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During the
second half of the eighteenth century, twelve masters from central
Germany migrated to London and established the English school that,
under John Broadwood and others, turned to the production of pianos
of a stronger build. These pianos are the forerunners of the strong
ones that we know today.
In the year
1823, a French manufacturer, Sébastien Erard created a double action
that is still in use. By this time, artisans in all Western nations
were working to perfect the pianoforte. Numerous improvements were
being made in design and construction.
The compass
of the early piano was, like that of the harpsichord, only four, or
at most, five octaves, but it has gradually increased to a compass
of more than seven octaves as structural changes allowed for
increases in tension amounting to several tons.
The modern
pianoforte has six major parts. The frame is usually made of iron. A
string plate into which strings (made of steel wire) are fastened is
attached to the rear end of the piano. A wrest plank, into which
tuning planks are set, is in the front. The loose end of the strings
is wound around these. A soundboard, a thin piece of fine-grained
spruce, placed under the strings, reinforces the tone by means of
sympathetic vibration. The strings increase in length and thickness
from the treble to the bass. The higher pitches are each given two
or three strings tuned alike. The lower ones are single strings made
heavier by being over spun - that is wound around with a coil of thin
copper wire.
The keys,
on the keyboard, corresponding to the natural tones are made of
ivory or plastic; those corresponding to the chromatically altered
tones, of ebony or plastic. The pedals are levers pressed down by
the feet. The pedals are used to produce subtle changes in tone
quality. How a piano works is somewhat like this: when a piano key
is pressed down, its tail pivots upward and lifts a lever that
throws a hammer against the strings for that key's note. At the same
time a damper is raised from these strings, allowing them to vibrate
more freely.
Depending
upon the shape of the case, pianos are classified as grand, square
and upright. The square piano (actually rectangular) is no longer
produced. The upright piano, that occupies far less room space, has
more or less replaced the square piano. Grand pianos come in various
sizes, from the full concert grand that is 2.69 meters long, to the
baby grand, which is less than 1.8 meters long.
Upright
pianos include the late 19th-century cottage piano, of which the
upright grand is merely a larger version. In the upright pianos the
strings run vertically, or diagonally, from the top to the bottom of
the instrument. The modern spinet and console pianos are small
uprights related to the cottage piano. |
