<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" = http-equiv=Content-Type> <META content="MSHTML 5.00.2614.3500" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV> </DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: = 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px"> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV> <DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: = black"><B>From:</B> <A href="mailto:pianobuilders@olynet.com" title=pianobuilders@olynet.com>Delwin D Fandrich</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A = href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org" title=pianotech@ptg.org>pianotech@ptg.org</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, June 20, 2001 = 10:00 AM</DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> pianoforte</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#800080><FONT face="Goudy Old Style">It is my = understanding that Cristofori originally called his instrument a <SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Goudy Old Style'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; = mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; = mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; = mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><EM>gravicembalo col piano e forte</EM>, or, </SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Goudy Old Style'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; = mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; = mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; = mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Goudy Old Style'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; = mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; = mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; = mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><EM>a large harpsichord with soft and loud</EM>. From this we derived, = in English, <EM>pianoforte</EM> and, ultimately, <EM>piano</EM>. </SPAN></SPAN></FONT></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#800080 face="Goudy Old Style"><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Goudy Old Style'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; = mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; = mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; = mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Goudy Old Style'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; = mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; = mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; = mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: = AR-SA"></SPAN></SPAN></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#800080><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Goudy Old Style'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; = mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; = mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; = mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Goudy Old Style'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; = mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; = mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; = mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">My question is--why (and when) did the name get shortened to = <EM>piano</EM>? Why not <EM>forte</EM>? And why are instruments built after the designs of = the 18th and early 19th century builders called <EM>fortepianos</EM> and = not <EM>pianofortes</EM>?</SPAN></SPAN></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#800080 face="Goudy Old Style"><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Goudy Old Style'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; = mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; = mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; = mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Goudy Old Style'; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; = mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; = mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; = mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: = AR-SA"></SPAN></SPAN></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#800080 face="Goudy Old = Style">Regards,</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#800080 face="Goudy Old = Style"></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#800080 face="Goudy Old Style">Del</FONT></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#800080 face="Goudy Old Style">I doubt there's = anything scientific about it -- probably something that "just happened" over = time with people's preferred usage.  Why do we say 'auto' instead of = 'mobile' ?  Or just 'cello' for 'violoncello' ?  It is curious that = the modern piano came to be called just 'piano', in contrast to the fortepiano, which, with its two-string unisons (if I'm not mistaken), is a "softer" instrument, but whose name has not been = shortened to just 'piano' or just 'forte'.  --Dave Nereson, RPT </FONT> </DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>