Friday, May 15, 2009
Gold-Plate Special
The camera sweeps the concert hall, where the piano is positioned center stage. The raised piano lid reveals a large, shining gold-colored surface. What is this mass of metal?
It's the plate of the piano, and its purpose is to allow the strings to be stretched to 18-30 tons of tension without buckling the wooden frame. A plate has to be strong to do its job, so it's made of cast iron.
The strings need to be under high tension to produce a powerful piano sound. The plate may be bulky and heavy, and no friend of piano movers, but without the plate there would be no concert!
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