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Symphonium

ca. 1835
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 681
Invented in 1829 by the physicist Charles Wheatstone, the famous discoverer of the electric "Wheatstone bridge," the symphonium features two characteristics that he later used in his concertina: the same notes at pressure and suction, and alternative distribution of the diatonic tones to the right and left hand (C is for the right hand, D for the left, E for the right hand, etc.). The chromatic tones are the buttons of the outer row. The two groups of twelve buttons on each side produce a chromatic range from c1 to d3 (lacking d#1). The form of the instrument recalls a sheng without pipes.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Symphonium
  • Maker: Charles Wheatstone (1802–1875)
  • Date: ca. 1835
  • Geography: London, England, United Kingdom
  • Culture: British
  • Medium: nickel silver, ivory, brass, mother-of-pearl
  • Dimensions: 2 3/4 × 2 3/8 × 1 7/16 in. (7 × 6.1 × 3.7 cm)
  • Classification: Aerophone-Free Reed-mouth organ
  • Credit Line: The Crosby Brown Collection of Musical Instruments, 1889
  • Object Number: 89.4.2085
  • Curatorial Department: Musical Instruments

More Artwork

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Concertina, Charles Wheatstone British, Mahogany (?), leather, paper, metal (brass, nickel-silver), British
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Concertina, Charles Wheatstone British, Palisander, leather, paper, ivory, British
Concertina
Charles Wheatstone
ca. 1862
Concertina, Charles Wheatstone British, Rosewood, nickel-silver, leather, paper, ivory, tortoiseshell; case of mahogany, British
Concertina
Charles Wheatstone
1831–37
Grand Pianoforte, Érard , made in London French, Satinwood veneer, oak, spruce, iron, steel, ebony, ivory, gilding, mother-of-pearl, holly, mahogany, burl walnut, tulipwood, silver wire, British
Grand Pianoforte
Érard
George Henry Blake
ca. 1840
Cornet in B-flat, John Augustus Köhler British, Brass, silver-plated, British
Cornet in B-flat
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ca. 1849

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