Hendrik H. Strengers
Written sources about the families Imhof and Mukle are scarce
and are not always consistent, both the family relations and the corresponding dates. The
information below has, therefore to be read with some reserve.
It is a fact that a Thomas Mukle possessed a courtyard in Furtwangen in the Black Forest, but Benedikt Mukle is mentioned around 1790 as the first member of the family making Spieluhren (musical clocks) with two and three registers and so-called "eight day movements". Benedikt Mukle was born in Neukirch in 1771, moved to Gütenbach and finally settled in Furtwangen, where he passed away on 15th March 1857. As one of his sons Christian Mukle (1793 - 1853) is mentioned. Like his father he was a pupil of Martin Blessing (177 - 1847); he built Musikuhren. In 1842 he was mentioned as a Spieluhrenmacher, and he also worked in Furtwangen. He married Viktoria Duffner, a known name in orchestrion building. They had at least two sons: Joseph -he worked in the Furtwangen music industry around 1840- and Leopold, who was involved in the Imhof and Mukle firm. The relationship with Anthon Mkkle (1784- 1815), from whose hand a Dutch clock exists in the Nordiske Museum in Stockholm, is unclear. Joseph Mukle may be the same man as the Musikwerkfabrikant who delivered two flute registers for the 11-register organ in the Furtwangen church, that was built by Schwarz in Überlingen, started in 1875. Further it is known that another Joseph Mukle, from Neukirch, son of Benedikt (not to be confused with his nephew Joseph, son of Christian!) built a Flötenwerk with automata as early as 1835. He is said to have founded the Imhof & Mukle firm in Vöhrenbach together with Daniel Imhof in 1845.
Daniel Imhof was born on 25th March 1825 in Spitzenbach, Amt Waldkirch. He learned the trade of making Spieluhren from Anton Siedle in Neukirch. Not much is known about the first years of the company that was founded in 1845. As a result of the failed uprising in Baden in 1848 Daniel decided to leave everything behind and settled in London, where he founded his own company in 1849. Two years later, in 1851, a Euterpeon-organ was showed on the great exhibition in Hyde Park. It was the 101 key barrel-organ which is now in the Birmingham Museum of Science and Art, alas in a very poor state. It had a swell-box with a short row of pipes; the opening and shutting of the lid was key-operated. This orchestrion won a highest prize on this exhibition.
In 1852 Daniel founded the English firm Imhof and Mukle (also spelled Muckle), together with formentioned Leopold Mukle. The company introduced orchestrions in England and also started with repairs of these instruments from France, England and Austria. Their first address was 547 Oxford St., London WC1. On an exhibition on their own address in 1862 an orchestrion with twelve barrels was shown. It is also mentioned that the firm was selling music boxes and in 1866 Daniel took a patent on an improvement in the construction of a glockenspiel and percussion in so-called self-acting organs.
The Vöhrenbach company grew after the construction of the Schwarzwaldbahn in 1871. In 1874 Leopold Mukle and Daniel Imhof took over the factory buildings of the Welte firm, which had moved into a new establishment in Freiburg, Breisgau. Daniel would be working in Vöhrenbach and Leopold in London, but the company's name remained officially Orchestriongeschäft Imhof und Mukle. Around 1879 the company gave work to 45 to 50 people and was the largest in the branch. The address in 1909 was Alleenstraße 153.
London addresses after 547 Oxford St. (Euterpean rooms) were 46 Oxford St. (1870) and 110 New Oxford St. (1883). Further mentioned are a manufactury at 9 Sandiland St., Holborn (1880), while on a barrel (street)organ is mentioned 9 Bedford St. Also known is an advertisement by Laopold Mukle of a compressed-air-motor with 92 Albany St., Regents Pk. London NW. In 1874 the company was entitled to bear the title of ......
Worth mentioning are some great orchestrions:
The company received many more decorations: medals on the exhibitions of London (1862), Dublin (1865), Mannheim (1880), Sidney (1880), Melbourne (1881), Amsterdam (1883), London (1884), Antwerp (1885) and Paris (1900). Bronze medals were won at the Deutsche Ausstellung in London in 1891 and on de Industrie- und Gewerbe-Ausstellung in Strasburg in 1895. A separate story is that of the the Gewerbe-Ausstellung in Sankt Georgen, Black Forest. Joseph Mukle joined this exhibition. For the competition a six-barrel work was required and amongst the music two works were obligatory: air nr. 5 from the second act of the opera Robert der Teufel (Robert the Devil) by Giacomo Meyerbeer and het piano concert in C by Carl Maria von Weber. Joseph won with 86 out of max. 120 points. This was in 1884.
The sons of Daniel Imhof, Alfred and Charles Daniel, also worked in England. The other son Albert Karl Sr. (London 24-8-1863 - Vöhrenbach 5-6-1942) took over the Vöhrenbach firm together with his nephew Joseph (b. Unterglottenthal 1862) who was already working with the firm since 1874. The export of both firms was to almost any country on the Continent. The London branch also made orchestrions for England, like the instruments for Lord Shrewsbury in 1891 and voor Mr. Abingdon Baird in 1899. Instruments made especially for tropical environments were exported to countries as Egypt, India and China.
Daniel Imhof and his son Albeert Karl Sr. Composed themselves, and made barrels. Further Notenzeichner - music markers- were Matthias Krieg, Karl Zech and Karl Hirth, who also spoke Russian. Service mechanics were Augustin Ketterer (his father was running the famous Gasthof zum Ochsen) and Dold, father of the pub owner Hans Dold.
