---
url: 'https://kalasudha.com/en-gb/instrument/piano'
title: Piano
author:
  name: drupler
  url: 'https://kalasudha.com/en-gb/user/1'
date: '2023-07-03T22:36:11+00:00'
updated: '2026-10-27T01:13:13+00:00'
type: product
summary: 'The piano, a hammered keyboard chordophone, reached India through colonial drawing rooms and became central to Hindi film music through R. D. Burman and A. R…'
tags:
  - Chordophones
  - Piano
image: 'https://files.kalasudha.com/styles/d12_standard/public/2025-06/Grand-Piano.jpg?h=d1cb525d&itok=WXoyVsmX'
published: true
og:
  site_name: KalaSudha
  'image:url': 'https://files.kalasudha.com/styles/d12_standard/public/2025-06/Grand-Piano.jpg?h=d1cb525d&itok=WXoyVsmX'
  'image:secure_url': 'https://files.kalasudha.com/styles/d12_standard/public/2025-06/Grand-Piano.jpg?h=d1cb525d&itok=WXoyVsmX'
  'image:type': image/jpeg
  'image:width': '1200'
  'image:height': '675'
  'image:alt': Grand-Piano
---
   [  Instruments ](/en-gb/instruments)     Piano  

1. [  Home ](/en-gb)
2. 
3. [ Instruments ](/en-gb/instruments)
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5. Piano
 
   Chordophones   Chordophone / keyboard instrument   Intermediate   Italy (Florence, about 1700); in India from the late 18th century, through the colonial period   Film &amp; fusion   Classical &amp; contemporary  

# Piano

 (पियानो) 

The piano, a hammered keyboard chordophone, reached India through colonial drawing rooms and became central to Hindi film music through R. D. Burman and A. R. Rahman. It now meets raga in fusion.

  Practitioners 

3

 

  Videos 

6

 

 

  Price Range 

 £300 - £15,000

Entry-level digital uprights start around £300; quality acoustic uprights cost £2,000 to £6,000; a new mid-range grand starts at about £10,000, and Steinway and Bösendorfer concert grands cost far more. Before you buy a used acoustic piano, have us inspect its soundboard, pin block and action.

 

 [ Request Quote ](/en-gb/form/custom-instrument-quote?instrument_id=40) 

 

  

 

 

  

 

 

  ## Explore the discipline

Meet the musical tradition, its practitioners and ways to learn.

 

- [ Piano · Hindustani Classical  ](/en-gb/instrumental/hindustani-classical/piano)
 
 

   ## History &amp; Origins

 



 

### What is a piano?

The **piano** is a keyboard chordophone in which felt hammers strike steel strings, and suits your Western repertoire, film music or raga fusion. Its full name, *pianoforte*, means soft and loud, because touch sets each note's volume. A modern concert grand has **88 keys** over more than seven octaves, about 230 strings and a cast-iron plate holding up to 20 tonnes of tension. No other Western instrument gives one player so wide a range or so many shades of loud and soft. The Italian harpsichord maker Bartolomeo Cristofori invented it around 1700, replacing the harpsichord's plucking with hammers that grade the volume.

A spruce soundboard carries the tone, and copper-wound bass strings and plain steel treble strings in choirs of three give the piano its bloom. A grand's gravity-return action repeats notes fast; an upright returns its hammers by spring in a smaller cabinet; a digital piano needs no tuning. A regulated action feels even across the keyboard.

You can play ragas on the piano within limits. It locks each note to equal temperament, while raga lives on **shruti** (microtones) and **meend** (glides): Bhairavi's komal gandhar sits a shade below E-flat, Yaman's tivra madhyam a shade above F-sharp. Pianists run quick figures through the target note to suggest the glide; others choose ragas that suit the grid or let sustain carry the line. Anil Srinivasan, trained in Western and Carnatic music, has played with Bombay Jayashri.



 

Cristofori built the first piano at the Medici court in Florence around 1700. Its hammer struck and escaped, leaving the string free to ring while the key stayed down; that escapement drives every piano action since. Viennese makers built the light action Haydn and Mozart preferred, and English makers the heavier action Beethoven favoured. By the 19th century Steinway and Bösendorfer had built the modern cross-strung, iron-framed concert grand.

