Luxmusic – For all your musical needs

The history of guitars is quite a fascinating story. Once called a guittern centuries ago, this beautiful and magnificent piece of art now resides at the Victoria and Albert museum of London. Other ancient items related to a guitar is the kithara, which really is a lyra, and the kisar, which resembles a harp more than a guitar. Many historians believe Spain to be the country of origin of the guitar, then called the vihuela, which looked comparable to a violin.

Popularity surged throughout the history of guitars especially for the period of the 1600's and 1700's. Each century, more strings were added. In the 19th century the appearance of the guitar was whittled down in the center, six strings were a regular amount, there were no longer the common pegs which held the strings, and the guitar of now was born. Of course, it did not receive the prestige the violin did and was branded with the label of a bar instrument. But not for long, thanks to the famous composer Fernando Sor, who envisioned its beautiful music and decided to lift the guitar to a higher status. Andres Segovia sought to popularize the guitar and soon after on, a creative man by the name of Les Paul invented models of what is the appearance of the guitar nowadays.

The history of guitars and their large size today, lies squarely on a carpenter by the name of Antonio de Torres Jurado who was born 1817. Because of the bigger soundboards, Torres caused an escalation in the guitar's reputation and the outcome was, it finally became the classical instrument for which it had been destined all along. Previous to Torres's involvement, those who played the guitar, strummed its strings for tips and loose change.

Many composers of the past played a giant part in the history of the guitar, due to their beautifully written music and creating sounds which were unheard of in the past. The life span of the guitar has been a long one. In addition, the shape, size and amount of strings has improved greatly. One could say the guitar with its heartfelt soulful sounds, penetrates the very being of anybody privileged enough to be within hearing of such a magnificent piece of design.

History of the Piano

Every musician should know some history about the instrument they play. Many people play the piano, but they know nothing about piano history. The piano comes from the harpsichord and the clavicord, and is often referred to as the pianoforte. The first piano was called a gravicembalo col pain e forte, which means a harpsichord with soft and loud. It was called this because of the hammer-and-lever action used to make the instrument play louder and softer according the the stronger and weaker touch of the finger.

In 1709, a harpsichord maker from Florence, Italy named Bartolomeo Cristofori invented this first piano. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, NY honors piano history by housing one of two of the surviving pianos, dated 1720.  The other surviving piano is kept in a museum in Leipzig, Germany.  That piano is dated 1726. Gottfried Silbermann, a German organ maker,started using Bartolomeo Cristofori's developments in order for further evolve the pianoforte beginning in 1725.

The interest in the piano spread like wild fire, and many were trying to find a way to improve on the latest pianofortes.  One prominent figure in piano history is Johann Andreas Stein.  From Augsburg, Germany, Johann Andreas Stein invented the escapement function that is found in Viennese pianos and was favored by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Joseph Haydn, and Ludwig van Beethoven.  The escapement function allowed better control of the instrument's hammers, especially when playing softly.  It was also very responsive to the touch of a player.

In 1760, masters from Germany went to London to form an English school that would produce pianos of a stronger build and that resemble the pianos found in modern time. A French manufacturer from piano history founded a school in France in the 1790s.  In 1823, he invented a double action escapement that allows notes to be more easily played multiple times. This double action escapement is the foundation for the mechanism used in grand pianos today. He was also the first piano maker in Paris to fit his pianos with pedals.

In the past, pianofortes only had the capability to play four or five octaves.  After structural changes provided the possibility of more tension in the piano, it can now play more than seven octaves. Music nowadays is derived from music throughout piano history. Many universities use the inspiration of Johann Sebastian Bach to model their music theory classes. All musicians can benefit from knowing musical history.