The pinned barrels were replaced, first by metal tapes, later by paper ones. In 1898 het firm used so-called "Manilla"-paper and from 1915 normal paper. Prices for music rolls were between $18 and $28. The dollar at the time costed ƒ2.45, so they were more expensive than other make. Later F.G. Mukle, son of Leopold, made rolls for Up-to-Date Music Roll Company in Hammersmith.
In 1896 the London company started selling phonographs. In 1900 the company also built piano-orchestrions with pneumatic steering and electrical drive. Among the most fascinating orchestrions ever built is the Lord 3, an "two-in-one" instrument. The main orchestrion was accompanied by a smaller "echo"unit, connected to the main instrument by a set of cables. This echo-orchestrion played its own solo's, so one could hear the violin from behind and the piano from the front; a unique experience!
The World address book of the musical industry (Paul de Wit, Leipzig) gives in 1903 in Furtwangen: Josef Mukle, maker ofFlötenwerken and in Vöhrenbach: Imhof & Mukle, builders of orchestrions and piano-orchestrions. As founding date we find here 1848 (1845 is more probable) and as branch 'Londen, New Oxford Street 110.' Owners: Carl, Albert, Alfred and Josef Imhof. That is right, for Daniel Imhof (the father) had left the company 24th June 1899 and had died in March 1900 in Croyden, Surrey, Engeland.
Despite a drawback during the first World War the firm survived, because the demand for piano-orchestrions grew again. Paul de Wit mentiones:
1) 1926: Vöhrenbach: Musikwerkefabrik Imhof & Mukle. Managers: Albert, Karl and Josef Imhof. It is not clear which Albert this is: either Albert Karl Sr. (1863- 1942) or his son Albert Karl Jr. (born 17-9-1895 in Vöhrenbach, deceased 5-7-1977 in Titisee/Neustadt), Karl would be Charles and Josef is the nephew. The address now is Alleenstrasse 150 (in 1909: 153) and Hammereisen-Bacherstrasse 241. They were engaged in the production of metal organ pipes (the wooden pipes were bought from Schönstein in Villingen), piano's with mandolin-, xylophone- and harp effects. The piano's were obtained from Irmler in Leipzig and Lipp in Stuttgart.
2) 1927: London: Mrs. Alfred Imhof, 110 New Oxford Street. Trade in 'talking machines', gramophone records and music boxes'. They kept the name, as usual at the time, although the firm was managed by his wife Kasthleen since Alfreds death in 1918. In 1951 nam their son Godfrey (or Geoffrey) took over the business till his death in 1963. The Vöhrenbach firm closed much earlier, in 1930.
Of course the firms had agents in several countries. The three best known I will mention here:
1) USA: The E(rnst) Boecker (or Böcker) Organ and Orchestrion Company, importing and building piano-orchestrions for concert- en dance halls, amusement parks, restaurants, cafés, etc. Showrooms and factory: 229 Tenth Avenue (near 23th St), New York. A fine catalog survives with pictures of Imhof & Mukle orchestrions. In 1914 the firm went into trouble due to the stagnating import and everything was auctioned on 11th June, 1914. Nearly all styles were for sale, such as Herold, Lohengrin, Lucia, Dinorah, Trompeter von Saeckingen, Tell, Venus, Walkuere, Lucretia and of course the earlier mentioned Lord 3, the echo-orchestrion. They also made music rolls for these instruments. About 2000 were in the auction!
2) Belgium: Eugene de Roy (died 1969) from Borgerhout near Antwerp. He is known by the "Symphonia" Piano Rolls, but he also made rolls for all types of orchestrions.
3) Netherlands: P.J. (Petrus Johannes) Beckx - de la Fai in Tegelen. In the late twenties the last big Imhof & Mukle orchestrion was shipped to this firm. It was placed in a big restautant.
In the spring of 1998 members of the Vöhrenbach working group for local history traveled to the Alsace, for in a small village an Imhof & Mukle orchestrion was for sale. It turned out to be a big instrument woth a fine oak chest and splendid stained glass windows. It was restored and there was music with it. In the Schwarzwälder Bote of 2nd and 3rd May 1998 an appeal was made for bringing together funds. End of June the organ builder Norbert Unfe from Leutenheim (Alsace) could bring the instrument back to the place where it was once made. It was deployed in the Vöhrenbach town hall where it could be heard again after fourty years of silence in an Alsace restaurant.
The instrument is a piano-orchestrion of the style 'Herold' and it was made abt. 1900. It has abuilt-in piano of 45 notes, a lyra, 26 violin pipes, bass and snare drums and cymbal. Dimensions are 2.55 m high, 1.55 m wide, and .86 m deep. The price in 1900 was 2200 German Marks; now they asked 75.000 for it! The funds were risen by the generous Vöhrenbach people within a year!
A non-commercial CD has been made with the title Imhof & Mukle, Vöhrenbacher Orchestrion, 38.09 minutes. It can be ordered from Mr. Hans Wolfer, Friedrichstrasse 9, 78147 Vöhrenbach, BRD.
The 15 pieces program contains some unknown melodies and I would like to thank Hans van Oost for helping to search for the missing titles.
(titles in magazine)
The quality is rather good. Remarkable is the sudden end of titles 3 and 4. The instrument plays very well and it is certainly worth the trouble to make acquaintance to such a remarkable orchestrion.