In the 1800s uprights reached homes, missions and clubs in Calcutta, Bombay and Madras; mission schools trained the first Indian pianists. Indians first heard it in church and at European recitals, and until the early 20th century it stayed in European and Europhile circles, its fixed tuning of little use to classical musicians.

Bombay studio orchestras took up the piano in the 1940s and 1950s. By the 1960s and 1970s S. D. Burman and R. D. Burman made it a core voice in film scores, and from the 1990s A. R. Rahman made it a centrepiece in *Roja*, *Lagaan* and *Slumdog Millionaire*, scores released worldwide. Amjad Ali Khan has worked with pianists, setting slow Hindustani alap beside Western slow movements, and Anil Srinivasan has brought the piano to Carnatic raga.



 

    ## Construction &amp; Craftsmanship

 



 

### Construction Process

The **soundboard** is the acoustic core: a thin panel of tight, even-grained Sitka, European or white spruce, chosen for its stiffness-to-weight ratio; low-cost pianos may use laminated boards. Ribs glued across the grain stiffen it, and a slight crown under string tension keeps it responsive; a flat board sounds thin. The bridge on top carries string energy into the wood.

Strings of high-carbon steel run from hitch pins to tuning pins set in the **pin block**, hardwood plies of maple or beech glued with alternating grain. Bass strings wrap a steel core in copper, adding mass without impractical length, and take large, dense hammers. The treble has three plain strings per note, which couple through the bridge for a fast attack and a slower aftersound. A cast-iron plate absorbs up to 20 tonnes of tension.

Each **hammer** carries layers of pressed wool felt, firm at the core and softer at the surface: harder felt sounds brighter, softer felt sings. Technicians voice it by needling or hardening the felt, and regulate the action, thousands of levers, springs and cloth-covered wooden parts, so every hammer travels, releases and rebounds alike.



 

 

 ### Maintenance &amp; Care

- **Tuning:** Tune every six months at home, quarterly in studios or changeable climates, holding pitch between A439 and A441. A long-neglected piano needs several pitch-raise passes over weeks: forcing it in one session can crack the soundboard or strip tuning pins. Book the tuning with us.
- **Humidity:** Keep 40–50% relative humidity at a steady temperature near 20 °C, away from vents, fires and sun. Dry air cracks the soundboard and loosens the pins, so the piano goes flat; damp swells the board and pitch rises. A Dampp-Chaser system in the cabinet steadies the soundboard, but control the room too. In India's monsoon, humidity can pass 70%.
- **Keys:** Wipe key tops with a barely damp cloth and dry them at once, as moisture warps them; no chemical cleaners on ivory or synthetic tops.
- **Action:** Dust in the felts slows the keys. Have us remove and vacuum the action; never blow or brush dust out with the action in place. Keep drinks off the keyboard: a spill into the keybed damages parts that are costly to replace.



 

 

 

 

  

 ###   Quick Facts 

  Category 

 Chordophones 

 

  Family 

 Chordophone / keyboard instrument 

 

  Difficulty 

 Intermediate 

 

  Origin 

 Italy (Florence, about 1700); in India from the late 18th century, through the colonial period 

 

 Classification 

 Chordophone: keyboard instrument 

 

 Key range 

 88 keys (7+ octaves) 

 

 String system 

 Wound copper bass strings; plain steel treble strings in groups of three 

 

 Action type 

 Hammer escapement action (grand or upright) 

 

 Key figures in India 

 S. D. Burman, R. D. Burman, A. R. Rahman, Anil Srinivasan and Utsav Lal 

 

 Primary Indian contexts 

 Hindi film music, Carnatic fusion, Hindustani fusion, contemporary composition 

 

 

 

 ###   Price Range 

 £300 - £15,000 

Entry-level digital uprights start around £300; quality acoustic uprights cost £2,000 to £6,000; a new mid-range grand starts at about £10,000, and Steinway and Bösendorfer concert grands cost far more. Before you buy a used acoustic piano, have us inspect its soundboard, pin block and action.

