History / Portrait
  

After having finished his apprenticeship, among others with Johann Baptist Streicher in Vienna, Johann Christoph Neupert established his own workshop in 1868 in Münchberg to manufacture pianos. Starting from very modest beginnings NEUPERT instruments very quickly gained a good reputation so that it became necessary to move to Bamberg in 1874, a more accessible and larger city.

In the course of time the passion of Johann Christoph Neupert and his descendants for collecting historical keyboard instruments resulted in a collection of more than 300 valuable examples. This collection has been exhibited since 1968 in the Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Nuremberg.

In 1906 the first NEUPERT harpsichord was made by the three sons of the founder &endash; a pioneering event at this time. During the following decades the whole family of historical keyboard instruments was reconstructed. Based on both the originals of the Neupert Collection and the organological work by Hanns Neupert, a grandson of the company's founder, NEUPERT instruments acquired a worldwide reputation.

Working from a knowledge of the history of instruments, the physical and acoustical parameters, the wealth of experience in the trade, and the examples of the Neupert Collection, instruments are now being made in the fourth generation. The preservation of historical building traditions and tonal conceptions has been combined with the precision of modern manufacturing and reliability.

Considering that historical keyboard instruments form again today an inalienable part of our musical life, it may be stated that the NEUPERT workshop has had a decisive share in it.

Whether you choose an instrument directly from our catalogue or one which will be created to realise your particular requirements, a NEUPERT instrument

• includes the experience of about 20,000 historical keyboard instruments having been manufactured up till now
• will be created from valuable, selected materials by qualified experts working together in the old craft tradition
• is well known in all music centres around the globe due to its sound quality and absolute reliability.

Our range

Die Werkstätten für historische Tasteninstrumente J.C. NEUPERT fertigen im Kundenauftrag Cembali, Spinette, Klavichorde, Virginale, Hammerflügel und Tafelklaviere. Dabei lasse sich auch individuelle Sonderwünsche berücksichtigen.

The J.C. NEUPERT workshops for historical keyboard instruments makes harpsichords, spinets, clavichords, virginals, and fortepianos from various schools. Individual customer's wishes can always be accomodated.

We offer a wide range of new and second hand instruments:

Historical keyboard instruments:

• new from our own workshop
• second hand from our own and other workshops
• restoration of instruments according to the customer's requirements
• grand and upright pianos from leading worldwide manufacturers
• accessories (such as benches, covers, etc.)

Normally we use Delrin for the plectra, which gives a similar sound to that of an historical raven quill. Your instrument can also be finished upon request using raven quill or leather plectra, which produce a smooth and mellow sound.

The method of construction depends on the different national schools and periods. The variety of construction principles leads to different tonal results, each of which is appropriate for its own music.

The modern 20^th-century harpsichord has a special and independent place in that it was not based on any particular historical model. These instruments, built in the "Rastenbauweise" (strong, framed construction), which are still available as the "Couperin", "Cristofori", and "Bach" models, are characterised by the numerous registration possibilities and means of changing stops (e.g. pedals). Their sound is completely "authentic" for 20^th-century harpsichord music.

Which type of instrument one prefers, historical or 20^th-century, remains an individual decision. J.C. NEUPERT is able to offer a wide range of instruments and will assist you to find your own hand-crafted instrument.