Kirckman (also Kirchmann or Kirkman), Jacob

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Kirckman (also Kirchmann or Kirkman), Jacob

Kirckman (also Kirchmann or Kirkman), Jacob, German-born English organist, composer, and harpsichord maker; b. Bischweiler, near Strasbourg, March 4, 1710; d. Greenwich (buried), June 9, 1792. He settled about 1730 in London, where he was associated with a Flemish harpsichord maker, Hermann Tabel. After Tabel’s death, he married his widow and acquired Tabel’s tools. In 1755 he was naturalized as a British subject. About 1770 he formed a partnership with his nephew, Abraham Kirckman (1737–94), whose descendants continued the business until 1898, when the firm was merged with Collard; it was eventually absorbed by Chappell.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire

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