Biddenden (United Kingdom) (AFP)

With five pedals, two keyboards or opening like a butterfly: an unusual collection of pianos is auctioned by an American restorer who has worked on instruments by Chopin, Beethoven or the British royal family.

In the village of Biddenden, in Kent (south-eastern England), a royal decree fixed above a door draws attention: "By decree of Her Majesty the Queen, conservators and restorers of pianos".

The building contains real treasures: 26 pianos that Californian David Winston took a lifetime to collect.

His impressive collection, some of which could be worth up to 60,000 pounds (71,000 euros) will be sold from September 1 by the Dreweatts house, before the craftsman retires in Venice.

"I am almost 71 years old now, it is a bit like the moment", explained to AFP the man who repaired instruments passed in prestigious hands.

He notably restored "a number of royal instruments", including pianos that belonged to Queen Elizabeth II herself, although he remains discreet about this work.

His hunting table also includes the restoration of the French piano Pleyel which belonged to his "great hero" Frédéric Chopin.

But his greatest pride is still to have been able to put Beethoven's Broadwood back on its feet, in the Hungarian National Museum.

Pianist Xiaowen Shang plays on one of the pianos sold, a Pleyel that belonged to pianist Madeleine Lioux, wife of André Malraux, on August 6, 2021 in Biddenden, in the south-east of England TOLGA AKMEN AFP

"When I walked into this room for the first time, and saw this piano sitting there with Beethoven's name on it, the hairs on my neck stood up," David Winston recounts with emotion.

- Five pedals or two keyboards -

Among the pianos he sells, we find mostly instruments dating from the 18th to the 20th centuries.

One of them, built entirely by the restorer, is an exact replica of a 19th century Viennese instrument.

His particuliarity ?

It has five pedals, whereas most modern pianos have only three.

The additional pedals make it possible to produce a sound effect of drum and bell or a bassoon-like rattle - perfect for martial music which was very popular at the time.

Pianos from the collection of David Wilson on display in his workshop in Biddenden, August 6, 2021 in the south-east of England TOLGA AKMEN AFP

“Compared to the modern piano, it is smoother and has a very sensitive sound,” explains Chinese pianist Xiaowen Shang, who considers it her favorite.

This student at the famous Royal Academy of Music in London, who plays a Schubert sonata on the instrument, also explains that she loves playing on the Pleyel Duoclave.

Equipped with a keyboard on each side, this particular piano allows two musicians to play face to face, with the sound rising between them.

"They are very rare: they have only been made about fifty copies," Mr. Winston echoes.

The instrument belonged to Madeleine Lioux, renowned French pianist and wife of French writer and minister André Malraux.

David Winston's collection in front of an Erard piano made in Paris in 1798, August 6, 2021 in his workshop in Biddenden, in the south-east of England TOLGA AKMEN AFP

But David Winston's collection doesn't just stop at old instruments, it also includes pianos designed for the twentieth-century lifestyle.

- Collectors or amateurs -

Among his most eccentric pieces stands a futuristic grand piano, with a shiny silver aluminum frame.

Xiaowen Shang begins "The Way We Were", a 1970s ballad performed by Barbra Streisand.

This instrument made by the now defunct Dutch company Rippen "dates from the 1960s", explains Winston.

“It's really stable and sounds pretty good,” he adds.

"There were quite a few on ships and there was even one on an airship at one time."

Pianist Xiaowen Shang plays on a grand piano with a shiny silver aluminum frame, manufactured by the Dutch company Rippen in the 1960s, on August 6, 2021 in Biddenden, in the south-east of England TOLGA AKMEN AFP

A "butterfly-tailed" walnut piano from Wurlitzer, a company best known for its organs and jukeboxes, also attracts attention: its lid opens from the center into two wings, creating a stereo effect.

According to the restorer, his potential buyers could be seasoned collectors looking for "rare instruments" as well as more simple amateurs, "simply looking for something really unusual and rare that will completely transform a piece".

© 2021 AFP