By Keith Gramlich – Piano Tuning & Repair, Long Island & the NY Metro Area
📞 Got a piano at home? Let’s keep it in tune—and keep the trivia coming!
Call or text (917) 757-4207 or email Wurli1@live.com to schedule a visit.
🎹 Proudly serving Queens, Long Island, and the NY Metro Area with expert tuning and repair for over 30 years.
Most people know a piano has 88 keys, Beethoven was deaf, and Liberace wore fabulous capes. But beyond the basics, the piano world is full of surprising facts that even seasoned players might not know. Here are a few of my favorites:
🎼 1. The piano has more strings than you think.
Most people assume 88 keys = 88 strings. Nope! A typical piano has about 230 strings. Most keys strike two or three strings tuned in unison to create a fuller sound.
🎼 2. Pianos are technically string instruments and percussion instruments.
That’s right—because the strings are struck by hammers, the piano is considered both a stringed and percussive instrument. It’s basically a harp being punched repeatedly.
🎼 3. The modern piano is a heavyweight.
An average upright weighs around 500 pounds. A concert grand? Try 1,000 pounds or more. Moving one without help is a great way to ruin your back and your marriage.
🎼 4. The most expensive piano ever sold went for over $3 million.
A crystal grand built by Heintzman Pianos was sold at auction for $3.22 million. It was transparent, enormous, and possibly haunted by the ghost of Liberace.
🎼 5. Piano wire is incredibly strong.
The tension in a single piano string can exceed 150–200 pounds, and the full piano holds around 20–30 tons of combined tension. That’s a lot of pressure—literally.
🎼 6. Early pianos didn’t have 88 keys.
The first pianos had as few as five octaves. It wasn’t until the late 1800s that Steinway standardized the 88-key layout we know today.
🎼 7. Some composers wrote pieces that require two people at one piano.
It’s called piano four-hands, and it’s both delightful and awkward. Perfect for pianists who are musically gifted and emotionally comfortable sharing elbow space.
🎼 8. Ivory keys weren’t all ivory.
Even during the height of ivory use, many manufacturers only used ivory for the top surface of the white keys. The rest was typically wood or composite. Nowadays? All plastic—guilt-free and more stable.
🎼 9. Upright pianos aren’t just “small grands”—they’re totally different inside.
While they both have strings and hammers, uprights use a vertical action mechanism, which works against gravity. That’s one reason why upright regulation and tuning require a different approach than grands.
🎼 10. Tuning a piano is part science, part art.
A tuning fork or digital app can only get you so far. A truly well-tuned piano requires a skilled ear, patience, and years of experience. (Hi, I’m Keith.)
I could go on (and sometimes do during appointments), but those are a few of my favorite oddball piano facts. If you’re reading this, chances are you already appreciate the beauty and complexity of the instrument—and maybe now you appreciate it just a little bit more.
📞 Have questions? Have a piano? Let’s talk.
Text or call Keith Gramlich at (917) 757-4207 or email Wurli1@live.com to schedule your next tuning or repair.
🎹 Serving Queens, Long Island, and the NY Metro Area with respect for the instrument—and the people behind the keys.