KHS in Taiwan: A Social History of a Musical Instruments Company

KHS is a well-known music instrument trader and manufacturer in Taiwan. The predecessor of this largest company in Taiwan music instrument industry today can be traced back to 1930, KHS devotes its efforts to trading and manufacturing music instruments from 1945. It sales Yamaha pianos and privet brand Swallow harmonicas which are famous in 1950 and 60’s. At the 70’s, KHS operates the Yamaha Music System in Taiwan and raises a trend of children taking piano lessons. In 2005, KHS becomes the 5 largest companies in World’s music instrument manufacture industry. This thesis focuses on the diachronic development and the activities of KHS by adopting the perspective of the social history of music. In this case study, the author wants to portrait the roles of music instrument trader/manufacturer as an element in the network of the development of Western music culture in Taiwan and the relationship between KHS and the Taiwan social history.