A & S Nordheimer Co.

The A & S. Nordheimer Piano Company was founded in 1844 in Toronto. The original company was involved in retailing offering music books, sewing machines, sewing supplies and square grand pianos. In 1886 they formed a partnership with Gerhard Heintzman and created the Lansdowne Piano Company. Tom Mason, Vincent Risch and Octavius Newcombe were also involved in this venture and later went on to form the Mason & Risch Company and the Newcombe Piano Company. The Lansdowne Piano Company produced pianos under the brands of all of the partners. Albert and Samuel Nordheimer started their own piano factory when the Lansdowne Piano Company dissolved in 1890.

The upright and grand pianos produced by Nordheimer were among the best pianos ever made in Canada. The company produced approximately 25,000 pianos between 1890 and 1927 when the factory was sold to Heintzman & Co. Heintzman continued to produce pianos in the Nordheimer factory under the Nordheimer brand until 1960 when the factory was closed. The Nordheimer pianos produced in the Nordheimer factory by Heintzman continued to be built to a high standard of quality. Heintzman produced a small number of upright pianos in the 1970’s in their own factory under the Nordheimer Brand but these were of inferior quality and can be identified by the green paint sprayed on the iron plate in the interior of these pianos instead of the traditional gold painted piano plates that were the industry standard.

The Nordheimer brand has reappeared in recent years. The new Nordheimer pianos are produced in China.