 [ Request Quote ](/en-gb/form/custom-instrument-quote?instrument_id=40)  ### Statistics

    Practitioners 3 

   Videos 6 

   

  

 

 ## Technical Specifications

Detailed specifications for the Piano

 

  Physical dimensions   String &amp; soundboard system   Hammer &amp; action mechanism   Pedal system   Acoustic characteristics  

   Physical dimensions     Physical dimensions specifications
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Grand piano length | 1,500mm (baby grand) to 2,750mm (concert grand) |
| Upright piano height | 900mm–1,300mm |
| Grand piano width | ~1,500mm |
| Grand piano weight | 250kg–600kg |
| Key count | 88 (standard); some models have 85 |

 

 

    String &amp; soundboard system     String &amp; soundboard system specifications
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Total string count | ~230 strings |
| Total string tension | Up to 20 tonnes (combined) |
| Bass string material | Copper-wound steel core |
| Treble string material | Plain high-carbon steel |
| Strings per treble note | 3 (unison choir) |
| Soundboard material | Sitka, European or white spruce |

 

 

    Hammer &amp; action mechanism     Hammer &amp; action mechanism specifications
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Hammer covering | Pressed wool felt (graded density, firm core to soft surface) |
| Grand action type | Gravity-return escapement (enables rapid note repetition) |
| Upright action type | Spring-return (slower repetition; smaller cabinet) |
| Action parts per note | ~80 individual components |
| Regulation | Periodic service required for even touch across all 88 keys |

 

 

    Pedal system     Pedal system specifications
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Sustain pedal (right) | Lifts all dampers; strings ring freely |
| Sostenuto pedal (middle, grand) | Sustains only notes held at moment of depression |
| Soft pedal (left) | Una corda (shifts hammers) in grand; moves hammers closer to strings in upright |
| Pedal count | 3 (concert grand); 2 (some uprights, omitting sostenuto) |

 

 

    Acoustic characteristics     Acoustic characteristics specifications
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Frequency range | ~27.5 Hz (A0) to ~4,186 Hz (C8) |
| Dynamic range | ppp to fff (approximately 40dB–100dB) |
| Sustain | 3–30 seconds depending on register and pedal use |
| Tuning system | Equal temperament (12 equal semitones per octave), with slightly stretched octaves |
| Tonal character | Rich harmonic spectrum; treble unison choir produces characteristic bloom |

 

 

  

 

  ## Available Instruments

Browse our curated selection of Pianos

Showing 1 instruments

 

  

 

 

 

### Piano

 

£300.00

 

 [ Request Quote ](/en-gb/form/custom-instrument-quote?instrument_id=40&product_id=33) [Get Details](/en-gb/product/33) 

 

   

### Looking for Something Unique?

Contact us for custom-made instruments tailored to your specific requirements

 [  Contact for Custom Order ](/en-gb/form/custom-instrument-quote?instrument_id=40)  

 

   ##  Your Journey to Piano Mastery 

 

 Follow this structured path from absolute beginner to accomplished performer



 1 

 

###  Hand position &amp; keyboard geography 

 

Beginners start here, at the Foundation level of KalaSudha's [courses](/courses). Learn correct seated posture, hand arch and finger weight. Map the 88-key layout and its octaves, and build independent finger movement through five-finger exercises.

 



 

  20%  

 

 

 

 2 

 

###  Scales &amp; sargam mapping 

 

 Practise major and minor scales in all keys. Map the sargam, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni Sa, onto the keys from a chosen Sa and mark the komal (flattened) and tivra (raised) notes. Learn where equal temperament departs from the shruti of Indian tuning. 



 

  40%  

 

 

 

 3 

 

###  Indian raga exploration on piano 

 

 Start with ragas whose notes sit well on the piano's twelve-pitch grid, such as Yaman, Bhupali and Desh. Practise aroha and avaroha, the ascent and descent, and learn how sustain, voicing and quick figures through the target pitch can suggest meend, the glide the keyboard cannot play. Listen to how Utsav Lal shapes a raga on a fixed-pitch keyboard. 



