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B# FUN FACTS: Bartolomeo Cristofori (1655-1731)

The first true piano was invented by Bartolomeo Cristofori. There is evidence that he was already working on pianos as early as 1698. The first pianos were called pianofortes because unlike the harpsichord, they could play 'piano' and 'forte'. The sound of the 1720 Cristofori pianos differed considerably from the modern grand piano. The thinner strings and harder hammers gave them a timbre closer to a harpsichord than a modern Steinway.

There are three surviving Cristofori pianos today which are available to the public, all dating from the 1720s:
1. A 1720 instrument is located in the Metropolitan Museum in New York. It has 54 keys. The case has been shortened, and the soundboard is from a 1938 restoration.
2. A 1722 instrument is in the Museo Nazionale degli Strumenti Musicali in Rome.
3. A 1726 instrument is in the Musikinstrumenten-Museum of Leipzig University.