Musicology Annotation << Back The Hochbruckers and Their Role in the Popularization of the Harp in Russia and Europe in the XVIIIth Century Sergeev Maxim V. Musicologists' knowledge of the Hochbruckers as musical instrument makers, harpists-virtuosos and composers of the 17th and 18th centuries remained unchanged in reference books for centuries before it has undergone revision in recent years. Yet, while having abandoned one misconception about the Hochbruckers, scholars created another hoax: the one about the so-called "nephew of the harp inventor," without providing the academia with convincing evidence. New facts found in a large array of historical sources allow to clarify biographies of the Hochbruckers and determine the outstanding role of J. Hochbrucker’s children Simon (1699–circa 1772), Johann Christoph (1715–after 1765), Johann Baptist (1732–1812) and the inventor’s grandson in the introduction of the pedal harp in various European countries, including the European part of Russia. Not only do the fi ndings of the study provide a basis for the exploration of the Hochbruckers’ composing heritage and harp repertoire of the second half of the 18th century, but they would also serve to enrich and expand the knowledge of the Russian-European musical and instrument-building partnerships. For years, domestic harp historians had difficulty identifying J.Cr. Hochbrucker, who came on a visit to St. Petersburg with his pedal harp and was active as a musical instrument builder, an instructor and a concert performer in Russia, the Baltic States, Poland and Germany. Now, they have got access to previously unknown resources that would make it possible to revise the dating of the introduction of the pedal harp in Russia’s musical arts. Keywords: Hochbrucker, pedal harp, musical instrument making, organology. DOI: 10.25791/musicology.7.2022.1259 Pp. 08-18.