 

  60%  

 

 

 

 4 

 

###  Composition &amp; accompaniment 

 

 Learn to accompany vocalists and instrumentalists with chord voicings that support the raga's melody and leave room for its glides. Study A. R. Rahman and R. D. Burman arrangements as models for film-style piano, and Anil Srinivasan's duos with Carnatic vocalist Sikkil Gurucharan to hear a pianist support a singer. 



 

  80%  

 

 

 

 5 

 

###  Advanced improvisation &amp; fusion 

 

 Improvise within a raga's ascent and descent over a tabla theka. Explore fusion, pairing the piano with tabla, sitar or violin, and write short pieces that keep the raga's characteristic phrases, building a voice that joins Western harmony to Indian melodic grammar. 



 

  100%  

 

 

 

 

 



 

   ## Media Gallery

 

Watch performances, see details, and explore the Piano in action

 

 [ Live Performance 

 5:10 

 

###  Raag Bhairav | Rekesh Chauhan &amp; Shahbaz Hussain | Live | The Duke’s Hall 

 6 months ago

 ](/en-gb/video/raag-bhairav-rekesh-chauhan-shahbaz-hussain-live-the-dukes-hall)

 [ Live Performance 

 15:02 

 

###  Raag Kirwani | Deepak Shah | Piano | Reading | Kala Festival 2025 

 7 months ago

 ](/en-gb/video/raag-kirwani-deepak-shah-piano-reading-kala-festival-2025)

 [ Live Performance 

 12:32 

 

###  Yaad Piya Ki Aaye | Ajay Prasanna | London Raga Fusion | Flute, Piano, Tabla &amp; Ghatam | KalaSudha 

 7 months ago

 ](/en-gb/video/yaad-piya-ki-aaye-ajay-prasanna-london-raga-fusion-flute-piano-tabla-ghatam-kalasudha)

 [ Live Performance 

 13:35 

 

###  Raag Yaman – Alaap on Piano | Deepak Shah | Kala Festival 2025, Norwich 

 8 months ago

 ](/en-gb/video/raag-yaman-alaap-on-piano-deepak-shah-kala-festival-2025-norwich)

 [ Live Performance 

 10:24 

 

###  Raag Bhairavi | Trinity Trio | Live at Kala Festival 2025, Cambridge 

 8 months ago

 ](/en-gb/video/raag-bhairavi-trinity-trio-live-at-kala-festival-2025-cambridge)

 [ Live Performance 

 10:02 

 

###  Raag Desh | Music for Harmony &amp; Peace | Kala Festival 2023 | KalaSudha | The Bhavan London 

 1 year ago

 ](/en-gb/video/raag-desh-music-for-harmony-peace-kala-festival-2023-kalasudha-the-bhavan-london)

 

 #### Pagination

  1  [ Next ›› ](/en-gb/markdownify/node/40?page=1 "Go to next page")  



 

   ## Featured Artists

 

Renowned Piano players and performers

 

##  [Raymond Yiu

 ](/en-gb/artist/raymond-yiu) 

 

 

 Raymond Wui Man Yiu is a classically trained pianist based in London. Born in Hong Kong, he moved to Aberdeen in 2008 to study at the Aberdeen City Music School under the tutelage of Peter Evans 

Piano

 

 



 

##  [Rekesh Chauhan

 ](/en-gb/artist/rekesh-chauhan) 

 

 

 Rekesh Chauhan is a multi‑award‑winning British Indian pianist and composer, known for his groundbreaking fusion of Eastern and Western classical traditions. With early grounding in Indian classical 

Piano

 

 [  ](https://www.facebook.com/rekeshchauhan "Facebook")

 [  ](https://x.com/rekeshchauhan "Twitter")

 [  ](https://www.instagram.com/rekeshchauhan "Instagram")

 

 



 

##  [Deepak Shah

 ](/en-gb/artist/deepak-shah) 

 

