A Brief Intro to (Some) Piano History

In the early 14th century, a device called a dulcimer, which was a small, closed box over which stretched wires would be hit with hammers eventually led to the early development of the clavichord, which was a bit more developed into a more piano-like structure. Below is a picture of a clavichord:

 (from www.harpsichord.com)

By the 17th Century, this amateur instrument developed into what we know today as the harpsichord. Many of the harpsichords originated in Italy.

 (from wikipedia.com)

This picture is a French Grand piano from 1781. Notice how different it is - smaller, shorter, most likely less keys, and the colors of the keys are reversed - black to white, and vice versa.
The downside to harpsichords is that they do not offer a range of dynamics - no matter how softly you play on a harpsichord, it will sound the same.

And there you have it - just some snippets of early piano history!

My Piano Experiences

So far, I have only played a few styles of music in my approximately-8 years of playing - some rags, some jazz and blues, but for the most part classical. Recently, I have been polishing some pieces for a recital with a senior in high school who will be playing for about a half hour, and I will be playing for another half hour. It's on June 5th at Saint John's Methodist Church in SFe (I believe...not quite sure), but I am still working very hard on them. The pieces are as follows:
Nocturne (by Edvard Grieg)
Bells Ringing (also by Edvard Grieg)
Waltz in B Flat Major (by Franz Schubert)
Rondo Alla Turca (by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
Minuet in G (by Ignace Paderewski)
Puck (another by Edvard Grieg)

Here are some pictures of the composers in my recital: (in order: Mozart, Grieg, Schubert, and Paderewski)

Personally, I think Paderewski has the COOLEST HAIR!!! (out of all of them, at least...)

Cool Piano Stuff

The largest and longest piano ever was built by Adrian Mann (from New Zealand), and is 18.5 feet across! But it still produces the same music...
Click the link for more info:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x57kcRdojrY

The smallest piano was built by a Japanese manufacturer called Sega Toys, and is 25cm wide, and 18cm high! Still fully playable.
Click the link for more:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQhyE9am35E

Piano shaped building in Bergen, Norway - Edvard Grieg's concert hall.
See picture (I TOOK IT MYSELF!!!!):

Introduction

Hi! My name is Karen, and this blog is going to be about playing the piano. It will be based around not only the pieces I have played, and how I am doing with a piece (etc.), but it will contain some stories and information about playing piano, such as some famous pianists, history of piano, stories about your average-everyday pianists, and much more!
I highly encourage viewers who play piano to PLEASE post videos/recordings of you playing the piano, any type of question relating to the topic of music and piano, and even if you just want to say hi...well, sure - I would really appreciate it!

Thanks!