Did you know that there is a day dedicated to the piano? Piano Day is celebrated on the 88th day of the year, and the reason for this day is because the piano keyboard has 88 keys.
Piano Day began with the idea of German pianist, composer and producer Nils Frahm in 2015. When Frahm was asked why the world needs a piano day, he replied: “… mostly because it doesn’t hurt to celebrate the piano and everything around it: performers , composers, piano makers, tuners, movers and, most importantly, listeners. ”
Today is therefore dedicated to the history and love of pianos and marked by events that celebrate the piano. You can read more about piano day events on the official pianoday.org website
On this occasion, we have gathered for you some of the most interesting facts about pianos:
- The first piano was invented in 1709 by the Italian harpsichord maker Bartolomeo di Francesco Cristofori. One of Cristofori’s original pianos still exists at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
- The word piano is an abbreviated version of the word pianoforte, which means soft (piano) and loud (forte).
- The piano keyboard has 88 keys. The number of strings depends on the piano model – usually around 230. Nevertheless, according to the way of playing, the piano is classified as an instrument with keys, as the sound is the result of pressing / hitting a key.
- The piano is an incredibly complex instrument. It is built of more than 12,000 parts, of which 10,000 are moving.
- Each piano string holds about 70-80 kilograms of tension, so the total tension of the strings is between 15-20 tons. What to do when the string breaks? You can read the answer HERE.
- The piano has the widest range of tones of all instruments. The piano plays a note lower than the lowest note on the double bass and higher than the upper note of the piccolo.
- The exact center of the piano keyboard is not C1 but the space between E and F above C1.
- Until the 1950s, piano keys were made of elephant tusks, today most piano keys are made of plastic to protect and preserve elephants.
- The largest piano ever made measures 2,449m in width, 6,07m in length and 1,925m in height. it was built by Daniel Czapiewski (Poland) and played at a concert in Szymbark, Poland, on December 30, 2010.
- Polish musician Romuald Koperski holds the record for the longest piano concerto to date: 103 hours and 8 seconds.
- Portuguese musician Domingos-Antonio Gomes has proven to have the fastest fingers in the business. He broke the record after playing an incredible 824 times in one minute on the B7 button on a Yamaha CFX – that’s more than 13 hits per second!
- The most expensive piano in the world was sold for as much as 3.22 million dollars. It is made of real crystal. It was designed by Heintzman & Co. It was only played in public once at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and then sold at auction. Our Plexiglas Schimmel is one of the jewels of our collection, otherwise it is not made of crystal, but of plexiglass. With its own lighting and superior sound, it enriches many concerts or events.
- According to many studies, learning the piano can improve a child’s language skills and overall academic achievement.
How to Celebrate Piano Day
Usually we would probably attend a piano concert, because this time the situation is a little different, today you can play a recording of your favorite concert or pianist. You can also organize a real home piano concert for your loved ones. If you do not have a Grand piano or Uprigt piano yet, we invite you to visit the Benton Piano Salon, where we will be happy to help you choose the perfect one for you.
P.S .: On social media, you can let your followers know that today is Piano Day with the hashtag #worldpianoday and #salon_klavirjev_benton