'Imagined outcomes': contrasting patterns of opportunity, capability and innovation in British musical instrument manufacturing, 1930-1985

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Smith, D.J. ORCID: 0000-0001-7359-8451 and Blundel, R.K., 2018. 'Imagined outcomes': contrasting patterns of opportunity, capability and innovation in British musical instrument manufacturing, 1930-1985. Enterprise & Society, 19 (3), pp. 661-701. ISSN 1467-2227

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Official URL: http://doi.org/10.1017/eso.2017.65

Abstract

By the mid-twentieth century, musical instrument manufacturing had become an increasingly mechanized activity. Craft skills had been displaced in many areas, yet remained a vital source of competitive advantage in local and international markets and were particularly valued by professional musicians. This paper examines the contrasting experiences of two British musical instrument manufacturers, tracing the unfolding relationship between their pursuit of entrepreneurial opportunities and capability development. Boosey & Hawkes, a large, well-established manufacturing and publishing company, was an early pioneer while Paxman Bros, a small musical retailer, transformed itself into one of the world's most respected specialist manufacturers. The narrative probes the factors that shaped decision-making in these companies as they developed a series of design innovations for one of the more complex brass instruments, the French horn. It examines how a dynamic interaction between opportunity and capability, coupled with unanticipated contingencies, contributed to divergent outcomes for each company.

Item Type:

Journal article

Publication Title:

Enterprise & Society

Creators:

Smith, D.J. and Blundel, R.K.

Publisher:

Cambridge University Press

Date:

September 2018

Volume:

Number: