STEIN, a family of pianoforte makers and players.
Johann Andreas, the founder of German pianoforte-making, was born at Heidesheim in the Palatinate in . Nothing is known of his early life, but he appears to have been in Paris in 1758, and to have remained there for some years. We may conclude that he was engaged in organ-building and harpsichord-making, since he was not only a good musician, but a proficient in both handicrafts, before he turned to pianoforte-making...