 

 Deepak Shah is an Indian pianist and composer who plays Indian classical ragas on the grand piano. His music blends Indian and Western styles in a smooth, natural way. For over twenty-five years, he 

Piano

 

 [  ](https://www.facebook.com/deeppak.shah "Facebook")

 [  ](https://www.instagram.com/raagapianist/ "Instagram")

 [  ](https://x.com/pianist_deepak "Twitter")

 

 



 

 



 

   ## Past Events

 

Browse our archive of past performances

 

   [  

 

  ](/en-gb/event/music-without-boundaries-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik)  ###  [ Music Without Boundaries ](/en-gb/event/music-without-boundaries-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik) 

  Date   THU, AUG 17 

 Time   7:30 PM 

 - DC  [Debasis Chakroborty](/en-gb/artist/debasis-chakroborty) •
- DS  [Deepak Shah](/en-gb/artist/deepak-shah) •
- DB  [Durjay Bhaumik](/en-gb/artist/durjay-bhaumik) •
- DL  [Dr Lovely Sharma](/en-gb/artist/dr-lovely-sharma)
 
     **West Road Concert Hall**      Early Bird  

 [ View Details  ](/en-gb/event/music-without-boundaries-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik)  



   [  

 

  ](/en-gb/event/concert-for-harmony-and-peace-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik)  ###  [ Concert for Harmony &amp; Peace ](/en-gb/event/concert-for-harmony-and-peace-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik) 

  Date   SAT, AUG 19 

 Time   8:00 PM 

 - DC  [Debasis Chakroborty](/en-gb/artist/debasis-chakroborty) •
- DS  [Deepak Shah](/en-gb/artist/deepak-shah) •
- DB  [Durjay Bhaumik](/en-gb/artist/durjay-bhaumik) •
- DL  [Dr Lovely Sharma](/en-gb/artist/dr-lovely-sharma)
 
     **The Bhavan**      Early Bird  

 [ View Details  ](/en-gb/event/concert-for-harmony-and-peace-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik)  



   [  

 

  ](/en-gb/event/instrumental-journey-through-nature-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik)  ###  [ An Instrumental Journey Through the Nature ](/en-gb/event/instrumental-journey-through-nature-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik) 

  Date   WED, AUG 23 

 Time   8:00 PM 

 - DC  [Debasis Chakroborty](/en-gb/artist/debasis-chakroborty) •
- DS  [Deepak Shah](/en-gb/artist/deepak-shah) •
- DB  [Durjay Bhaumik](/en-gb/artist/durjay-bhaumik) •
- DL  [Dr Lovely Sharma](/en-gb/artist/dr-lovely-sharma)
 
     **Norden Farm Centre for the Arts**      Early Bird  

 [ View Details  ](/en-gb/event/instrumental-journey-through-nature-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik)  



   [  

 

  ](/en-gb/event/trinity-trio-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik-darlington-trust-hall)  ###  [ Trinity Trio: Debasis Chakroborty, Deepak Shah, and Durjay Bhaumik ](/en-gb/event/trinity-trio-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik-darlington-trust-hall) 

  Date   SUN, AUG 27 

 Time   7:30 PM 

 - DC  [Debasis Chakroborty](/en-gb/artist/debasis-chakroborty) •
- DS  [Deepak Shah](/en-gb/artist/deepak-shah) •
- DB  [Durjay Bhaumik](/en-gb/artist/durjay-bhaumik)
 
     **Dartington Trust Hall**      Early Bird  

 [ View Details  ](/en-gb/event/trinity-trio-debasis-chakroborty-deepak-shah-durjay-bhaumik-darlington-trust-hall)  



   [  

 

  ](/en-gb/event/reading-raga-resonance-slide-guitar-piano-tabla-solo-splendour)  ###  [ Reading Raga Resonance: Slide Guitar, Piano &amp; Tabla Solo Splendour ](/en-gb/event/reading-raga-resonance-slide-guitar-piano-tabla-solo-splendour) 

