PORTRAIT. “Each instrument is unique”, Jan-Pieter de Bruin piano maker-tuner in the Meuse

In Revigny-sur-Ornain in the Meuse, Jan-Pieter de Bruin has been a piano maker, tuner and restorer for twenty years. An enthusiast and one of the rare professionals in the Grand Est in this field. Encounter.

Jan-Pieter de Bruin, almost 50 years old, is a piano maker in Revigny-sur-Ornain, near Bar-le-Duc in the Meuse. He is one of the rare professionals in the Grand Est region in this field. A piano maker is an art craftsman who makes, repairs, restores and tunes. Established on his own for ten years, Jan-Pieter de Bruin renovates and saves instruments from all periods and origins. “There, we are on an instrument that was made in Paris, France.”

I try to capture as much information as possible about the instrument, the model, the history, the history of the brand, but also its personal history.

Jan-Pieter de Bruin, piano maker

And Jan-Pieter de Bruin’s specialty is piano restoration. Thursday June 13, 2024, under his hands, a Pleyel from 1950. It is in the process of finding a new lease of life. It involves restoring a black varnish on a German piano, an operation that is much more technical than it seems. “Since we have more manufacturing in France, it is still a heritage to be preserved. And for equivalent quality, it is an instrument that would not even be affordable in financial terms. It is a high quality piano whose structure has inspired many of the French maker’s competitors. An instrument that today has no equivalent. But always with quality musical and aesthetic qualities.

In his workshop, he completely refurbishes second-hand instruments that are sometimes more than fifty years old. “Each instrument is unique.”

VIDEO. Jan-Pieter de Bruin in his workshop. Images Frédéric Madiai, France 3 Lorraine.

There is only one state diploma training center. He is at Le Mans in the Pays-de-la-Loire region. It is here that Jan-Pieter de Bruin benefited from advanced training at the European Technological Institute for Music Professions.

Pleyel, Gaveau, Steinway… Jan-Pieter de Bruin restores four to five instruments per year for a clientele, mainly individuals. And suddenly, in the room, we can listen to the barely stretched strings and even other hammer blows. “And for the people who loved it or who still love it, we must respect the instrument in its own identity. Then, we turn things around to put it back as soon as it was the time”, said Jan-Pieter de Bruin to Lodois Gravel, journalist at France 3 Lorraine.

A craft and artistic activity that helps save our musical heritage. From now on, he has become a reference in the world of piano making.