Ron rote: >...Nor was Cristifori's instrument a modern piano. True. But... >Apples and oranges. ...Not so. Big fat shiny red delicious vs small tasty brown russet apple maybe. But both are still fundamentally apples. This is important. Our understanding of the modern piano [without making a precise definition of that, but all know what is meant] is enhanced by taking a systems viewpoint and considering it as one point on a very wide spectrum. In other words, all pianos are pianos. And if you want to understand how they work, the greatest insight will be attained by widening as much as possible the range of parameters of the examples studied. To our great fortune, history has provided us with a ready-made enormous resource that is only just beginning to be appreciated for what it is. Physical system behaviour depends on both structure (the components and their interconnections) and parameters (geometry, dynamic properties etc.). But structure is the key determinant when classifying systems, not parameters. So you ask first not whether it has tiny hammers and thin strings and a de-coupled soundboard/rim, but whether the fundamental acoustic and mechanical aspects are present in some form. Does it have a hammer action, strings, and a soundboard of some sort? If it does it's a piano. Looking at widely separated points on the parameter spectrum will provide an in-depth understanding of the generic "piano" system that cannot be achieved by looking with blinkers at one particular example, or even a set of very closely related examples ["modern piano"]. Stephen Stephen Birkett Fortepianos Authentic Reproductions of 18th and 19th Century Pianos 464 Winchester Drive Waterloo, Ontario Canada N2T 1K5 tel: 519-885-2228 mailto: sbirkett[at]real.uwaterloo.ca http://real.uwaterloo.ca/~sbirkett
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