So how many parts are there on a piano? Around 12,000! Hopefully this gives you a better appreciation of just how complex these instruments are and what it takes to build and service a piano. Thanks again for joining us here at Living Pianos. If you have any questions about this topic or any others, please contact us at: Info@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

The earliest pianos had far fewer keys. The earliest pianos had around 5 octave of keys (about 60 keys). Harpsichords (the predecessor to the piano) had different numbers of keys – sometimes even two keyboards! Near the end of the 19th century, 85 keys became the defacto standard for most pianos.

By the end of the 1800’s the piano had settled on 88 keys as a standard and the vast majority of pianos produced today feature 88 keys. However, there are pianos made today that have more than 88 keys!

The Imperial Concert Grand Bosendorfer piano has 97 keys! On this particular piano the extra keys have the colors reversed – the black keys are white and the white keys are black so you can distinguish the extra keys from the standard 88 keys.

There are some pieces composers have written that include those lower notes, but this is very rare. So why would you even want these other keys if they don’t really serve a purpose for 99% of the music you encounter?

The existence of these extra keys and strings enhances the sound of the piano. When you depress the sustain pedal, the extra bass strings resonate adding richness to the tone. And the extra notes are available if you are so inclined to add them to your music.

Is 97 the most number of keys on a piano? Not by a long shot! The Australian piano manufacturer Stuart and Sons manufactures a piano with 102 keys! I have not had a chance to play one of these pianos but I would love to have the opportunity.

Thanks again for joining us here at Living Pianos. If you have any questions about this topic or any others, please contact us at: Info@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

Welcome to the final part of our four-part series – the eras of Classical music. First we covered the Baroque Era with its beautiful counterpoint and ornamentation. Then we moved on to the Classical Era with its wonderful structure. Last time we covered the Romantic Era and its freedom of expression and larger orchestration.

So what separates impressionist music from the other eras? If you’ve ever seen any of the impressionist artwork – such as Monet – you immediately notice the creative use of colors, dots, blurs and other techniques that form these dream-like images that often have a sense of motion to them. This amazing effect is recreated in the music of the era as well.

A lot of the great Impressionist composers (Debussy, Ravel, Fauré, Messiaen, etc.) were from France – which is really the epicenter of Impressionism. There is a real beauty and complexity to the music of this era that almost conjures up images in the mind with its textures.

In the video provided with this article, I perform some of the different movements in the Children’s Corner Suite of Debussy. It’s remarkable to hear the complexity and depth of sound in each movement – the variety of compositional techniques is awe inspiring. Each of the movements evokes completely different images and thoughts in the listener. But how is this possible? It’s the writing.

If you look at the scores of Impressionist piano music you will notice that some of them even have three different staves to fit all the notes in! Hands are divided in creative ways, the middle pedal is used extensively to hold notes you can’t hold with just two hands. There is a great level of complexity and depth to this music that goes beyond Romantic era music. Impressionist music also has different tonalities and modes. It’s not just major and minor – there are whole tone scales that cover different clusters of sounds as well as a great variety of modes. All of these amazing sounds which color the music are attributes of Impressionist music.

Thanks so much for joining me on this four-part series of the Periods of Classical Music. I’m Robert Estrin Robert@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

Thanks again for joining me for my four-part series on the periods of classical music. First we covered the Baroque Era, and then we covered the Classical Era. Today we will be covering the Romantic Era of Classical Music which was prevalent during much of the 19th century.

Something you might notice through this four-part series is that Classical music generally became more complex as time went on – then things break down to simplicity and the cycle starts again. This is something that is true for almost all art forms – whether it’s painting, architecture, music, etc. Someone will come along and create something incredibly influential and succeeding generations feel they have to “top” those previous efforts. But how do you top something? Typically adding more or bigger elements – in other words; making it more complex.

In the Romantic Era the size of the piano grew – so did the size of the orchestra. More instruments were introduced, forms were extended – there were four and five-movement works instead of the typical three. The Romantic Period is marked by the growing sense of bigger music – both written and performed.

The Romantic Era is also marked by its growth in personal expression. There is much more freedom to the music than past eras. What do I mean by freedoms? There are dozens of examples but I’m going to use a very specific one here. Rubato is a technique developed during the romantic period that really separated itself from Baroque and Classical music. In the past two eras, structure was incredibly important and you would not want to stray from the time or rhythm written on the score too much. This is not necessarily the case with much Romantic music.

Often times Romantic era music can sound much more improvised and the structure lends itself to much more freedom of expression. I give an example of the Chopin Nocturne in the video provided with this article. I have an entire video dedicated to playing and understanding Rubato. Rubato is basically a give and take in the pulse of music – never gaining or losing time. You can drag or speed up slightly as long as the time remains intact. It’s a complex idea and if you have the time to watch the video posted at the beginning of this paragraph you may enjoy it.

Romantic era music on the piano can also be characterized by a liberal use of the pedal. It can be used to add emotion and color the music much more than past eras. No matter what instrument you play in the Romantic period, there is much more freedom of expression. You should listen to numerous performances of the same piece of Romantic period music and see the vast differences in each of the interpretations – you might not even believe it’s the same piece of music!

Well, thanks again for joining me and I look forward to presenting the final part in the series of the Periods of Classical Music. Robert Estrin Robert@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

Welcome to my second part in a series offering tips for the Chopin Preludes. Last time we covered Prelude No. 4 in E minor. This lesson I will be exploring the Prelude No. 6 in B minor.

In the last lesson we discussed how to bring out the melody in the right hand by achieving a true legato utilizing a constant weight of the arm. Today’s lesson is similar but reversed; in this prelude the melody is in the left hand!

This lesson will require you to incorporate the weight of the left arm primarily in order to create a lush and fluid sound while bringing out the melody. When it comes to playing a string or a wind instrument, there is a natural progression of ups and downs. Whether it’s the continuity of the breath or the draw of a bow, the music must always be going somewhere, either growing or dying away. This is possible to achieve on the piano by increasing and decreasing the weight of the arms.

Rather than relying on calculated movements to get louder and softer, use the weight of your arms to recreate the sensation of breathing or using a bow. When you play a note, press into the key and make yourself believe that it’s going to sustain the note like a wind or string player does. You might be surprised at the results you achieve. In the video accompanying this article I demonstrate this technique.

As with any music you are performing, using the pedal as a crutch to cover up sloppy playing should never be an option. If you intend to learn this piece correctly and make it sing, you will need to achieve a true legato in both hands without the use of the pedal. Because of this, you will want to practice, learn and memorize this piece without using the pedal at first. Later when you feel confident in the sound you produce, you can add the pedal to create an even richer sound.

Another practice method (that we also discussed last time) is holding out the chords wherever possible. Instead of playing all the chords as written, hold the repeated chords out instead of replaying them – so you can get a sense of the best fingering when switching between chords. You will find ways to maneuver your fingers and hands in ways that will connect the notes much better and create a seamless sound. It’s always a great idea to reduce your music to chords first – this way you can get a better idea of the fingering while gaining a better understanding of the harmonies.

Thanks again for joining me. If you would like more information about this piece or any others, we are currently in the midst of producing some thorough tutorials instead of just these helpful pointers. If you would like to be notified about these lessons please send me an email requesting more information at Robert@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

Thanks again for joining me. If you would like more information about this piece or any others, we are currently in the midst of producing some thorough tutorials instead of just these helpful pointers. If you would like to be notified about these lessons please send me an email requesting more information at Robert@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729