Piano - interesting facts

• Bartolomeo Cristofori, an Italian maker of musical instruments, invented the Piano in 1698.
• There are over 12,000 parts in a grand piano, 10,000 which are moving.
• The word piano is a shortened form of the Italian word pianoforte.
• Nicknames: "the ivories", "the eighty-eight", "the joanna", "the black(s) and white(s)", and "the little joe(s)".
• There are 230 strings inside a typical piano.
• The Steinway D-274 is generally described as the first choice of most concert pianists.
• More than 90 percent of concert grand pianos worldwide are D-274s.
• The piano is known as "The King of Instruments"
• The total string tension in a concert grand piano is close to 30 Tons.
• There are over 10,000,000 pianos in the United States.
• Well-known piano makers are: Baldwin, Bechstein, Blüthner, Bösendorfer, Broadwood, Fazioli, Feurich, Förster, Heintzman, Kawai, Mason and Hamlin, Petrof, Pleyel, Samick, Schimmel, Steingraeber and Söhne, Steinway and Sons, Stuart and Sons, Wm. Knabe and Co., Yamaha.
• In the Hornbostel-Sachs system of instrument classification, pianos are considered chordophones.
• The term Grand was first used in 1777.
• The piano is a vital instrument in Western classical music, jazz, film, television, and most other complex western musical genres.
• Yamaha Corporation, established in 1887 was the first piano manufacturer in Japan.

QUOTES ABOUT PIANOS

"I've had grand pianos that are more expensive than, like, a year's worth of rent." Lady Gaga

"For the most part, pianos are female to me. Sometimes they're dykes, and they're always good fun." Tori Amos

"I wish the government would put a tax on pianos for the incompetent." Edith Sitwell

"Girls are like pianos. When they're not upright, they're grand." Benny Hill

"Pianos tend to get better as they age, the more you play them. They grow into their sound." Alicia Witt