Hello steemit. I'm moving right away to my achievement 4 program which is Applying Markdowns. I am required to appy at least 5 markdowns of my choice.

In this text, I'll be talking about the piano 🎹 which is what I spend most of my time playing.

Before we delve Into what a piano is all about, I'll like us to know that there's a difference between a piano and a keyboard. "The piano is an acoustic instrument, meaning its sound is produced and amplified physically. In comparison, keyboards are electronic instruments with a variety of volume options, and often can produce sounds like piano, horns, strings, organs, synthesizers, and more" Source

"The word 'piano' is a shortened form of pianoforte, the Italian term for the early 1700s versions of the instrument, which in turn derives from clavicembalo col piano e forte (key cimbalom with quieter and louder) and fortepiano. The Italian musical terms piano and forte indicate 'soft' and 'loud' respectively, in this context referring to the variations in volume (i.e., loudness) produced in response to a pianist's touch or pressure on the keys: the greater the velocity of a key press, the greater the force of the hammer hitting the strings, and the louder the sound of the note produced and the stronger the attack. The name was created as a contrast to harpsichord, a musical instrument that does not allow variation in volume; compared to the harpsichord, the first fortepianos in the 1700s had a quieter sound and smaller dynamic range. Source

The body of a piano is made up of wood. There in the soundboard are metal strings which when strung under pressure produces sound. When a key on the piano is pressed, the hammer strikes the string causing a sound to be produced. Hitting two or more strings simultaneously produces what is known as A Cord. Each hammer is perculiar to a particular string. The hammer rebounds from the strings, and the strings continue to vibrate at their resonant frequency.

"Most modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, 52 white keys for the notes of the C major scale (C, D, E, F, G, A and B) and 36 shorter black keys, which are raised above the white keys, and set further back on the keyboard. This means that the piano can play 88 different pitches (or "notes"), spanning a range of a bit over seven octaves. The black keys are for the "accidentals" (F♯/G♭, G♯/A♭, A♯/B♭, C♯/D♭, and D♯/E♭), which are needed to play in all twelve keys. More rarely, some pianos have additional keys (which require additional strings), an example of which is the Bösendorfer Concert Grand 290 Imperial, which has 97 keys. Most notes have three strings, except for the bass, which graduates from one to two. The strings are sounded when keys are pressed or struck, and silenced by dampers when the hands are lifted from the keyboard. Although an acoustic piano has strings, it is usually classified as a percussion instrument rather than as a stringed instrument, because the strings are struck rather than plucked (as with a harpsichord or spinet); in the Hornbostel–Sachs system of instrument classification, pianos are considered chordophones. There are two main types of piano: the grand piano and the upright piano. The grand piano has a better sound and gives the player a more precise control of the keys, and is therefore the preferred choice for every situation in which the available floor-space and the budget will allow, as well as often being considered a requirement in venues where skilled pianists will frequently give public performances. The upright piano, which necessarily involves some compromise in both tone and key action compared to a grand piano of equivalent quality, is nevertheless much more widely used, because it occupies less space (allowing it to fit comfortably in a room where a grand piano would be too large) and is significantly less expensive." Source

I think this is all I'm going to talk about a piano for now. If you like to know more about a piano, you can check Here

I'll end this text with a very simple quote from one of the greatest pianist of all times.

“It’s like a whole orchestra, the piano for me.” -Dave Brubeck

So here are the markdowns I've applied in this text 👇👇