The Beale brand is strongly connected to Australia and Australians. Beale started from humble beginnings in Sydney and its success story is an inspiration to many in the piano industry.

The company was founded in 1893 by Octavius Charles Beale, who was born 23 February 1850 in Ireland and died 16 December 1930 in Stroud, New South Wales. Amazingly, Beale and Company rose to be the largest piano manufacturer in the British Empire, producing some 95,000 pianos from 1893 to 1975.

Beale set out to manufacture every element of his pianos. The range of trades incorporated into the factory is astonishing - brass and iron foundries, power houses, timber yards, stores, mills, joinery works, cabinet departments, veneer works, paint and pattern shops, machine and electro-plating departments, keyboard action-making and fitting, tuning, intonating; drying kilns, dust-proof polishing rooms and experimental laboratories!

A French music critic, Oscar Comettant, visited Australia in 1898 and commented that ‘…there is probably no piano factory in the world so completely self-contained as the Beale factory at Annandale, NSW. Certainly there is none in the British Empire that produces nearly so many parts used in piano making…’

The Beale Piano Factory was located at 47 Trafalgar Street in Annandale, Sydney. Beale is no longer manufactured in Australia but the factory still stand today, a testament to its strength and longevity. The buildings have been converted into modern apartments and each building has its own piano-related name, a reminder of the thriving Australian piano industry of the past.

Beale Pianos are now manufactured by Pearl River Pianos for an Australian company, the Australis Music Group. Australis is the largest independent, Australian-owned, distributor of musical instruments in Australia. Over the past five years Australis has consistently been ranked in the ‘Top 200 International Music Product Manufacturers and Distributors’ list published by Music Trades magazine.

Pearl River is a renowned Chinese and global piano manufacturer. They have been designing, building and continuously perfecting fine pianos for over fifty years. From the world’s smallest piano company producing 4 upright pianos a month in 1956, Pearl River has grown to become the world’s largest piano factory with the capacity to produce over 100,000 pianos a year. That amazing success is the result of a total commitment to excellence in every facet of the manufacturing process. Assembled in a strictly climate-controlled environment, every element in the Beale piano reflects the highest standards in craftsmanship and quality materials. Pearl River has become so respected for producing fine pianos, that they have established co-ventures with many of the most renowned names in European, Japanese and American piano manufacturing. They even manufacture Steinway’s Essex pianos.

Why Should You Consider A Beale Piano?

Finish
Pearl River has invested more than $4 million in Italian fine-furniture finishing equipment. Every cabinet is polished to a smooth, deep, consistent finish through a process that includes a resin base coat applied prior to the finish. When you carefully examine interior components of Beale pianos, you will discover all sides of the bottom and side panels have been finished. Pearl River uses no plastic case parts in the construction of their economically-priced, yet full-featured pianos.

Soundboards
The soundboards on most Beale pianos are made of Siberian Hybrid vertical-grain Spruce with paper-thin epidermal surface to prevent cracking. Due to this epidermal surface of Spruce, Spruce construction throughout, the thicker center core of Spruce and the 30 degree offset of the epidermal grain, vibrations are free to penetrate through the soundboard producing the rich, warm tones associated with Europe and America’s finest quality pianos. The process assures a soundboard that resists cracks while maintaining beautiful tone throughout the life of the piano. 

Hammers
Beale hammers are made of premium-quality, virgin wool hammer felt and stapled; using 18 pound outer felt and 12 pound under felt weight depending on the scale design. Beale hammers are designed to give every level of pianist a full range of expression and still maintain durability and long life.

Piano Action
Pearl River produces the majority of piano actions for its Beale pianos. In addition they have an optional European action available on specified grand pianos. Pearl River uses tried and true state-of-the-art materials in the construction of all their piano actions.

Sand Cast Plates
Beale’s sand cast plates are heavier and in fact, have a different molecular structure than piano plates utilizing vacuum processing. The Pearl River process uses a natural cooling/aging process that dissipates the heat slowly, allows for complete curing and requires a much more work intensive finishing process. Beale plates are heavier and almost acoustically dead. This is a positive thing because they allow for the pure rich tone associated with expensive European and American pianos, rather than the unwanted overtones that are created by vacuum-processed plates. 

Keys & Key Bed
The keys on all Beale pianos are constructed of triple laminated Spruce which tends to eliminate sticking, enhance strength and promote long-lasting durability. The keyboard is built of Euro-designed butcher-block construction providing strength, stability and long life. Pearl River key beds have no plastic or styrofoam components.

Roslau Music Wire
Roslau music wire is used in all Pearl River pianos and is the same premium quality music wire found in the finest European and American pianos. It is the appropriate gauge to accompany the lower-tension scales employed by Pearl River. Solid copper wire is used to wrap Pearl River’s bass strings to provide a beautiful bass tone. These string features allow the Pearl River piano to deliver a consistent full, rich tone quality, which until now was only available on European and American pianos.