Piano Keys

A primer on piano keys

The "average" piano has 88 piano keys and of these, 36 are black keys commonly known as "sharps". There are also some pianos made with 85 keys and one with more than 88! (The Bosendorfer 9'6" concert grand has 97, but not much music is written for these extra keys. The extra keys are mainly there because of the additional resonance produced by the extra strings and large soundboard.) (1)

Piano keys are sawn into 88 sections from one continuous wooden slab. The white and black key tops are carefully glued and trimmed to the proper dimensions before installation into the piano. Keys may be inserted with lead weights as needed to balance the keys for responsive touch and uniformity the piano action receives many adjustments before the hammers and the keys are installed. Height, spacing and alignment are all checked and rechecked to make sure that the musical portion of the instrument performs properly. The keys and hammers are then installed in the piano.(2)

Look at your piano and find the black piano keys that are grouped in two. There will be groups of two and groups of three. If you are using a full size piano, you will have found 7 groups of 2 black piano keys. Now find the groups of three black piano keys. The white key that is found on the left side of each group of two black piano keys is called "C". Each section starts with a C and includes the next 6 white piano keys, making 7 piano keys in a section or octave. Each section of 7 piano keys includes a group of 2 black piano keys and a group of 3 black piano keys.

Look for the "C" piano key that is the closest to the middle of your piano; that is called "middle C". In general, whenever you play piano keys that are below Middle C, you will play with your left hand and whenever you play piano keys that are above Middle C, you will play with your right hand. "Middle C" is an important location so many pianists mark Middle C in some special way or have some method for locating it (below the "I" in the word Baldwin, for example).

Depressing a key on the piano engages a complex mechanism called the "action" of the piano keys which causes the hammer to strike the string. The hammers are in sets for the keys which sound two or three strings. The grand piano has about 230 strings for the 88 keys. Generally, the ten lowest pitches have one wire wound string. The next 18 pitches have two, and the last 60 have three strings each. In the modern piano, the strings are mounted on a cast iron frame to provide the strength to maintain the required tension in all of these strings (about 30 tons for a grand piano!).(3)

(1)ttp://www.pianoworld.com/faq.htm

(2)http://www.pianonet.com/discover_making.htm

(3)http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/music/pianof.html