Robert Estrin - piano expert

How Many Parts are There on a Piano?

Discover how many different parts pianos can have

In this video, Robert talks about piano mechanics and tells you how many parts there are in a piano. The number will amaze you!

Released on April 26, 2017

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DISCLAIMER: The views and the opinions expressed in this video are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Virtual Sheet Music and its employees.

Video Transcription

Hi. This is Robert Estrin at LivingPianos.com and VirtualSheetMusic.com. The question today is how many parts are there in a piano. This is really fascinating to think about. You know that there are many strings in a piano, somewhere between 220 to 240 strings, depending upon the scaling of the piano, since there are three strings for each note through most of the piano, two strings and one string in the bass. Depending upon the scale design, there's different numbers but around 220 to 240 strings. Now consider this. For each string, there has to be a tuning pin. So, double that, you're at hundreds of parts already.

And that's just the strings and the pins. Each note of a piano has a damper and a damper head. That's 88 times 2 right there, so you're at hundreds or getting near a thousand very quickly. And you've got the furniture of the piano - the fallboard, the key slip, the lid, the music rack. It starts adding up. But when it really explodes is the action. Now, the action is everything from the keys to the hammers and everything in between. Did you know that, when you push a key on a piano, you're setting in motion somewhere around 100 parts for each key? If you multiply that all out, you've got thousands of parts.

So, the answer to this question is a piano with all the parts of the action as well as all the furniture and the strings and all of that put together, oh, somewhere around 12,000 parts. That gives a real appreciation for what it takes to manufacture a piano, doesn't it? Thanks for the great questions. Once again, Robert Estrin at VirtualSheetMusic.com and LivingPianos.com.
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Comments, Questions, Requests:

BAYBEE RAFFIÑAN on April 27, 2017 @1:59 pm PST
Thanks! This is of great help to us piano teachers!
reply
Robert Estrin - host, on April 29, 2017 @12:35 pm PST
Glad you like! There are many more to come.
JoAnn Firno on April 26, 2017 @5:12 am PST
Fascinating! Never really thought of it in that way! Thx
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