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Cristofori's Pianoforte
Bartolomeo Cristofori invented the piano. He built it using cypress, boxwood, leather, and fur. It featured hammers that struck strings. He eventually also added two knobs to the sides that would inspire the soft pedals that future innovators would add. His invention was not popularized during his lifetime and was not well-known. (Month/Day Unknown) http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Bartolomeo_Cristofori.aspx
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/89.4.1219/ -
Silbermann's piano
Silbermann built piano's largely based off of Cristofori's design. He did add the damper pedal. The pedal let dampers to come off the string simultaneously. This design was eventually approved by Bach, causing the instrument to become widely popular. The pedal has been used in almost all variations of the piano since his innovation. (Day/Month Unknown) http://www.ukpianos.co.uk/piano-history
http://www.musicwithease.com/piano-history.html -
Vertical Piano
John Isaac Hawkins created a vertical piano where strings ran from the bottom and up. It incorporated springs as well. Vertical pianos are still popular today because they are cheaper and smaller than grand pianos. This allows them to be more distributed among middle-class homes and schools. (Month/Day Unknown) https://www.britannica.com/art/upright-piano -
Erard's Piano
Erard came up with "double escapement". This let the hammer hit the strings again before the key set back into place. Which in turn allowed the piano to play the same note repeatedly and quickly. This allowed pianists to add even more variation to their music. (Day/Month Unkown) www.ptg.org/userfiles/file/docs/300YearsPiano.pdf -
Babcock's Piano
Alpheus Babcock made a piano with a one-piece iron frame. Then the frame would eventually be made out of steel. This allowed for the piano to use better string and have a deeper sound. It also prevented the piano from having it's tuning be affected by humidity. However, his piano was square-shaped so his piano wasn't popular. (Day/Month Unknown) https://www.britannica.com/art/keyboard-instrument/The-piano#ref305624
http://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_605830 -
Modern Steinway Grand Piano Model D
Made by Steinway, it set a precedence for modern pianos. It featured 7 octaves and 243 strings. It also eventually was made using a process that allowed the rim to be made from one piece of wood. This gave it it's unique sound. This piano is still used by many modern pianists. (Day, Month Unknown) http://www.ptg.org/Scripts/4Disapi.dll/4DCGI/cms/review.html?Action=CMS_Document&DocID=114&MenuKey=Menu9
