive and rarely-used Bubinga wood.

The style and scope of the flush-mounted brass inlay lettering would not only have been expensive, but appears to have been intended to be visible from a distance. The perfection of the workmanship strongly suggests that the inlay was done at the Rönsich factory in Dresden before the piano was shipped to Australia. Certainly, Nicholson’s would not have displayed an ordinary piano in a major international exhibition.

Little is known about the piano’s history after 1894, until it was purchased by John Crowley, a Melbourne-based professional jazz pianist, in 1972.

In November 2005, the Department of Environment and Heritage approved Commonwealth funding to enable the ANU Keyboard Institute to acquire this extraordinary piano from Mr. Crowley. Further necessary funding support was generously provided by Pioneer Australia, and the Rönisch piano entered the collection of the ANU Keyboard Institute in 2006.

Pitch: A435