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The Forum: The piano: Hitting the right keys

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Piano keys. From Getty Creative Images

02/06/2018 GMT

The piano: Hitting the right keys

BBC World Service - The Forum, The piano: Hitting the right keys

Bridget Kendall and guests lift the lid on 300 years of the piano

Bridget Kendall is joined by scholars Dr Elena Vorotko and Professor Kenneth Hamilton, and the writer Stuart Isacoff to discuss the 300 year-old history of the piano.

What’s the secret to the 300 year-old success of the piano, an instrument that was hardly a huge hit when it was invented around the turn of the 18th century?

Perhaps it’s the ability of the instrument to convey a vast range of styles from singing melodies to percussive rhythms, and from classical music to jazz, rock and pop.  With the help of musical examples, Bridget Kendall and guests will explore how the piano has inspired music from composers on every continent.

Joining Bridget will be the historic keyboard specialist Dr Elena Vorotko from the Royal Academy of Music in London, pianist and author Professor Kenneth Hamilton from the University of Cardiff, and the writer Stuart Isacoff in New York.

Photo: Piano keys (Getty Images)

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