  Date   SUN, SEP 14 

 Time   5:30 PM 

 - AK  [Akram Khan](/en-gb/artist/akram-khan) •
- DC  [Debasis Chakroborty](/en-gb/artist/debasis-chakroborty) •
- DS  [Deepak Shah](/en-gb/artist/deepak-shah) •
- HK  [Hanif Khan](/en-gb/artist/hanif-khan) •
- SP  [Satwinder Pal Singh](/en-gb/artist/satwinder-pal-singh)
 
     **The Great Hall, Reading**      Early Bird  

 [ View Details  ](/en-gb/event/reading-raga-resonance-slide-guitar-piano-tabla-solo-splendour)  



   [  

 

  ](/en-gb/event/east-meet-west-pianist-raymond-yiu-deepak-shah-with-tabla-slide-guitar)  ###  [ East meet West: Pianist Raymond Yiu × Deepak Shah with Tabla &amp; Slide Guitar ](/en-gb/event/east-meet-west-pianist-raymond-yiu-deepak-shah-with-tabla-slide-guitar) 

  Date   WED, SEP 17 

 Time   7:00 PM 

 - RY  [Raymond Yiu](/en-gb/artist/raymond-yiu) •
- DS  [Deepak Shah](/en-gb/artist/deepak-shah) •
- DC  [Debasis Chakroborty](/en-gb/artist/debasis-chakroborty) •
- AK  [Akram Khan](/en-gb/artist/akram-khan)
 
     **Hoxton Hall**      Early Bird  

 [ View Details  ](/en-gb/event/east-meet-west-pianist-raymond-yiu-deepak-shah-with-tabla-slide-guitar)  



   [  

 

  ](/en-gb/event/norwich-ragas-piano-slide-guitar-unbound)  ###  [ Norwich Ragas: Piano &amp; Slide Guitar Unbound ](/en-gb/event/norwich-ragas-piano-slide-guitar-unbound) 

  Date   FRI, SEP 19 

 Time   6:30 PM 

 - DC  [Debasis Chakroborty](/en-gb/artist/debasis-chakroborty) •
- DS  [Deepak Shah](/en-gb/artist/deepak-shah) •
- AK  [Akram Khan](/en-gb/artist/akram-khan)
 
     **The Assembly House**      Early Bird  

 [ View Details  ](/en-gb/event/norwich-ragas-piano-slide-guitar-unbound)  



   [  

 

  ](/en-gb/event/discover-the-magic-of-indian-raagas-on-piano-workshop)  ###  [ Discover the Magic of Indian Raagas on Piano - Workshop ](/en-gb/event/discover-the-magic-of-indian-raagas-on-piano-workshop) 

  Date   SUN, SEP 21 

 Time   10:30 AM 

 - DS  [Deepak Shah](/en-gb/artist/deepak-shah)
 
     **Lee Seng Tee Hall**      Early Bird  

 [ View Details  ](/en-gb/event/discover-the-magic-of-indian-raagas-on-piano-workshop)  



 



 

   ##  Frequently Asked Questions 

 

 

 

   How can a beginner, a child or a pianist returning after a long break start learning Indian classical music on the piano?    You can learn Indian classical music on the [piano](/instrumental/hindustani-classical/piano) with KalaSudha online and in workshops, and beginners start at **Foundation** level. That stage covers hand position and the layout of the 88 keys. Children learn with us as well as adults, so ask us about a starting age and about an instrument size for a younger learner.

Pianists coming back after a long break can start again where they left off, because our [courses](/courses) run in levels. Your teacher reviews where you stand first.



 

 

  

   Is Hindustani music tuned like the piano?    Hindustani music is closer to the **[piano](/instrument/piano)**'s equal temperament than many assume. A quantitative study of sung performances found that Hindustani tuning mixes equal-tempered and just intervals, with substantial equal-tempered influence, while Carnatic tuning sits close to 5-limit just intonation. The same study found no strong evidence that the 22 shrutis are used as distinct pitches.



