The main challenges and opportunities with expanding the sonic and compositional potential of the piano - Essay Example

Response to a given question from the seminar Seminar: Tim and Kate: Developing the Super-Piano QUESTION: What, according to Tim and Kate, are the main challenges and opportunities with expanding the sonic and compositional potential of the piano? Kim and Kate are engaged in a project to develop a new piano of ‘super’ abilities that is, having ability to produce additional sounds. Kim and Kate are exploring the new aspect by exploring interfaces between the old technologies used in traditional piano with the modern technologies.

Such development will be an important accomplishment in the history of the piano. The historic attempt to modernize musical instrument like piano using latest technologies is not new. There were earlier attempts of such endeavours that are focused on extending the abilities of pianos. Such attempts include projects like ‘the Piano Lutheal’, ‘the liquid piano’, and ‘the magnetic resonance piano. The project rests on the basis of PNOSCAN developed by QR, which sits underneath the piano.

It works on movements of keys. The project is aimed at adding other sounds by blending various harmonics (Palmieri, 2004). There are lots of opportunities in the project, which if achieved, will revolutionize the traditional piano in terms of its acoustic attributes as well as it handling and play. The project is carried out to explore the innovative sounds and extended sonic possibilities from the piano. Kate is had the experience and interest in changing string and carrying out various acoustic modifications.

Successful transformation can bring a whole new set of sounds from the instrument making it more adopted and versatile in live performances. The success of the project will also make it economical to expand the instrument to musicians. It will also ensure that there will be no complications in the smooth play of the instrument. Paddles, knobs, and notes may reduce its popularity and acceptability among pianists as well as from the audiences. It will help to increase the creativity of performers, composers and will satisfy the aesthetic senses of the audiences.

Kate has extensive experience of developing pianos of various types and with various purposes. The electronic implication in the piano and extra functionality is not easy to be fitted on the same keyboard. Their operations require extra switches and knobs that would pose an irritating hindrance in the instrument’s smooth play. Kim earlier attempt to produce new harmonics from the existing object on a piano became fail. However, the most important task for the project is to make a blend from a running piano with the sampler creating pleasantly coherent interfaces (Dolge, 1911).

It is also important to contain the economic aspect of the new piano in order to get acceptance from people. The electronic and computer interventions will surely increase the cost of the piano. Furthermore, it will be a real challenge to limit the size of the piano. Kim and Kate are also working to develop travel version of PNOSCAN for easy handling. The assemblage of the PNOSCAN in a piano is a laborious work of hours, and it is needed to be more simplified and easy. They want that the pianist should have access to the extended sounds produced from the super piano without any rearrangement in the keys of the piano (Randles, 2014).

Also, three separate patches suggested by Kate are to be placed on the same keyboard that may hinder the freely operation of the instrument and interacting with the sounds in order to produce sound beyond its sonic abilities. References Dolge, A., 1911. Pianos and Their Makers: A Comprehensive History of the Development of the Piano from the Monochord to the Concert Grand Player Piano, Volume 1. Illustrated ed. Toranto: Courier Cooperation. Palmieri, R., 2004. The Piano: An Encyclopaedia: Encyclopaedia of keyboard instruments.

Revised ed. London: Routledge. Randles, C., 2014. Music Education: Navigating the Future. London: Routledge.