Iris Chang

     Pianos today have an incredible range of sound. With its 88 keys, the piano has one of the widest ranges of any instrument. Today, the piano is probably the biggest investment and the most favored instrument in homes. It is also one of the most versatile instruments, capable of playing Baroque and Classical music as well as pop, rock, jazz, and new age music. The well-developed sound of the piano today can be traced to at least two causes: players, composers, and performers have demanded more and more strength of sound. In addition, the setting in which the piano is played has gone from small, intimate court occasions to gigantic concerts in huge halls.

      The sound of earlier pianos was quiet and soft, suitable for small gatherings. The earliest pianos were designed in the tradition of harpsichords and clavichords. During the Baroque period, 17^th century, keyboard instruments were used to accompany a few singers or other instruments. However, because the harpsichord and the clavichord are very quiet instruments and the harpsichord being plucked had no dynamic capabilities at all, they were not useful for performance or with large groups of instruments in large rooms. Around the turn of the18^th century, as audiences grew, composers and musicians needed a keyboard with a large dynamic range that could play very loudly or very softly, and that could play and be heard with large orchestras and ensembles. What evolved in the keyboard instruments was a change from an action that gently plucked the strings to hammers that strike the keys. With this dramatic change in the ways strings were vibrated to produce sound, there came a new capability: the possibility of these hammers striking the strings with various intensities producing sounds from very loud to very soft. Therefore, the instrument that evolved was called the “pianoforte” which literally means “soft-loud” in Italian. Over the years, this name has been shortened to the modern term, piano.

      A second factor in the development of the piano’s sound today is that the settings in which players perform as well as explorations in new ways to utilize the piano have expanded tremendously. In the 20^th century, some compositions required players to use new and complex techniques such as half and quarter pedaling, and various methods of producing tones by reaching inside or underneath the piano to pluck or strike the strings. Some composers even put objects directly on the strings to produce new sound effects. After all, piano techniques are very important in determining a piano’s tone because the pianist controls the rhythm, the surface noise, the dynamics, the pedals, and the articulation. In addition, piano players today need to keep pace with large halls, greater orchestras, and most recently, developments in electronic and synthesizer music.

     These two demands have produced and developed the sound. The intensity, and the versatility of the piano today and have led to the popularity of the piano. This has created a demand for increasing numbers of teaching specialists, who are cognizant of the innovation of techniques and unique ways of producing sounds.

     One of the effects is that since the Classical period, the piano has become very popular as a concert instrument. In this musical period, the piano was louder, more expressive and responsive to the touch than any other instrument. Some famous composers like Mozart and Beethoven could feature the piano as a solo instrument with a symphony orchestra.

     Another effect is the growth in the number of piano teachers as piano ownership has become more common and as parents value the importance of piano lessons for their children. Owing to the development of the piano sound, more and more people have been attracted to learn how to play the piano. Therefore, the need for specialists in piano pedagogy has increased immensely.

     The last effect is that piano performance today requires more techniques to play the piano. Indeed, piano playing technique has changed through the years with changes in piano types and musical styles. Piano performers have to adjust appropriately the factors of touch, fingering, phrasing, and interpretation when playing music of different centuries on the modern piano.

     In conclusion, piano performance today is more than just playing the notes written. It requires knowledge of the history of the piano and the characteristics of different musical periods. It challenges composers and performers to explore new and different ways of utilizing the piano and of producing sounds. It continues to expand the settings and occasions in which pianos are used, now including accompanists to movie, TV scores, and recordings as well as live performances. In short, if it were not for the development of the piano, most people today could not enjoy the well-known piano works by great pianists.