How does a piano work?

Category: Miscellaneous

How does a piano make noise? Well, as much as I like to imagine that there are little piano-gnomes that live behind my sheetmusic, sometimes it’s better to face reality. And in reality, how a piano works has a lot to do with physics and mechanics, and less to do with mythical creatures.

While the piano is often grouped in with percussion instruments, it actually depends on strings to make noise. The pitch of a string (that is, the high or low quality) depends on a string’s length and tension. The longer and looser the string, the LOWER the pitch will be. The shorter and tighter the string, the HIGHER the pitch will be. This makes a lot of sense if you think about sound as a series of vibrations. Long and loose strings will vibrate more slowly, so the resulting FREQUENCY of the note will be LOW. Short and tight strings will vibrate more quickly, resulting in a higher frequency, and therefore a higher note.

So, if you took a look at the inside of your piano, you would find a series of strings – each corresponding to a key on the keyboard. A keyboard with 88 keys will have 88 corresponding strings. So now that we know about the existance of the strings, how does the piano use them to make noise? With other stringed instruments the noise-production process is more obvious: You strum the guitar, stroke a violin with a bow, and pluck a harp. But in the piano, you press a key, a bunch of magic happens, and a sound comes out.

This “magic” is actually a complicated mechanism that translates the downward stroke of the key (or action) into a hammer striking a string. Rather than me explaining this mechanism to you, take a look at it here.  You’re glad I didn’t explain it to you now, aren’t you? This mechanism varies depending on whether you have an upright piano or a grand piano. This is because the upright piano strings are strung vertically, while the grand piano strings are strung horizontally.

So we’ve made it to the point where we have sound. A little bit of sound, but sound nonetheless. If the piano were only to consist of keys, hammer, strings, and nothing else, your fortissimo’s would sound a little… pianissimo. That, my friends, is why we have a soundboard. Because nothing is worse than having your fortissimo sound like a pianissimo.  Trust me. To combat that problem a soundboard collects the vibrations from the strings, and retransmits the sound, kindof like the body of an acoustic guitar.

The last thing I’m going to mention is the damper. It is a felted block that rests against the strings to stop their vibration. Without the damper in place, a key that is pressed will ring out until it gradually fades away. The damper absorbs the vibrations of the string so that it only sounds for a short time. The damper pedal (rightmost pedal) actually lifts the damper block from the strings so that the strings can ring out. Try it! Play a short note without the pedal, and then play the same note with the pedal depressed. You’ll notice that the note played while the pedal was down will last longer than the note played while the pedal was up.

That’s the piano in a nutshell. Now that the physics lesson is over, I’m going to resume my piano-gnome fantasies.

photo credit: Zellaby

Finding the right piano

Category: Miscellaneous

It can be difficult to find the right piano, especially when you are just starting to play. Different people have different goals, different constraints, and different requirements – it is important to take all of these things into consideration before making your purchase.  Some questions to ask yourself are:

1.  What am I willing to spend?

This is perhaps the most important question, as money is usually the limiting factor for most people.  Sure, I would love to own a Steinway grand piano, but the $100,000+ price tag is a little bit out of my price range for now. Think about how much money you are willing to spend on this hobby.  You can spend from $150 for a digital keyboard, to over $100,000 for a top of the line instrument.  (I wouldn’t recommend jumping in with a $100,000 investment unless you will be hosting piano concertos in your living room.)

If $150 is still a bit steep, look in your local classified listings.  You may be able to find a decent used keyboard for less.

2.  How much space do I have?

This is another important consideration, as not every living space is designed for a baby grand. Do you have a space that you can dedicate to a piano?  Or would you like to be able to store your instrument when it is not in use?  Sizes will range from several feet across for a digital keyboard to 8×5 feet and close to 1000 pounds for a full-sized grand piano.

3. What is my level of expertise?

Intermediate to advanced players probably will not be able to get away with a beginner keyboard.  Intermediate and advanced techniques require different keyboard ‘action’.  (Action refers to how the key feels as it is being played). Most intermediate and advanced players will prefer the action of an acoustic piano to that of a digital.

Make sure you try before you buy! By the time you reach intermediate and advanced stages of your instruction, you may develop a preference for the weight of the keys or the brightness of the sound.

Make sure you do your homework. Try out the cheapest keyboard and the most expensive acoustic piano.  Spend a weekend at the music store trying out all of the instruments. Try out every different brand you can.  Check out reviews online.  A piano is an investment.  Buy the right one and it will give you years of enjoyment.