Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum 1952 Ed Seiler Baby Grand Piano

I just bought an Ed Seiler baby grand that's supposedly from 1952. I say "supposedly" because it has an art case, very ornate plate, and the name on the fall board is in Art Nouveau script. All of those elements would indicate a much older instrument. In fact I found its twin online (in a different finish) in a old ad that stated that one was built in 1904. Yet the serial number stamped into a cross member under my piano matches exactly 1952 or the early 1950s depending on which reference book one uses for serial numbers. To further complicate matters, the Seiler family moved its operations to Copenhagen in 1945 when, after the war, the town of Leignitz, Germany was ceded to Poland and their factory was taken over by the state. A family member had to secret away the plans and moldings for the plates. They made pianos in Copenhagen from 1945 to 1956 before moving back to Germany in 1957. In 1952 they made 100 pianos according to the serial numbers. However the decal on the soundboard states that it was manufactured in Leignitz, not Copenhagen (or even Legnica as the town was renamed when it became part of Poland). Another element in favor of the 1950s date is the black enamel (polyester) finish has some cracking on the bent side, indicating that paint from that era was used. Reportedly work was done on my piano in the 1980s in Poland. Don't know if the existing paint is from then when Poland was still behind the Iron Curtain (and behind the times in paint technology???). Last, I contacted the Seiler company in Germany, but they have no information about their pianos from that era.

Hoping to find someone who might have more information about Ed Seiler pianos built in Copenhagen.

Thanks!

I believe they were on the wrong side of Germany during and after WW2.So perhaps they moved there and made pianos in Sweden for a while until they could move back to Western Germany?

Thanks for the post. Copenhagen, Denmark actually is where they moved to in 1945 and remained until 1956. The company then re-established itself in Kitzengen, Germany where they still maintain a presence. The mystery for me is that my 1952 Ed Seiler was supposedly made in Copenhagen, but the soundboard decal states it was made in Leignitz; however, that town was renamed Lignica when it became part of Poland. I know that the piano was overhauled (not certain as to the extent) in Poland in the 1980s. This brings up all sorts of possible conspiracy theories, such as, was the soundboard decal changed at that time; was the stamped serial number added and not original; was the black polyester paint done at that time (the case shows cracking in the paint on the bent side)--I believe this would have been an odd choice of paint since the problem with polyester paint cracking may have been known by that time. Perhaps as several people have suggested the instrument dates prior to WW1 and the serial number was added later to make it seem to be a newer instrument

Leignitz was part of Prussia before 1945 only after that it became part of Poland.I presume "Leignitz" is on the plate.They no doubt used the original decal which mentioned the town where Seier originated from.I do not see anything suspicious about that though.From what I have heard pianos.
You could check the serial number with Seiler.

The only word on the plate is SEILER. I'm suspicious because I found another instrument online that completely matches mines (except in finish) that according to the owner was built in 1904. The evidence that it was actually built in 1952 is based on the serial number stamped into the underside of the instrument. I wondering about the likelihood of Seiler "reissuing" this model in 1952 when supposedly they only built 100 pianos in total (according to available serial numbers). Unfortunately, the people at Seiler in Germany have no additional information to offer. I was hoping to find a Ed Seiler (pre-Sammick) enthusiast who might know something about Seiler history immediately after WW2--this hoping.

My son's Ed Seiler piano finally arrived and he is quite pleased with it both for sound and touch, but as to mystery of when it was built is still not resolved. As I stated before, there is a serial number located under the piano that would date it as being made in 1952, but everything about the instrument screams 1890s or early 1900s. When it arrived, my son and I carefully removed the fallboard, cheek blocks, key slip, and action looking for additional serial numbers, but found absolutely none. This seemed a little strange in itself because on most pianos we've owned, the serial number can usually be found in multiple places (but maybe not for old Seilers?). We have a technician coming out to tune our Bluthner. He said he'd have a look at the Ed Seiler then...more later.

The serial must be somewhere, I have seen it on the soundboard underneath a grand piano.I have read here that a number of European pianos in the UK have been restored or rebuilt in Poland by a place called SAP.I have provided a link below.Yes I can understand your concerns if the piano was restored in the 80's in Poland.I do not know why anyone would have their piano restored there during those times unless the piano was there at the time or in "East Germany" perhaps..
However the SAP seams to have existed for a long time so perhaps it did some good work.At least the piano was not made in a country behind the iron curtain, so it probably has a basic good build.
Today when we see a title of a thread titled ED Seiler we normally think of the modern Indonesian Seiler instruments.I think all or most of the old pianos made by Seiler were labeled Ed Seiler. (from what I have seen online) I am glad the piano has a great sound and touch.So Congratulations on your "new to you" piano!

Perhaps someone with more knowledge may contribute to this thread?



https://saprenovation.com/about-us/history/

Thanks for the lead on SAP. I sent them an email asking if they keep records going back to 2003 (sorry, the work was done 18 years ago, not in the 1980s), when the supposedly it was worked on, and if so if can search by brand and serial number. A long shot I know, but thought it would be worth asking just in case. I also provided them with an alternative Serial Number that would correspond to an instrument built in 1903-1904. I found the same instrument as mine that reported was built in 1904 with a serial number very close to mine's except that the first number was a "3" and mine is an "8." Of all the numbers, a 3 would be the easiest to change to an 8.