 

 

  

   How often should a piano be tuned?    The Piano Technicians Guild advises tuning a **[piano](/instrument/piano)** often enough to hold its pitch between A439 and A441. It recommends stable conditions, around 20°C and 42% relative humidity, away from vents, fires and direct sun. Regulation of the action is a separate job: it adjusts the parts to compensate for felt compression and wood movement so the touch stays even.



 

 

  

   Who invented the piano?    Bartolomeo Cristofori (1655 to 1731) invented the **[piano](/instrument/piano)** while employed at the Medici court in Florence. A Medici inventory of 1700 describes his new arpicembalo that makes soft and loud. His key invention was the escapement, which lets the hammer fall away from the string after striking so the string can vibrate. His 1720 piano in the Metropolitan Museum is the oldest surviving piano.



 

 

  

   What humidity is best for a piano?    The Piano Technicians Guild recommends keeping a **[piano](/instrument/piano)** in stable conditions of about 20°C and 42% relative humidity. Keep it away from vents, fires and direct sun. A piano's humidity history, along with the condition of its soundboard, pinblock and action, drives restoration costs, so have us inspect a used piano before purchase.



 

 

  

   When did the piano arrive in India?    London music retailers were exporting **[piano](/instrument/piano)s** to British Calcutta in the late 18th century, and the pianoforte replaced the harpsichord in Anglo-Indian homes in that period. Humid tropical conditions damaged keyboard instruments in British India. Between about 1840 and 1910, firms in India, Sri Lanka and Myanmar produced tropical pianos built to withstand heat, insects and humidity.



 

 

  

   What should I check before buying a used piano?    Have us inspect a used acoustic **[piano](/instrument/piano)** before you buy. The condition of the soundboard, pinblock and action, and the piano's humidity history, drive the cost of any restoration. The Piano Technicians Guild recommends stable conditions around 20°C and 42% relative humidity, away from vents, fires and direct sun.



 

 

  

   What should I look for when buying a piano to play Indian classical music, acoustic or digital?    When buying a piano for Indian classical music, start with tuning: the piano locks each note to equal temperament, while a raga can shade notes away from it. A digital piano needs no tuning. An acoustic piano can be retuned note by note. In 2020, the raga pianist Utsav Lal told the Indo-Asian News Service that he retunes a few notes to find Yaman's gandhar, its third degree.

On either kind, look for an action that feels even across the keyboard. Pianists suggest a meend, the glide between notes, with quick figures through the target note. KalaSudha sells digital and acoustic uprights and mid-range grands. Ask us for a quote, or for a piano made to order.



 

 

  

   Where can I buy a piano for Indian classical music, with international delivery and service where I live?    You can buy a piano for Indian classical music from KalaSudha, by quote or made to order, and we deliver worldwide. We pack every instrument for international shipping, so ask us about cases and insurance before it travels.

We service and repair any piano in any country, wherever you bought it: ask us. We also supply strings and spare parts. After the sale, help comes through the chat on any page or by email to <contact@kalasudha.com>. Ask us as well about gift vouchers and class sets for schools, or a flight case if your instrument travels with you.



 

 

  

   What can I give someone who is learning to play an Indian classical instrument?    A good gift for someone learning an Indian classical instrument suits the instrument they play and the stage they have reached, so ask their teacher if you are unsure. An instrument of their own, or a better one, also makes a gift: KalaSudha sells every instrument by quote or made to order. For something smaller, ask us for a case, or for strings and spare parts to suit their instrument.

Lessons make a gift as well. KalaSudha teaches online and in workshops, and beginners start at Foundation level: see our [courses](/courses).

Ask us about gift vouchers.



 

 

  

   How can I book a pianist who plays Indian classical music for a concert, an event or a recording?    You can book an Indian classical pianist through KalaSudha for a concert, event or recording. Tell us what you are planning through our page to [book Indian classical musicians](/book-indian-classical-musicians). To hear our artists first, try KalaSudha's [recordings](/releases) and [concert videos](/videos).



 

 

  

 

 Have more questions? Contact our support team and we'll be happy to help!

 

 

  

    Ready to start learning Piano?

Get personalized quotes and explore courses

 

 

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