The history of the piano

The piano is one of the most recognizable and versatile instruments in the world today, used in classical music, jazz, pop genres and even in cinematic orchestrations.

But its path to this popularity began with ancient thinkers’ attempt to understand the nature of sound. From the Pythagorean monochord, through medieval stringed instruments, to the revolutionary invention of the Italian Bartolomeo Cristofori, the piano has constantly evolved, driven by the search for better sound, greater expression and more perfect mechanics.

This story reveals not only the evolution of an instrument, but also, over a millennium, human curiosity, ingenuity and musical passion.

The path to the emergence of the piano began not with a keyboard instrument, but with a scientific device called a monochord, created by the ancient Greek philosopher and mathematician Pythagoras. He invented the monochord as a scientific instrument for measuring musical intervals (the distances between two tones). Pythagoras discovered that different lengths of strings produced different pitches.

When he cut the length of the string in half, the sound sounded an octave higher. Other lengths or ratios produced pleasing tones.

Pythagoras’ discoveries laid the foundation for Western music and demonstrated the natural and mathematical relationship between different tones.

Although the monochord itself was not a musical predecessor of the piano, it laid the foundation for understanding acoustics and the relationship between string length and pitch.

Pythagoras discovered that different ratios of string length produced different intervals, revealing the mathematical principle on which all stringed instruments were subsequently constructed. It was this knowledge, not the instrument itself, that laid the theoretical foundation for future keyboard instruments such as the clavichord, harpsichord, and ultimately the piano.

Another ancient instrument, the organ, inspired the use of keys.

The history of the organ begins in the 3rd century BC with the invention of hydraulics by the Greek engineer Ctesibius in Alexandria. It is a water instrument, considered the first keyboard mechanism in the world.

The Romans improved the design and transformed the instrument into a symbol of power and technological progress, used in public celebrations and ceremonies.

After the decline of Rome, the instrument almost disappeared, but around the 10th century it reappeared in Europe, this time as part of the Christian liturgy. The first church organs were huge and difficult to control, but gradually their size was reduced and a more precise keyboard and mechanism were developed.

In the Middle Ages, the organ became an indispensable element of religious music, and by the Renaissance it already had a richer sound and a more perfect construction, which laid the foundations for its further development during the Baroque period.

The organ eventually became the prototype for the clavichord in the late 14th century.

Before keys were added to the clavichord, there was the dulcimer, the instrument favored by Western and Eastern European musicians during the Middle Ages.

The idea of ​​strings being struck by hammers was the humble precursor of the modern piano. But it would still be several centuries before something resembling a modern piano would emerge from Bartolomeo Cristofori’s workshop.

Bartolomeo Cristofori is the man generally credited with inventing the piano. He called his invention the gravicembalo col piano e forte (“harpsichord that plays softly and loudly”) because the instrument could vary the volume of the sound depending on how hard the keys were pressed, something the harpsichord could not do.

Cristofori’s invention solved the problems of simple mechanisms, as well as almost all other difficulties that piano makers faced until the 19th century.

Cristofori’s innovative design and mechanics were only made public after a visit by Italian journalist Scipio Maffei. Two years later, an article appeared with illustrations of its construction.

The German organ builder Johann Gottfried Silbermann copied the model and adapted it.

Other crafters also used the pattern and created their own versions. This gave rise to the English and Viennese schools of piano making.

Cristofori achieved this by replacing the plucking mechanism with hammers capable of striking with either strong or weak force.

By 1726, Cristofori had perfected his instrument and introduced all the basic elements of modern piano mechanics.

In Italy his project was almost ignored, but it quickly became known and accepted in Germany.

Around 1870, the modern piano was born. Since then, its production and design have hardly changed significantly.

The emergence of the modern piano also strengthened the middle class. In 1909, approximately 365,000 pianos were sold, compared to just a few thousand in 1850. During the Industrial Revolution, factories and cast iron played a key role in making music accessible to everyone.

Grand pianos generally have two (or three) pedals. Most often, the left pedal moves the keyboard to the right, and the hammers strike only two of the three strings – this is the una corda pedal, similar to that of a harpsichord, where only one of the strings is struck. The downside is the timbre change. The right pedal is the sustain pedal, which raises the dampers and allows the strings to vibrate freely. Grand pianos also have a third pedal, located in the middle. Used at the right time, the pianist can hold certain notes while playing new ones without losing the support of the first ones.

Since 1885, the piano has become standardized and innovations have become increasingly rare. Cristofori’s mechanism was improved over the next two centuries, but the basis remains unchanged.

The piano, as we know it today, is the result of centuries of research, study and improvement. From the scientific instrument of Pythagoras, through the delicate clavichord and the rich-sounding harpsichord, to the first piano action, each step adds a new layer to the musical history of humanity.

After its standardization in the 19th century, the piano became a symbol of cultural prosperity, artistic mastery and family tradition. Although innovations are rare today, the piano remains timeless: an instrument that continues to inspire composers, performers and listeners around the world with its power, beauty and vast possibilities of expression.

Photo illustrative de Pixabay : https://www.pexels.com/photo/grayscale-piano-keys-159420/