HOW A PIANO SHOULD SOUND, AND WHY

[♔Chello]

HOW A PIANO SHOULD SOUND, AND WHY

Piano is the most complex of all instruments, and it comes in many designs.
The dynamic range is exceptional, and the opposite of Cembalo, which does not allow variation in volume.
No other instruments depend on the acoustics of the room to the same degree.
No other instrument requires so many different microphones to make a realistic recording.

Most pianos have 88 keys, but there is also a model that has 97 keys - Bösendorfer Concert Grand 290 Imperial.
Most sounds have three strings, except for the bass, which goes from one to two.

A grand piano can also consist of several resonant chambers, which are connected to each other in different ways.
A distinction must be made between a traditional box-shaped piano that is often placed next to a wall, and a grand piano, which is placed further from the walls, for acoustic reasons.
There is a big sound difference between types of piano, and they are all different and unique.

There is also a difference in how the strings are placed in a box-shaped piano and a grand piano; and type of hammers and their mechanics are therefore also different.

Recording the sound from a grand piano is the most demanding task a sound engineer can undertake, because several microphones of different types are required in the cabinet itself, plus several of different types must be placed in the room to capture the acoustics.

A good recording should clearly reproduce that the hammer hits the strings, as well as reproduce the piano's own acoustics and room acoustics.


There are hardly any recordings that are good enough - I have only heard such on Korg Kronos.