Fall and the Return of the Opera
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A Brief History of the Piano
The piano, that common instrument of school music programs, appears to be the ultimate expression of the stringed musical instrument, which date back to the lyre and the harp. Pianos (a shortening of the compound term “piano-forte”) work by striking wires with felted (or leather headed) hammers, with a redaction mechanism that pulls the hammerhead away from the wire before it can dampen out the sound. Because the force of the hammer strike is generally proportional to the stroke on the key, this allows a piano to play a note softly (piano) or loudly (forte), leading to its name.
The immediate predecessors of the pianoforte were the clavichord and the harpsichord, both of which tried to combine the ease of play of a traditional organ keyboard with the expressive range (and general portability) of a large concert harp. Of the two predecessor instruments, the harpsichord was the more common, and used a mechanism that plucked the strings (and later wires) of the instrument when a key was hit. This lead to a distinctive “plinking” or “plucking” sound, more like a strung harp, but lacked the ability to adjust the volume of a given note, and had only limited ability to … Read more
Understanding Sheet Music Structuring For Novices
Sheet music can be imposing if you are a new music student. Seemingly written in its own language, it can seem like you are expected to be able to read code. In a way you are. Sheet music is written in such a way that musicians can look at it and tell instantly what key, tempo and scale they should be playing in. If you are looking to learn more about sheet music and how to read it then you will have to start at the beginning and work your way through; just as you would when playing a piece in the first place.The very first thing you must recognize is the structure. While different pieces of music may have varying parts, the basic elements of sheet music will always remain the same. The first important piece of this would be the staff. The staff includes not only the five lines that you see on the paper. It also includes the four spaces in between each of these lines. Each of the lines and spaces will correspond with a single note. You will find the other musical portions in various places on the staff.There will be a clef sign, a … Read more