{"id":28821,"date":"2015-05-29T13:15:52","date_gmt":"2015-05-29T17:15:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/?p=28821"},"modified":"2015-05-30T13:38:00","modified_gmt":"2015-05-30T17:38:00","slug":"the-scoop-after-130-years-daniel-barenboim-reinvents-the-modern-piano","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2015\/05\/29\/the-scoop-after-130-years-daniel-barenboim-reinvents-the-modern-piano\/","title":{"rendered":"THE SCOOP | After 130 Years, Daniel Barenboim Redesigns the Modern Piano"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Barenboim-Maene
Barenboim-Maene Concert Grand, 2015.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The modern piano has seen very few changes since the 19th<\/sup> century, but this week pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim<\/a> has revealed a new design that he hopes will revolutionize the instrument.<\/p>\n

The instrument was developed by Barenboim in 2011, and built by Belgian instrument maker Chris Maene. The piano is called the Barenboim-Maene Concert Grand, and was designed over a period of 18 months.<\/p>\n

What makes the piano unique is it\u2019s ability to play with the power of a modern piano, but with a transparency of a 19th-century instrument. The sound is achieved by arrangement the strings in a diagonal cross pattern, modifying the soundboard, and using bass strings made from yellow brass (see image above).<\/p>\n

The piano was inspired by a 19th-century grand in Sienna, that Barenboim found which also featured the parallel strings.<\/p>\n

According to the press release, \u201cThe transparency and tonal characteristics of the traditional straight-strung instruments is so different from the homogeneous tone produced by the modern piano across its entire range,\u201d Barenboim said. \u201cThe clearly distinguishable voices and colour across its registers of Liszt\u2019s piano inspired me to explore the possibility of combining these qualities with the power, looks, evenness of touch, stability of tuning and other technical advantages of the modern Steinway.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chris Maene commented that he had dreamed of building a new type of concert grand inspired by 19h century design. \u201cBy the end of the 19th century many piano builders tried to copy the success of Steinway & Sons,\u201d\u00a0Maene said. \u201cIn this process, they all ignored the straight-strung grand pianos with their unique sound characteristics. As a result, the 20th century offered us very similar instruments in regards of construction and sound.\u201d<\/p>\n

To compare the sounds, here is\u00a0Barenboim playing a short excerpt from a Beethoven sonata on a Steinway:<\/p>\n