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The Piano (Origins and Development)

What is something that every music hall has? Something that every school, church,

classroom, would be incomplete without? A piano. Piano, is among the most popular instruments

played by people across the world (Michaelidou, A.). Not just the piano, but all piano-like

instruments; keyboard, electric or not. This instrument used to play all genres from classical to

twenty first century pop, jazz to country, and the list goes on and on. Where did this instrument

come from? Who imagined this instrument used practically in every country in the world today?

Invented by Bartolomeo Cristofori (1655-1731) in Padua Italy, the keeper of instruments

to the grand Prince of Tuscany Ferdinando de’ Medici (History of the Piano). Bartolomeo was an

expert harpsichord maker, who probably knew how to build the instruments better than most

people could play them. Along with knowing how to build harpsichords, Barty knew their

weaknesses and what needed to be improved; he understood the need for a change, a step up in

the evolution of music.

Before I get in to why the piano was needed, I want to spend just a little time on the

instruments that came before it. Keyboard instruments date back to the Ancient Greek in the

Third century B.C. This was an organ-like instrument called the hydraulis. This was a type of

pipe organ, pretty small compared to the massive church organs that can be seen in cathedrals

and churches across the map. Organs would continue to hold the light of popularity until around

the 14th century when the clavichord and harpsichord came into existence.

The Clavichord (getting closer to the piano but not quite), is a keyboard instrument that

uses hammers that when the key is pressed, strike the string to create sound. The keys act as a

lever and on the opposite end of this lever is a brass tangent that resembles the flat head of the

screwdriver. When this tangent comes in contact with the sting it created a vibration through the
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sting that is picked up by a bridge and then resonates through a sound board or box. The strings

that are usually brass or a brass iron mix are usually in pairs like that of a lute or mandolin.

When struck by this hammer like tangent, it creates a sound that is very similar to a guitar.

Unlike its piano cousin, when a note is played, the hammer does not rebound off of the string but

stays in contact as long as the key is being pressed. This method gave the clavichord a softer or

more quiet sound due to the fact the hammer would dampen the sound as long as it is in contact

with the string. This created a problem because it could not be played in larger ensembles or

rooms or it would be too easily drowned out. This was invented in the early fourteenth century,

and was very popular from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries but mostly in German

speaking countries

The harpsichord seemed to solve this softness problem partially but it still had a major

drawback. The harpsichord was most probably invented in the late middle ages, and used

through the eighteenth century. This elegant instrument used in theaters, music halls, churches,

and private concerts proved to be superior to many of its predecessors. It was very popular for its

tone, but one must not get too excited for this still had a fault that would later be fixed by the

piano. Harpsichords vary in size and shape, but all have the same basic mechanism. The player

depresses a key that rocks over a pivot in the middle of its length. The other end of the key lifts

a jack (a long strip of wood) that holds a small plectrum (a wedge-shaped piece of quill, often

plastic in the 2010s), which plucks the string. When the player releases the key, the far end

returns to its rest position, and the jack falls back. The plectrum, mounted on a tongue that can

swivel backwards away from the string, passes the string without plucking it again. As the key

reaches its rest position, a felt damper atop the jack stops the string's vibrations.
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The problem that the Harpsichord presented was that of dynamic variation. With the

action of plucking, this was a very uniform sound which the performer would little to no way to

alter. This meant that the true emotional beauty of a composition could not be felt by a

harpsichord.

The growing desire for an instrument that can capture the true emotion in music

continued to grow. There were and are many other instruments that are very capable of capturing

the emotions of the musicians that played them, but something was still missing. Using his vast

knowledge of the inner workings of a harpsichord, Bartolomeo invented a new type of keyboard

instrument he first named the Pianoforte. This looked much like the already famous harpsichord

on the outside, but once played, the true beauty from within would soon be released. The original

Italian name for the instrument is clavicembalo (or gravicembalo) col piano e forte (literally

harpsichord capable of playing at the normal level, and more strongly).

Unfortunately Cristofori’s piano was largely unknown until 1711 when an Italian writer,

Scipione Maffei wrote about it. His article was a very enthusiastic one and included a diagram of

the mechanism. Subsequently, many piano builders started their work because of what they read

in that article. One example was Gottfried Silbermann, better known as an organ builder. He

built pianos that were direct copies of Cristofori’s except for one important addition; he invented

the forerunner of the damper pedal we use today. It lifts all dampers from the strings at once.

Modeled after the harpsichord, the piano was an answer to the demand for a better way

for artists to express their music skill, emotion, and dynamic range. The harpsichord, although

unique and beautiful, did not posses a large range for dynamics; actually it did not have range of

volume at all. Because of the way the harpsichord functioned, with the mechanisms plucking

instead of striking the strings, one could not perform different dynamics and use true artistic
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expression. This dilemma led artists and instrument creators to search for an alternative/better

way to perform their pieces.

The modern-day piano is a stringed instrument, with hammers that strike the strings,

three pedals (sustain, sostenuto, una corda), and normally, the concert grand piano has eighty-

eight keys. The modern-day concert pianos keyboard is based on the twelve-tone chromatic

scale, ranging from the lowest A to the High C8.

Often referred to as the “eternal instrument,” pianos can be heard in just about every

musical genre in the world. There isn’t a country where there would not be found some type of

piano or piano-like instrument. Truly, it is a work of genius, one that still has music to be

discovered.
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Bibliography

Michaelidou, A. (2016, April 26). Top ten Musical instruments 2016 – cost of music lessons and

some interesting facts. Retrieved October 19, 2017, from

https://www.firsttutors.com/uk/music/blog/2016/04/top-ten-musical-instruments-2016-cost-of-

music-lessons-and-some-interesting-facts/

History of the Piano. (n.d.). Retrieved October 19, 2017, from http://pianonet.com/all-about-

pianos/history-of-the-piano/

Clavichord. (2017, October 18). Retrieved October 20, 2017, from

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clavichord

The History of the Piano. (n.d.). Retrieved October 20, 2017, from http://www.piano-keyboard-

guide.com/history-of-the-piano.html

Harpsichord. (2017, October 17). Retrieved October 20, 2017, from

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harpsichord