Piano Ratings
Pianoforte is an Italian term which literally translates loud soft, is today
what we simply call as the piano. Piano was invented
in 1700 in Italy by a harpsichord maker Bartolomeo Cristofori and has been around for more than 300
years. During the 1800s, many improvements and inventions were made to the
piano. The creation of the upright piano, modern piano action, cast-iron
plate, extended the range of octaves, duplex scaling, cross-stringing and etc. Although
many changes took place, pianos made today are not very much different than
those in the past.
Piano is a complex machine and is made largely of wood with over 10,000 moving parts.
Just as every person have a unique voice, different pianos have
different sound qualities. This is largely due to 3 basic combinations
of piano building; the scale design, the type of materials and the level
of workmanship. Thus, no pianos are better than another in terms of tone
and touch except that they are different.
When choosing a piano
it is very important to pick based primarily on the tone and touch you
like. So make sure you play as many pianos prior to purchasing it. A
good purchase will end up giving you many years of enjoyment.
|
Highest Quality
Prestige Performance-Grade Pianos
These pianos have everything and are for those who wants "the
best" and can afford it. They are built to the very highest quality using the
very best materials and emphasize high attention on hand
work in the manufacturing and refinement details. Many of these piano
manufacturers have very limited production in a year.
Larry Fine, author of the “The Piano Book”,
rates these pianos as
“the highest quality performance pianos”.
There are only few
pianos that fall in this category and these include the Ant.
Petrof meant for the
most advanced and demanding professionals and a dream to play one.
Most pianos fall in
this group are made in Europe
|
Very
High Quality
Performance-Grade Pianos
These pianos are built to a standard promoting high-performance
features, best selected materials and impeccable workmanship. Pianos in
this group are excellent instruments, which perform and sound at very
high level and made of enormous hand work set into refining the tone and
touch.
The price different is substantial
as compare to the "Tier I" pianos. Yet very small different in quality thus
making this piano a great value for those who can afford for “almost
the best”.
 
Most pianos fall in this group are made
in Europe, America and
selected models from Japan
|
High Quality Consumer-Grade Pianos
These pianos are generally have premium components and better
performance than entry-level instruments. Majority
are
mass-produced in Asia, with great attention on the detail and very consistent
from start to finish.
These pianos are much suitable
for most beginner and moderate level pianists right for home and
institutional.
Also, few selected Japanese and Korean models are in this group.


Most pianos fall in this group are made in Japan, Korea
and
selected models from China and Indonesia
|
Entry Level Consumer-Grade Pianos
These pianos are built in view of more economy than performance,
no-frills pianos suitable for beginners and can vary
very much in quality and playability. They are basic and
no essential features to keep the price low and competitive. Pianos
in this group may outgrown by most beginner students in a few years.
Pianos in this category
can be viable alternative to the
recond pianos
imported from Japan.
Most pianos fall in this groups are made in
China, Indonesia and selected countries of the former Soviet
Union.
|