Harp v.s. Piano Many people view harp and piano as completely different instruments. Some might even say that these two instruments are on completely different sides of the spectrum. Though this can be true, they are actually alike in many ways as well. At first glance you may think that harp and piano look nothing alike, but you would be surprised by how similar these instruments really are. The instruments look alike in three main ways: size, shape, and structure. It is no secret that both harp and piano are unnecessarily large and bulky instruments that seem almost impossible to move. They both weigh a lot and are awkward in size when it comes to transporting them. Along with size, both harp and piano have similar shapes. If you put these instruments side by side, it would seem otherwise, but it’s all about perspective. If you look at a piano from a top view, you will see that the shape is that of a harp. Some might even say that piano is a sideways harp, not the other way around, because, in fact, harp was invented first. The structure of these two instruments is also very similar. Much like shape, it doesn’t seem like they are alike in any way when it comes to structure, but they actually are! Though the piano is played by pressing down on the keys, both …show more content…
It may seem otherwise, as the harp is played by plucking strings and piano is played by pressing keys, but this isn’t necessarily true. Both instruments require two hands to successfully play them. In order to successfully play a song on either instrument, you must use both hands to play two different parts, the melody and bass line. Along with this, both harp and piano are played by strings being plucked. Although the harp is plucked in a more direct way, piano also gives off sound by strings being plucked. When a key on the piano is pressed, it sets off a small piece inside of the piano that hits, or plucks the
The harp had come to Gwilan from her mother, and so had her mastery of it, people said. “Ah,” they said when Gwilan played, “you can tell, that’s Diera’s touch,” just as their parents had said when Diera played, “Ah, that’s the true Penlin touch!” Gwilan’s mother had had the harp from Penlin, a musician’s dying gift to the worthiest of pupils. From a musician’s hands Penlin too had received it; never had it been sold or bartered for, nor any value put upon it that can be said in numbers. A princely and most incredible instrument it was for a poor harper to own. The shape of it was perfection, and every part was strong and fine: the wood as hard and smooth as bronze, the fittings of ivory and silver. The
and piano. As this was my first Chamber Concert I was not sure what to expect.
Since the first person heard the wind whistle through the trees or the sea in a seashell humans have been drawn to sound. Being the oppressive and ingenious species that we are we felt the need to capture these sounds and any others that we could to keep for our own. Eventually people like Pythagoras and gods such as Apollo found that by stretching materials and picking/plucking them that they would produce sounds and that the tighter you stretched these strings the higher the sound would go. These were the early beginnings of the pianoforte.
His mother was a musician and his father was an engineer and an inventor. Hans told “Mashable” in an interview in 2013 I grew up modifying the piano, shall we say, which made my mother gasp in horror, and my father would think it was fantastic when I would attach chainsaws and stuff like that to the piano because he thought it was an evolution in technology."His father died soon after and he decided to play the piano once again to help him try to not be sad and sorrowful. He once stated “Music had been my best friend.” Music has always been away for hans to get away from the world and to
Instruments like the English horn can be found in popular music, while the bassoon may only be found in traditional and ensemble music. There are, however, composers and musicians who explore the use of these instruments in esoteric and unconventional ways. One way to think of the woodwind family is the various instruments mimicking (representing) the human voice such as a clarinet for an alto singer, or a bassoon for a baritone singer. Many modern composer look at this group of instruments in exactly that
Being a pianist presents itself a variety of opportunities, two common ones being playing in a jazz ensemble/band, or accompanying a choir. One may choose to be one, the other or both at the same time. However, there are distinct comparisons and contrasts between the two. Both are vastly different from each other, each harboring distinct qualities, yet there are similarities between the two.
