Unique Facts About Piano that Makes you Interested in Learning the Instrument
The First Piano Ever Made
The most mature piano concept was created by harpsichord instrument maker, Bartolomeo Cristofori. This Italian composer was the first person to invent the piano. The fine harpsichord cords are made to create tones with varying volumes. The concept of the piano was then finalized in the 1690s, then the first actual piano was built in 1709.
Cristofori called his invention the term “gravecembalo col piano e forte“, a clavichord string in a slow, loud voice. The name was shortened to the pianoforte, in the end, people called it the simplest name of ‘piano’.
At present, there are only three Cristofori pianos left in the world. The piano is kept at the National Museum of Musical Instruments in Rome, then the second is at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, and the third is at the Museum of Musical Instruments, at Leipzig University in Germany.
The Longest Piano in the World
Did you know that the longest piano in the world was made by a young man aged 20 years in 2009? Yes, it was by Adrian Mann, a New Zealander who was still around 15 years old when he decided to make this super magnificent instrument after a visit from the local piano tuner.
His love for the piano presents a Piano with a weight of 1.4 tons and a length of 5.7 meters was the biggest work and is recognized as the longest piano in the world.
Electric Piano Appears in the 1920s
If the acoustic piano was first discovered in 1709, an electric piano appeared in the late 1920s and it was only 30 years later – in the 1980s – that a digital piano appeared on the market.
This electric piano was originally an acoustic piano with pickups and was played by famous musicians such as Ray Charles and Duke Ellington. So, the piano sound can be heard louder in the amplifier. Then after that, there was a synthesizer keyboard that appeared in the 1960s that gave a lot of influence on the music genre a few years after. Then finally in 1981, there was a modern digital piano; patented by Wil Decker of St. James, NY. (PianoNova Co.); that we know today.
The emergence of digital piano makes it possible for musicians to practice easily while saving space and money which were often found as weaknesses in the acoustic piano.
Learning Piano Does Not Know Age
Nowadays anyone can learn piano, from the age of children to adults because learning piano can train the brain and relieve stress for everyone.
Even a study in the Hearing Journal said, “Practicing the piano in the elderly provides many benefits.” The journal reported that elderly people who practiced piano three hours a week for three months showed an increase in processing speed and memory. Interestingly, this increase was not seen in the elderly group who did not practice the piano.
