Pfeiffer, Helmut Carl
Pfeiffer, Pfeifer Carl Conrad Anton, *21 March 1861 Stuttgart, †31 January 1927 Stuttgart, German piano builder, son of Joseph Anton. After practising with I.L. Duysen in Berlin, J. Brinsmead in London and Steinway & Sons in New York, he joined the family business in 1883, which he ran independently from 1896; from 1912 to this day it bears his name (Carl A. Pfeiffer). He produced, among others, pedal attachments for pianos and grand pianos for practicing for organists, as well as instruments with a transposition device, and tools for the production of pianos. He was a pioneer in creating a collection of historic keyboard instruments (for the Deutsches Museum in Munich and the Württembergisches Landesmuseum in Stuttgart – including a collection of piano mechanics). He also built copies of historical harpsichords and pianos by G. Silbermann and others. For his activities, he was honoured with the title of supplier and commercial counsellor of the Württemberg court and an honorary doctorate from the University of Freiburg.
Literature: A. Dolge Pianos and Their Makers, Covina 1911, reprint New York 1972; M.F. Jehle Württembergische Klavierbauer des 18. und 19. Jahrhunderts, Frankfurt am Main 1982; H. Henkel Lexikon deutscher Klavierbauer, Frankfurt am Main 2000.