Toy piano

The toy piano, also called toy piano and toy piano, a musical instrument ( originally intended as children's toys), in which steel rods on a (often simplified ) keyboard with small blocks of wood (sometimes also made ​​of plastic) struck. An attenuation of sounds there is not mostly.

Kid pianos have the shape of pianos or wings. The range is depending on the model a few notes and four octaves. The sounds of the instruments resp. the keyboard does not always correspond with the actual pitches ( then eg use c a child piano a f alluded ). Many instruments are diatonic. Depending on the manufacturer, there are large differences in the sound, the mechanics, the appearance and quality of workmanship. Well-known manufacturers are Schoenhut (since 1872) and Jaymar (now bought by Schoenhut ). Both companies are located in the United States. In Germany Kid pianos are manufactured by Goldon in France by Michel sun.

For a long time remained the toy piano by composers unnoticed. 1948 John Cage wrote his Suite for Toy piano. Since the mid- 1970s, the pianist Bernd Wiese man puts the toy piano regularly in concerts. With his first children's piano CD was released in 1993.

Compositions for children piano, there are, among others, John Cage, Carlos Cruz de Castro, Ratko Delorko, Oscar van Dillen, Michael Denhoff, Karlheinz Essl, Shigeru Kan -no, Harold Gramatges, Andreas Kunstein and Bernd Wiese man. In ensemble compositions are, for example, George Crumb, Moritz Eggert, David Graham and Aaron Jay Kernis used the toy piano.

Specializing in children's piano pianist include Bernd Wiese man, Margaret Leng Tan, Isabel Ettenauer, Phyllis Chen and Wendy Mae Chambers.

Schroeder from the Peanuts comic strip is a passionate children's piano player. His instrument is diatonic, resulting in a strip to the question of how he could perfectly play Beethoven because if the black keys are just painted.

2005, for Frosted Malsky and David Claman The Extensible Toy Piano Project, an international composition competition to which they produced children piano samples in excellent quality and presented on a web site for free download.

Kid pianos often dive on in a prominent place at Von Magnet and Bernd Friedmann. Mike Langlie is an American composer who has released many albums under the name Twink who work almost exclusively with children's piano and other toy instruments.

Compositions for children piano

1948

  • John Cage (1912-1992): Suite for Toy Piano

1980

  • Bernd Wiese (b. 1938): Seven Miniatures for Toy Piano
  • Carlos Cruz de Castro ( b. 1941 ): Valse
  • Francisco Estévez ( born 1946 ): Tres Luisiadas

1983

  • Wendy Mae Chambers ( born 1953 ): Suite for Toy Piano

1987

  • Bernd Wiese (b. 1938): Petite Suite

1988

  • Joachim Herbold ( * 1951 ): Pieces for Children Piano

1992

  • Louis Andriessen ( b. 1939 ): The Memory of Roses for toy piano and grand piano
  • Andreas Kunstein (1967 ): 10 epigrams

1993

  • Ratko Delorko (* 1959 ): Three games for kids piano
  • Frank Scholzen (* 1968 ): Three fragments with Hölderlin

1994

  • Bernd Wiese (b. 1938): Bauhaus Suite

2001

  • Christian Banasik (* 1963): trimer for toy piano and tape
  • Karl -Heinz Zarius (* 1941): Nocturne
  • Rob Smith ( born 1968 ): Schroeder 's Revenge for toy piano

2002

  • Yasuko Yamaguchi (born 1969 ): Sugar Rain
  • Heinz -Dieter Willke (* 1956): Piece for Toy Piano

2003

  • Michael Denhoff (* 1955): PA -CA -TO
  • Oscar van Dillen ( * 1958 ): mm3
  • Henry Brant (1913-2008): Lebasi & Eirelav for toy piano and mandolin backstage

2004

  • Stephen Montague ( born 1943 ): Almost a Lullaby for toy piano
  • Kai- Yves Linden (* 1960): Three blackberries

2005

  • Karlheinz Essl ( born 1960 ): Kalimba for Toy Piano and tape
  • Karlheinz Essl ( born 1960 ): Weber game works for toy piano
  • Tom Johnson ( b. 1936 ): Small Chorales for small piano

2008

  • Karlheinz Essl ( born 1960 ): Sequitur V for toy piano and live electronics
  • Karlheinz Essl ( born 1960 ): Listen Thing for toy piano
  • Andreas Kunstein: Requiem for a guinea pig for a pianist with 2 toy pianos

2010

  • Karlheinz Essl ( born 1960 ): whatever Shall be for toy piano, Dreidel, music box and live electronics
  • Martin Schütz (* 1954 ): 2 Pieces for Toypianos to palpate of Anna Huber

2012

  • Karlheinz Essl ( born 1960 ): underwood for two electrically amplified and partly groomed toy pianos and ensemble (flute, clarinet, accordion, trumpet, trombone, violin, viola, cello and double bass)
  • Karlheinz Essl ( born 1960 ): miles to go for 4 treated and amplified toy pianos

2014

  • Shigeru Kan -no (* 1959): The four Elements for Toy Piano

Date not known

  • Oskar Gottlieb Blarr (* 1934): Ringing for the Tsarevich
Musical tone Diatonic scale Karlheinz Essl, Jr. Tom Johnson (composer)
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