- Who invented the piano and why:
The piano was invented by Bartolomeo Cristofori (1655-1731) of Italy. Cristofori was dissatisfied by the attention to the control that musicians had over the volume level of the harpsichord. He is credited with changing out the hammer-strumming mechanism to create the modern piano in the year 1709.
- Who was the first to play the piano?
Although it is not known exactly who was the first person to play the piano, there are some theories about it. On the one hand, it is said that the inventor of the piano, Bartolomeo Cristofori, was the first pianist in history. Cristofori created the first piano in 1709 and is known to have played it masterfully.
- How did the piano become so popular?
Musicians liked the piano because it could be played in different ways. The piano can be played softly to create a soft sound or loudly to create a more upbeat sound. Pianos were also popular because they could be used to play classical or jazz music.
- Famous pianists and why they are:
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart:
Mozart is one of the most prolific creative geniuses of the classical period. A child prodigy, Mozart began composing for European royalty at the age of five. Despite dying at the age of 35, he wrote more than 800 works, including symphonies, concertos, operas and more.
His work was enormously versatile and clearly reflects the way in which piano music changed during the classical era, he also inspired many of the other great pianists out there.
- Ludwig Von Bethoveen:
Although best known as a composer, Beethoven was also an incredible performer. One of Beethoven’s contemporaries, Carl Ludwig Junker, described his playing style as “so different from the usual method of dealing with the piano that it seems as if he had charted a completely new path for himself.”Throughout his life, he composed more than 9 symphonies, 5 concertos, 32 piano sonatas and 16 string quartets.
Beethoven began to lose his hearing early in his career, but still managed to create some of his most famous works while fighting against the order. His work is considered a precursor to Romanticism, and he was instrumental in shaping the sound of classical music during his lifetime.
- Franz Von Liszt:
Liszt became famous throughout Europe during the 19th century for his great skill as a performer. His contemporaries claimed that he was the most technically advanced pianist of his time and perhaps the greatest of all time.
Franz Von Liszt composed about six dozen original songs with piano accompaniment. In most cases the lyrics were in German or French, but there are also songs in Italian and Hungarian and one song in English.
I found the creation of the Piano very interesting. I found it interesting how Cristofori was dissatisfied with the way volume was managed in instruments. I also just found the extensive history of the piano fascinating.