The prototype of the modern piano, with all these changes in place, was exhibited to
general acclaim by Steinway at the Paris exhibition of 1867 and by about 1900 most
leading piano manufacturers had incorporated most of these changes.
Consequences for musical performance
Innovations in piano building have had consequences for musical performance. Much of
the most admired piano repertoire was composed for a type of instrument that is very
different from the modern instruments on which this music is usually performed today.
The greatest difference is in the pianos used by the composers of the classical era, such as
Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, but differences are found for later composers as well.
The music of the early romantics, such as Chopin and Schumann, and even of later
composers, was written for pianos substantially different from ours.
One view is that these composers were dissatisfied with their pianos and in fact were
writing visionary music of the future with a more robust sound in mind. This view is
plausible for Beethoven who composed at the beginning of the era of piano growth.
The modern piano has a greater sustain time than the classical era piano. Notes played in
accompaniment lines stay loud longer and cover up any subsequent melodic notes more
than they would have on the instrument that the composer used. This impedes realisation
of the characteristic clarity of classical era works. The earlier instruments have a lighter
and clearer sound than their modern counterparts, lines emerge more clearly, and rapid
passages and ornaments are more easily enunciated by instruments whose main purpose
is not volume or power.
During the classical period the sustaining pedal was not used as it is in later music as a
more or less constant amplification and modulation of the basic piano sound. Instead,
pedalling was used to convey a particular expressive effect in individual passages.
Classical composers sometimes wrote long passages in which the player is directed to
keep the sustaining pedal down throughout. One example occurs in Haydn’s sonata H.
XVI/50 from 1794-1795. There are many cases in Beethoven’s piano concertos, sonatas,
pieces and chamber works. In particular, there are well-known examples in the first
movement of Beethoven’s sonata opus 27 no. 2 ‘Moonlight’ and in the final movement of
his sonata opus 53 ‘Waldstein’. Many pianists modify their playing style or the pedalling
indications, or both, to seek to achieve the composer’s intention and help compensate for
the differences between the classical era piano and the modern piano. Other pianists
follow Beethoven’s pedal markings literally with a view to implementing his intentions.
Pianos are often played in chamber music ensembles with string instruments which also
evolved considerably during the nineteenth century. Charles Rosen in ‘The Classical
Style’, Norton, New York, 2nd edition, page 353 has this to say:
‘Instrumental changes since the eighteenth century have made a problem out of the
balance of sound in all chamber music with piano. Violin necks (including, of course,