A complete glossary of terms and expressions, in use over the centuries in connection with the manufacture of the harpsichord as well as the piano, would require an entire volume in itself; therefore, as many of these terms are obsolete, the glossary which follows contains only those whose meanings assume importance in connection with the articles contained in this work.
Action: term used for the moving parts of a piano which, working together, bring about the vibration of the strings.
Agraffe: a device for preventing the vibration of that section of a piano string which lies between the pin and the bridge.
Aliquot scale: a set of sympathetic strings introduced into a piano to reinforce the second partial tone of certain notes.
Amplitude: the full breadth of vibration range of a piano string.
Arch: used to bridge the cavity between the wrest-plank and the belly-bar of a grand piano.
Archicembalo: the name of a large harpsichord in the playing of which the per- former assumed a standing position.
Balance: the pivoting of a piano key to permit its depression by the finger.
Bars: devices placed between the wrest-plank and the string-plate. They are made of iron and are adjusted to the tension of the strings.
Bassoon pedal: a Viennese piano stop. It consisted of a strip of parchment which could be brought into contact with the strings at the will of the player to produce a twanging sound.
Beam: the rail that supports the hammer-butts in a piano.
Bearing: a term for the pressure of the strings on a bridge.
Bearings: the term for the fourths and fifths from which a piano tuner proceeds with his work.
Beats: the pulsations which result when two strings not exactly in tune with each other are sounded together.
Belly: the term for the sound board of a piano.
Belly-bars: pieces of wood glued to the underside of the belly to increase its strength, and to reinforce the vibrations communicated through the bridge.
Bent side: the side of a grand piano where there is a sharp decrease in the width of the case about the center.
Bracings: supports of wood or metal to sustain the tension of the strings.
Breaking weight: the amount of tension required to break a piece of piano wire.
Bridge: (1) the sound conductor from the string to the belly; (2) the bearing for a piano string nearest the pin.
Buff: a stop in the harpsichord consisting of a slide fitted with pads of buff leather for muting the strings at the will of the player.
Cabinet piano: an obsolete upright piano.
Capo d'astro bar: a corruption of Capo tasto, the nearer bearing of the vibrating length of a piano string.
Capo tasto: (1) the nut of the lute and kindred instruments; (2) a movable
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Publication Information: Book Title: The Piano: Its History, Makers, Players and Music. Contributors: Albert E. Wier - author. Publisher: Longmans, Green. Place of Publication: London. Publication Year: 1940. Page Number: 81.
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