Schiedmayer
A German instrument-making family and continuing specialist manufacturer of celestas and keyboard glockenspiels.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Schiedmayer is the name of a German family of instrument makers whose documented manufacturing tradition began in Erlangen in 1735 with Balthasar Schiedmayer. The family became associated first with organs, clavichords, fortepianos and other keyboard instruments, and later with pianos, harmoniums, celestas, glockenspiels and mechanically operated instruments. Rather than representing one uninterrupted corporate entity, Schiedmayer describes a network of related family workshops and companies that developed, separated, merged and changed names over several centuries. The early family tradition expanded through Balthasar's sons. Johann Georg Christoph Schiedmayer worked in Neustadt an der Aisch, Adam Achatius Schiedmayer remained active in Erlangen, and Johann David Schiedmayer became a prominent maker in Erlangen and later Nuremberg. Surviving instruments attributed to these makers include clavichords, fortepianos and square pianos, providing evidence of the family's role in the development of German keyboard manufacture during the eighteenth century. A major institutional phase began in Stuttgart in 1809, when Johann Lorenz Schiedmayer founded Dieudonné & Schiedmayer with Carl Dieudonné. After Dieudonné's death, the enterprise became the Pianofortefabrik von Schiedmayer and later, following the participation of Johann Lorenz's sons Adolf and Hermann, Schiedmayer & Sons, Pianoforte Factory. The Stuttgart factory operated for much of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and occupied premises on the site now associated with cultural and educational institutions. The firm's reputation was strengthened by its connections with Stuttgart's musical life, including the composer Friedrich Silcher, who stayed at the Schiedmayer family home after moving to the city. A parallel branch was created in 1853 when Johann Lorenz's sons Julius and Paul established J & P Schiedmayer after studying harmonium construction in Paris. Their work broadened the family's technical range. In addition to pianos and harmoniums, the company produced celestas and special hybrid instruments such as the Schiedmayer-Scheola, which combined features of an organ, harmonium and celesta. The branch also made mechanical and self-playing instruments. It was subsequently known as Schiedmayer Pianoforte Factory. The two principal Stuttgart branches were brought under common ownership in 1969, when Georg Schiedmayer acquired the former J & P Schiedmayer business. Piano production ended in 1980 as the business concentrated on celestas and glockenspiels. After Georg Schiedmayer died in 1992, his widow Elianne Schiedmayer inherited both Schiedmayer & Sons GmbH & Co. KG and the Schiedmayer Pianoforte Factory. The latter was formally liquidated in 2008, ending that corporate line while the specialist celesta business continued. Elianne Schiedmayer established Schiedmayer Celesta GmbH in 1995, initially under the name Schiedmayer Celestabau GmbH. Since 2000, the company has been based in Wendlingen am Neckar near Stuttgart. Its products include concert and studio celestas in several ranges, compact models, five-octave instruments and celestas designed for integration with church organs. Schiedmayer also makes keyboard glockenspiels. These instruments are used internationally in opera houses, concert halls and other professional music settings. The contemporary brand is therefore best understood as a specialist, family-linked manufacturer focused on rare keyboard percussion instruments, while its historical identity encompasses a much broader German piano and keyboard-making heritage.