1709, Cristofori had demonstrated harpsichords built with hammer mechanisms that were capable of producing piano and forte effects. A few of these instruments even made their way into Germany the following years. Bach however, did not come into physical contact with such instruments until around 1740-a considerable length of time after the earliest pianofortes were being made. Gottfried Silbermann made the instrument that Bach came into contact with, and he was enthusiastic to receive Bach’s acclaim. Bach’s response however, was of initial disappointment: “…he spoke enthusiastically of the instrument’s tone and possibilities, but criticized its heavy touch and
Farkas: In my early compositions for orchestra, I always gave the harp part an important role. My first composition for harp solo, however, was Concertino, written in 1937 for the Budapest Municipal Orchestra and Mrs. Anna Molnár.
The modern piano is an odd mix of instrument types; it’s both a percussive and a string instrument. When a key is pressed, a hammer strikes a string, which produces the note. We know that percussion instruments such as drums were made as far back as we have discovered written documents and probably long before. However, it is more difficult to determine exactly what the string instruments were like. We have some documentation found in the Bible that speak of harps and lyres, but there is no concrete knowledge of tuning or the style of music played; we can only guess at it using what few written sources that survive. However, we have drawings of the lyres and harps that were used. The harps used by the Assyrians for example, were held or hung against the player’s chest while he played which also enabled him to dance or walk easily during ceremonies. Conversely, the Egyptian harps were made in a variety of sizes and were either set on the floor or a stand. The player stood or crouched to play it during more intimate settings. (Blom 8) The Greek lyre however was plucked compared to the harp’s...
Playing the piano delights and make one happy. The activity can provide that deep sense of satisfaction, pleasure and fulfillment.
From left to right you have a: clavichord, piano, and a harpsichord. This shows clearer how similar these instruments are all to each other. The piano however has come a long way from its first creation in the early 1700s. It took less than 20 years before we already started seeing changes. Gotfried Silbermann added the first pedal to the piano. Known for his organ building he added a damper pedal (“Pianonet.com”).. However, due to the Indus...
Literally, the piano is a global instrument. In other words, certain countries are associated with certain instruments. For example, Italy has the mandolin, Ireland has the harp, the Netherlands has the fiddle, etc. The piano is a very common instrument and is not necessarily associated with a specific location. This is a plus because it means that there are resources everywhere. Figuratively, piano serves as a good first instrument because it gives the player a great sense of music theory. Music theory makes up a majority of the world of music. It introduces the pianist to sheet music and the practice gives him or her plenty of time to improve sight reading skills. This makes the optional switch to another instrument much easier. In addition to this, the piano requires very little maintenance. Another instrument, such as the trumpet, requires cleaning of the mouthpiece, the pipes, valve oil, grease for the slides, etc. It also needs to be tuned every other—if not every—time it is pulled out to be played. Piano’s maintenance requirements consist of an annual tuning and occasional cleaning. It comes with the advantage of a very wide pitch range which allows the player to develop a better ear for music, provides a spot on note when the key is struck, and serves as a great first sense of pitch. As previously mentioned, the piano includes the asset of compatibility
To become a good piano player, one must love music. The love of music can help you truly understand the music you play, so that you can play it well. For example, when you play a piece of music on the piano, not only must you get the notes and the rhythm right, you must also be able to put feeling into the music to make it come alive. In addition, the love for music can help you grab the attention of your audience by playing the piano with a large range of dynamic contrast (loud or soft). If you play the music with little dynamic contrast, your audience would surely fall asleep. Lastly, the love for music can help you express...
This semester music class has taught me a lot on basic functions of musical sound, elements of music, and what a common beat is. When we first started class we discuss all this information and I received a lot of knowledge from it. For example duple means 2 beats per minute, and triple means 3 beats per minute. Understanding these elements enhances our listening, provides vocabulary for discussion, and increases our capacity to enjoy music.
For me personally, music appreciation is defined as looking at different pieces of music and musical forms, and learning to find appreciation for them. This appreciation is formed not only by listening to several pieces of music, but by learning to understand what you may be listening too. This involves introducing yourself to many pieces of music and learning to interpret, what makes each piece different and unique. Understanding the historical background and societal changes that have taken place during the creation of the musical piece, is also an important factor to consider. Music is not only creative, but it also makes up part of a societies history. Music is an art form that connects different societies and cultures together, it possess the amazing ability to make us into one.