Tag Archives: piano keys

Fake Ivory Piano Keys?

Years ago virtually all piano key tops were made out of ivory. Ivory, as many of you already know, is made from elephant tusks. Eventually, the ivory trade was outlawed in the U.S. In the 1970’s in the United States, and into the 1980’s in Europe, the use of ivories on piano keys ceased. Today, almost all piano keys are made out of composite plastic. So, you might be wondering, where fake ivory key tops fall into this story. This is something you should be aware of.

Some pianists feel that ivory keys are superior to plastic key tops. While you can’t get a new piano with ivory key tops, many pianists still want the feel of ivory keys. In attempt to satisfy this crowd, some companies have developed “fake” or “imitation” ivory keys that are made to look and feel like ivory. Do they succeed?

Unfortunately, most of these attempts to simulate ivory keys are not very good. There are a lot of cheap imitations that add a textured look to the keys. However, they don’t feel any different from other plastic key tops and worse yet, they look fake!

Yamaha has used an imitation ivory key trademarked as, “Ivorite” that is an attempt at creating a synthetic ivory. It is a plastic key top that has a closer look and feel to ivory than traditional plastic key tops. Not all Yamaha pianos come with these key tops. So, is there really a benefit to this?

If you like the touch and feel of ivory and want a new piano, then this might be a possible solution for you. Something to keep in mind though is that if you are performing on other instruments, they are very likely to have plastic keys. So, it’s important to be comfortable playing pianos with plastic key tops since that is what you are most likely to encounter playing instruments outside of your home.

I would recommend avoiding cheap ivory imitations. You’re better off with standard plastic key tops because they are perfectly functional. They also look better than most imitation ivory key tops.

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

Do You Need 88 Keys on a Piano?

There are pianos out there – not just keyboards – that have less than the standard 88 keys. You might wonder whether or not a piano from an era with 85 keys would be a good choice for you or if you should avoid pianos with less than 88 keys. I know some people are hesitant to even contemplate getting a piano with less than 88 keys. Are they right?

If you look into the history of the piano you will quickly realize that the instrument didn’t always have 88 keys. In fact, for most of the piano’s history, it had far fewer than 88 keys. It wasn’t until the late 1800s that 88 keys became the standard on pianos. For most of the 1800s the standard for pianos was 85 keys or less. This is why the vast majority of Classical repertoire on the piano only requires between 61-85 keys.

When you get to 20th century composers like Debussy or Ravel and beyond, are the full 88 keys called upon. For the vast majority of piano music, 85 keys will actually be fine. For music of Mozart and Haydn, pianos had only around 61 keys! During Beethoven’s lifetime, the piano underwent substantial development including accommodating more keys. So, early compositions of Beethoven require far less keys than late Beethoven’s piano music.

Some people might shy away from a piano without those three extra keys but they really could be losing out on a great instrument. Sometimes you might find a piano that is an absolute gem and it might only have 85 keys. Should you just discount this instrument and find another? That depends.

If you find yourself playing a great deal of 20th century music, then you will probably be better off with a piano that has 88 keys. If you play mostly Classical and Baroque period music, 85 keys will not be a limitation at all. Should you worry about losing out on those few remaining keys? It depends on how much you love the piano you are looking at and if it’s worth forgoing in favor of three extra notes.

The other thing to keep in mind is that the last three notes on the piano do not register a substantial sound. They are extremely short-lived and not having them will not really affect the mood of the piece very much. For the vast majority of pianists 85 keys will not present a serious limitation. I personally would not have a issues playing on or owning an 85 key piano – I simply don’t use those extra three keys that much and can play pieces utilizing those keys without compromising the piece substantially.

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

How to Clean Your Piano Keys

This is a very common question around here at the store. Everyone who has a piano is going to experience this problem eventually. Our hands pick up a tremendous amount of dirt and grime throughout the day and eventually it’s going to get on your piano keys as you continue to play it. Cleaning keys is an easy process but it’s one that you want to make sure you do correctly because you can actually damage your keys by using incorrect methods.

The easiest solution for cleaning your key tops is the following:

A Damp – not wet.

– paper towel
– cloth
– cotton swab

If this doesn’t get all the dirt and gunk off the keys then you can try a high solution of alcohol (90% rubbing alcohol) but just damp and not wet. It’s important not to use too much alcohol on the keys as it can damage them.

If you’re afraid to use rubbing alcohol or you don’t have any then you can use white vinegar as a replacement. Again, make sure that you don’t use too much and that you just dampen the cloth or towel that you are using.

When it comes to Ivory Keys there is a little bit more of a challenge.

Ivory is a porous material which means that it’s going to be a bit more difficult to get them clean. Dirt will fall into the small holes in the keys and it could be very difficult to get it out in some circumstances.

