| irst piano, which was modeled after the harpsichord | | | | proficient. Over time, many combinations of tones, |
| and clavichord, dates back to the early 18th Century | | | | cabinet styles, and touch characteristics were tried and |
| and was dubbed a “gravicembalo col piano e | | | | rejected until the most popular features were |
| forte," or "harpsichord with soft and loud.” With | | | | incorporated, which are still evolving today. |
| the piano e forte, its inventor, Bartolomeo Cristofori, an | | | | Over the course of the 18th Century, the English, |
| Italian harpsichord maker, introduced the innovation of a | | | | French, and Viennese continued to adapt the |
| hammer with which to strike the strings, expanding on | | | | characteristics of the piano, each contingent inspiring its |
| a player’s capability to use multiple fingers to | | | | avid proponents. While Beethoven championed the |
| sound simultaneous notes. | | | | English Broadwood piano, Chopin preferred the French |
| The piano e forte did not catch on right away, as | | | | Pleyel instruments, and Haydn and Brahms loved the |
| many harpsichordists – including J.S. Bach | | | | delicacy and crispness of the Viennese. |
| – tried it and found its touch too heavy. | | | | In the mid-1800s, a German piano maker named |
| Eventually, as the pianoforte was adapted over the | | | | Heinrich Steinweg emigrated to New York, giving birth |
| century, inventors returned to the principles of | | | | to Steinway and Sons piano company. |
| Cristofori, its original inventor, to design the stringed | | | | The 19th Century also saw a rise in piano masters |
| keyboard instrument with mechanically operated | | | | who studied the technical aspects of piano playing and |
| rebounding hammers that would come to be known | | | | taught private students but rarely played in public |
| as the piano. | | | | themselves. These included Liszt’s famed |
| The instrument was initially conceived in an attempt to | | | | teacher, the composer, Carl Czerny; and Theodor |
| adapt to the increasingly sophisticated needs of | | | | Leschetizky, who mentored Paderewsky and |
| harpsichordists as they became more technically | | | | Schnabel. |