Known for his great contribution in lighting, Poul Henningsen designed the ‘PH’ Grand Piano in 1931, now considered one of the most iconic Danish designs of the twentieth century. Presented at the ‘Your Home’ exhibition at the Forum, Copenhagen, the project was commissioned by the Danish company Andreas Christensen. The company was interested in offering a different product to the market, a new version of the piano that could be both functional and modern. Influenced by jazz Henningsen’s intention was to elaborate on the traditional model of the piano to reflect the music of the new age. The reduced dimensions of the case and the modelled legs were designed to occupy a small amount of space upon the bandstand, while the transparent panels exposed the internal mechanism to the audience. The polished metal legs, the cellulose panels and the leather banding were innovative design details that contributed in giving the Grand Piano its futuristic appeal.

Despite the strong design and the excellent quality of sound only a few examples of the Grand Piano have been executed and are in private and important museum collections, including the Alvar Aalto Villa Mairea in Noormarkku, Finland, and the Danish Museum of Art and design, Copenhagen.