Panteleon Hebenstreit was born 27 November 1668 and was a German dance teacher, musician and composer.
On 29 January 1691 Hebenstreit started at the University of Wittenburg and by 1697 was employed as a violinist, keyboard musician and dancing teacher in Leipzig. However, having to leave Leipzig to escape his creditors, he took a position in Merseburg as a private tutor.
He constructed a large hammered dulcimer which created a flurry of interest. It had 186 strings and was some nine feet long. The strings were struck by hand-held hammers in the manner of performers playing a xylophone. Hebenstreit took it with him on a tour of Europe.
In 1705 he played before Louis XIV. The French king, being so impressed both with the instrument and with Hebenstreit's mastery of it, renamed it "Le Pantalon”.
Returning from France, Hebenstreit sought court employment in his home region. He was a versatile and talented musician and took a number positions before in May 1714 he accepted a position at the Electoral Court in Dresden on a very good salary - 1200 Thalers. By 1729 Hebenstreit's failing eyesight, increasingly limited his capacity to fulfil all of his responsibilities.
Despite his undoubted virtuosity as a musician, his Pantaleon was too large, too expensive to build and too difficult to play to generate the kind of demand that would justify commercial investment. Even so, because the instrument was played using hand-held hammers, thus allowing a huge dynamic range of sound, it carried the hints of the basic features of the piano. Some even deem it a precursor to the modern piano.
On 15 November 1750 Pantaleon Hebenstreit died and was buried in Dresden.
© Steve Burden
