Gustav Behning

Biography

Gustav Behning, brother of Henry Behning, was born in New York in 1868. After graduating from public schools he also learned the trade of piano-making, becoming a partner in the firm of Behning and Son in 1890 and being elected secretary and treasurer of the corporation in 1894. With his brother, he was among the first in the industry to take up manufacture of the player piano with great zeal, and the firm came to control eighteen patents on player piano improvements. Gustav Behning is identified as a co-manager of the Behning Piano Company, the corporation formed in 1894 from the piano business originally founded by Henry Behning. He managed the firm alongside Henry Behning, Jr., the founder's son, following the elder Behning's retirement from active business, continuing the company under joint management. From Spillane (1890): Gustave Behning, the youngest son of Henry Behning, Sr., was born in New York on December 26, 1868. At the time of writing he was in charge of the Behning & Son factory and was spoken of by the trade as one of the rising lights of the business, owing to his multifarious talents as an inventor, 'scale' draughtsman, and general expert. Like his brothers he was put through a full apprentice course in the shop in addition to receiving a good education, and shared the family's strong musical sympathies.

Highlights

• Co-managed the Behning Piano Company alongside Henry Behning, Jr.
• Born in New York in 1868, brother of Henry Behning
• Became a partner in the firm of Behning and Son in 1890
• Elected secretary and treasurer of the corporation in 1894
• Youngest of the Behning brothers, placed in charge of the factory.
• Regarded by the trade as 'one of the rising lights of the business' for his talents as inventor and scale draughtsman.

Sources

Alfred Dolge, Pianos and Their Makers, Vol. I (1911), p. 320; Vol. II (1913), p. 39.

Daniel Spillane, History of the American Pianoforte (1890), p. 246.

Public domain.