Historical Érard (Paderewski/John McCormack)

Manufacturer: Érard, Paris/London.

Previous Owner: Count John Francis McCormack, Churchfields, Milltown, Dublin.

Last Owner: Collector John McHugo, Grosvenor Road, Rathgar, Dublin.

Played by: Count John Francis McCormack at his home in Milltown, Dublin.

Played by: Pianist and former Prime Minister of Poland Ignacy Jan Paderewski.

Played by: American Pianist and singer-songwriter Gerry Lee Lewis.

This particular piano was played by the renowned Polish pianist and statesman Ignacy Jan Paderewski (1860-1941) who was strongly associated with Érard, frequently championing their instruments through his worldwide concert tours. There is a brass plate attached to this piano mentioning that Paderewski played it. 

Paderewski made his triumphant Parisian debut on March 3, 1888, at the famous Salle Érard. This performance effectively launched his international career, and for several decades, he travelled extensively with his preferred Érard concert grand. The Érard reflects a broader historical connection between the firm and 19^th-century virtuosos. The Érard double repetition action allowed for an unprecedented combination of speed and control, a mechanism that suited Paderewski’s dramatic, rubato-heavy late-Romantic playing.

Today, his legacy – alongside historic Érard and Pleyel pianos – is celebrated by collectors and musicians across Ireland, with key ties to the region. His historic Dublin concert took place in December 1931. The landmark performance was spearheaded by Warsaw Tadeusz Dobrzynski, the first Polish consul General accredited to Ireland. Our history also maintains a direct link to Paderewski at Russborough House in County Wicklow. They regularly host chamber music events.

Owner and collector John McHugo purchased this Érard in the early 1990’s from a gentleman living in Churchfields, Milltown, Dublin. John does not remember his name but said he was a lecturer in Ballyfermot Technical College. The old period house that the lecturer was living in belonged to Count John McCormack who was the owner of the Érard during the 1980’s. Count John Francis McCormack (1884-1945) was an Irish Tenor celebrated for his performances of the operatic and popular song repertoires, and renowned for his diction and breath control. His was also a Papal Count. McCormack became a naturalised American citizen before returning to live in Ireland.

Collector and most recent owner John McHugo was a friend of Gerry and ex-wife Kerri Lee Lewis. Lewis gave piano lessons to John’s daughter on this piano in the early 1990’s. “I’m still in contact with Kerri Lee Lewis”.

About the Maker:

Sébastien Érard (1752–1831) was a French instrument maker who specialised in the production of pianos and harps, developing the capacities of both instruments and pioneering the modern piano.

Érard's grand piano action (English patent no 4,631, 1821) is the predecessor to those used in modern grands. The repetition lever in these "double escapement" actions allows notes to be repeated more easily than in single actions. It is just one of many Érard innovations still found on modern pianos - for example, Érard was the first maker in Paris to fit pedals on the piano, and his instrument had several pedals. There was the usual sustaining pedal, an action shift, a celeste, and a bassoon pedal (which put leather against the strings to make them buzz). A knee lever moved the action farther than the action-shift pedal, making the hammers strike only one string. Other Érard piano patents deal mainly with technicalities of the keyboard action, soundboard, and tuning mechanism; virtually all of these innovations are retained in modern piano design.

Érard's pianos were also widely appreciated by the foremost musicians – Charles-Valentin, Alkan, Beethoven, Chopin, Faure, Haydn, Herz, Liszt, Mendelssohn, Moscheles, Clara Schumann, Wagner, Verdi, and Ravel are just a few of the famous composers who owned Érard pianos. Mid-career, Paderwski travelled on concerts tours with his own Érard piano.

The piano is preserved in its original condition by Cathal O’Briain, owner and piano restorer/tuner/technician at O’Briain Pianos, Lucan, Dublin. The piano plays very well for its age and tuning is stable. Mechanically excellent having being through a thorough overhaul.

Below is a video example of another similar sized Erard Concert Grand.