I recommend the same steps as above for Ivory Keys but you need to be aware of a few differences.

First of all, Ivory keys will yellow over time. This is something you can’t control and is just a natural occurrence over time. A piano technician can remove the key tops for you and apply a solution of bleach to them in order to try and whiten the keys again. Most of the time this works pretty well but you will want to make sure you have a technician do this for you unless you are experienced in replacing key tops.

If you have Ivory keys on your piano and you are missing an ivory key it can be very difficult to find a replacement key that will match the color of the existing keys. This is where you will want to explore bleaching the keys to see if you can match the new key to the existing ones.

The benefit to cleaning your piano keys is really a personal preference. You will find that after cleaning your keys they will be much more pleasing to play and you will certainly be surprised at how clean they feel.

Thanks again for joining us here at Living Pianos. We welcome all your comments and suggestions on all our topics and videos. Robert@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

What’s the Most Amount of Keys on a Piano?

The standard number of keys on a piano today is 88; but if you’re familiar with the history of the piano, you know that this standard developed over a long period of time.

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

Can You Still Buy Pianos with Real Ivory Keys?

This is an incredibly involved and complex subject that we will continue to reflect upon. The short answer to this question is no, you can’t buy new pianos with ivory keys anymore. They have been outlawed on new pianos since the 1970s in the United States although some European manufacturers continued to offer ivory keys on select pianos into the 1980’s.

Now if you have a piano with ivory keys manufactured before the ban of ivory there are still issues. Selling a piano within the same country will most likely not be a problem for you yet (depending on your local laws). However, if you decide to move out of the country and you want to bring your piano with you it’s a risky proposition. If customs officials find that you are trying to ship a piano out of the country with ivory keys, they can impound the piano and you may have great difficulty rectifying the situation. Generally, you can’t ship a piano to another country with ivory keys unless you can prove the piano to be over 100 years.

Now in the United States, we are facing some legislation that may further limit the selling of ivory. The department of fish and wildlife is proposing new laws that would ban the transporting of ivory from state to state on pianos or anything else! So, if you own a piano with ivory keys, or a guitar with ivory inlays, a violin bow containing some ivory or anything else containing ivory, it will become illegal to transport it across state lines. There have actually been cases of orchestras going overseas where their bows have been confiscated by customs officials for containing ivory (and these can be some extremely expensive bows).

If this law comes to fruition it would mean that you won’t even be able to move your piano to a different state if it contains ivory keys. This is a huge problem for a lot of people and it can be a very expensive proposition to have to replace your piano keys simply because they contain ivory. There have been raids of antique auctions and stores where officials have taken massive quantities of old jewelry, artwork, and other objects that contain old ivory. In China, they have even destroyed a large number of irreplaceable pieces of art in their quest to stop the trade of ivory. This is a case of good intentions gone awry. The illegal trade of ivory is a booming industry and the attempt to stop this is by confiscating all ivory and making it illegal to transport at all. The slaying of elephants for new ivory is barbaric and it really is a problem – specifically in the domestic Chinese market. The American market is not as big in illegal ivory but it has not stopped officials from creating new laws to tightly enforce the trade and transport of ivory – no matter how old it is.

The sentiment of these proposed laws is in the right place but the practice is illogical. To ban the sale or transport of a piano with ivory keys – where the elephant died almost 100 years ago – seems pointless. If you feel strongly about this the only way to stop it is to write to your local officials and voice your concerns. There are many people who deal in vintage instruments, art and jewelry containing ivory watching the progress of legislation very closely.

Is it possible to remove the ivory from pianos and replace them with plastic? Yes; but not without some significant work. Ivory keys are typically thinner than plastic so the wood on the keys might need to be filed down in order to fit properly and you may be forced to do some key leveling and other work as well. Beyond that, the ivory keys are irreplaceable and it would be a shame to have to remove them long after the elephants died. Hopefully, there is an effective way to stop the slaughter of elephants without impacting the sale, trade, and transport of old objects containing ivory.

If you have any questions or comments about ivory keys on pianos please contact me directly Robert Estrin Robert@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

Are all Piano Keys the Same Size?

Are the keys on a spinet piano the same size as an upright or grand piano?
– Youtube Viewer

Yes, the keys of a spinet piano are the same as other upright or grand pianos. However, the keys on Asian pianos are slightly longer than keys on American pianos. Also, there are some late 19th century pianos which have keys which are slightly shorter still, particularly pianos which had been player pianos. Black keys have slightly different angles in the front on some older pianos as well. The edges of black keys are sometimes more rounded in older pianos because they get worn from playing. The spaces between white keys also become larger over time from wear as well.