History
The Schiedmayer name belongs to a long-established German family of instrument makers. The family's recorded manufacturing history starts in 1735, when Balthasar Schiedmayer built an instrument in Erlangen. He worked as an organ and piano maker, and his craft was continued by several of his sons. Johann Georg Christoph Schiedmayer settled in Neustadt an der Aisch, Adam Achatius Schiedmayer worked in Erlangen, and Johann David Schiedmayer operated first in Erlangen and, after 1797, in Nuremberg. Johann David became one of the better-known keyboard makers of his period. Instruments attributed to this generation, including clavichords, fortepianos and square pianos, have survived. In 1809, Johann David's son Johann Lorenz Schiedmayer and Carl Dieudonné established Dieudonné & Schiedmayer in Stuttgart. The firm developed a strong regional reputation. After Dieudonné's death, the company traded as Pianofortefabrik von Schiedmayer. When Johann Lorenz's sons Adolf and Hermann joined the operation after 1845, it became Schiedmayer & Sons, Pianoforte Factory. The Stuttgart factory remained at its long-term site on the former Neckarstrasse from 1821 until 1969. The location is now associated with the State University of Music and Performing Arts and the House of History of Baden-Württemberg. A centenary exhibition was held in Stuttgart in 1909 and was attended by Württemberg's King William II and Queen Charlotte. The family also developed a separate Stuttgart branch. Johann Lorenz sent his younger sons Julius and Paul to Paris to study harmonium construction. There they encountered Victor Mustel, who later became important in the development of the celesta. On returning to Stuttgart, Julius and Paul founded J & P Schiedmayer in 1853. The company produced pianos and later celestas, while also experimenting with unusual combinations of keyboard, reed and percussion technology. Its Schiedmayer-Scheola combined characteristics of an organ, harmonium and celesta, and the company made mechanical and self-playing instruments as well. The business was located near Schiedmayer & Sons and later adopted the name Schiedmayer Pianoforte Factory. Another related enterprise, Müller-Schiedmayer, was founded in Würzburg in 1874 by a descendant of Johann Lorenz Schiedmayer through his daughter. Its founder had trained at both Schiedmayer branches and at Steinway & Sons in New York. Müller-Schiedmayer was liquidated in 1968, and Erwin Müller-Schiedmayer was the last bearer of that branch's name. The Stuttgart family businesses were consolidated in 1969 when Georg Schiedmayer took over the former J & P Schiedmayer company. Piano production was discontinued in 1980, and the business focused on celestas and glockenspiels. Following Georg's death in 1992, his widow Elianne Schiedmayer inherited Schiedmayer & Sons GmbH & Co. KG and Schiedmayer Pianoforte Factory. The latter was officially liquidated in 2008. The continuing business is Schiedmayer Celesta GmbH, founded by Elianne Schiedmayer in 1995 under an earlier corporate name. It has been located in Wendlingen am Neckar near Stuttgart since 2000. The company produces celestas in professional, studio, compact and five-octave configurations, as well as models intended for installation in church organs. Schiedmayer keyboard glockenspiels are also part of the modern range. The instruments are used in opera and concert venues internationally, giving the brand a focused contemporary role in specialist keyboard percussion while preserving its historical association with German piano and keyboard manufacture.
- 2008
Schiedmayer Pianoforte Factory is liquidated
[1]The former piano-making branch is officially removed through liquidation at the company registry.
- 2000
The celesta company moves to Wendlingen am Neckar
[1]Schiedmayer Celesta GmbH establishes its continuing base near Stuttgart in Wendlingen am Neckar.
- 1995
Schiedmayer Celesta GmbH is founded
[1]Elianne Schiedmayer launches the dedicated celesta manufacturing company, initially called Schiedmayer Celestabau GmbH.
- 1980
Piano production ends
[1]The business stops making pianos and concentrates on celestas and glockenspiels.
- 1969
The two main Stuttgart branches are consolidated
[1]Georg Schiedmayer acquires the Schiedmayer Pianoforte Factory, formerly J & P Schiedmayer.
- 1909
Centenary exhibition in Stuttgart
[1]A major Stuttgart exhibition marks one hundred years since the founding of the family's principal Stuttgart enterprise.
- 1874
Müller-Schiedmayer is founded
[1]A related family branch establishes Müller-Schiedmayer in Würzburg.
- 1853
J & P Schiedmayer is established
[1]Julius and Paul Schiedmayer found a parallel Stuttgart business focused on harmoniums, pianos, celestas and experimental instruments.
- 1845
The business becomes Schiedmayer & Sons
[1]Adolf and Hermann Schiedmayer join their father's enterprise, leading to the Schiedmayer & Sons name.
- 1809
Dieudonné & Schiedmayer is founded in Stuttgart
[1]Johann Lorenz Schiedmayer and Carl Dieudonné establish a Stuttgart instrument-making firm that later becomes Schiedmayer & Sons.
Products and positioning
A specialist German maker of professional celestas and related keyboard percussion instruments, supported by a family tradition in keyboard-instrument construction dating to the eighteenth century.
Celesta
Schiedmayer celestas
The modern Schiedmayer range centers on celestas, keyboard instruments whose tuned metal plates are struck by hammers and whose sound is associated with orchestral, operatic and cinematic repertoire. The company produces professional instruments in multiple sizes and configurations, including five-octave and five-and-a-half-octave models. Its instruments are intended for institutional and performance use rather than mass-market home ownership.
Celesta
Studio and compact celestas
Schiedmayer's studio and compact models provide smaller-format alternatives to its larger professional celestas. They retain the characteristic keyboard-controlled, tuned-percussion sound while addressing venues and users with different space or portability requirements. The reference material identifies five-and-a-half-octave studio and compact models among the company's continuing products.
Organ-integrated instrument
Built-in celesta for church organs
The company makes celestas designed to be installed within church-organ systems. These instruments extend the celesta's role beyond a standalone concert keyboard and allow organ builders or institutions to incorporate its distinctive tuned-metal sound into larger fixed installations.
Keyboard percussion
Keyboard glockenspiels
Schiedmayer's keyboard glockenspiels are professional tuned-percussion instruments operated from a keyboard. They belong to the same specialist product field as the company's celestas and are intended for musical institutions, stages and performance ensembles requiring controlled access to a bright, bell-like metallic timbre.
Historical keyboard instruments · 1735
Historical pianos and fortepianos
Earlier Schiedmayer family makers produced pianos, fortepianos, square pianos and related keyboard instruments. Surviving examples document the family's participation in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century German keyboard manufacture, although these historical instruments are no longer presented as current production lines.
Hybrid keyboard instrument
Schiedmayer-Scheola
The Schiedmayer-Scheola was an unusual historical instrument combining characteristics of an organ, harmonium and celesta. It reflects the family's experimentation beyond conventional piano production and is preserved in museum collections and historical references rather than offered as a contemporary commercial product.
Brand decisions
1995
Creation of a dedicated celesta companyStrategyBackground
Following the later history of the family businesses, Elianne Schiedmayer established a new vehicle centered specifically on celesta manufacture.
Action taken
She launched Schiedmayer Celesta GmbH, initially using the name Schiedmayer Celestabau GmbH.
Aftermath
The dedicated company became the continuing operating business associated with the Schiedmayer name and its international celesta sales.
1980
Exit from piano productionStrategyBackground
After decades of association with piano manufacture, the business adjusted its activities toward more specialized instruments.
Action taken
Schiedmayer ended piano production and focused on celestas and glockenspiels.
Aftermath
The change shaped the modern identity of Schiedmayer as a specialist keyboard-percussion manufacturer rather than a general piano maker.
1969
Consolidation of the Stuttgart Schiedmayer businessesM&ABackground
The family's principal Stuttgart branches had developed as related but separate businesses, including Schiedmayer & Sons and the former J & P Schiedmayer enterprise.
Action taken
Georg Schiedmayer took over the Schiedmayer Pianoforte Factory, which had previously operated as J & P Schiedmayer.
Aftermath
The consolidation brought the two main Stuttgart lines under common ownership before the later shift away from piano production.
Recent events
- 2008
Schiedmayer Pianoforte Factory is liquidated[1]
Other
The Schiedmayer Pianoforte Factory, the former J & P Schiedmayer branch, was formally liquidated at the company registry.
- 1995
Schiedmayer establishes a dedicated celesta company[1]
Other
Elianne Schiedmayer founded Schiedmayer Celesta GmbH, formerly known as Schiedmayer Celestabau GmbH, creating the modern specialist company associated with the brand's celesta production.
Sources1 sources
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