The piano, created by Bartolomeo Christofori in 1709, has impacted our society by becoming a popular instrument and a popular means for musicians to create musical masterpieces . Also called the pianoforte, the piano is one of the most beautiful-sounding instruments, whose sound can range from the lowest sound of a gust of wind to the high-pitched sound of a bird. It has evolved over time and become an amazing instrument. The piano has been very well accepted throughout history and has generated many changes in the music industry. The piano has also been widely used in society and has seen many applications. Without him, many classical masterpieces as well as modern songs would not have been possible. Many instruments led to the invention of the piano. The first was the zither. Located in Africa and Southeast Asia, the zither was a stringed instrument discovered around 3,000 BC during the Bronze Age. There were many types of zithers, including the floor zither, bar zither, and board zither. All the zithers were plucked. After the zither, came the monochord. It was a scientific instrument in the 6th century BC. It was used by the Greek philosopher Pythagoras, who used it to try to prove that all laws of music are based on ratios. Originally there was only one channel, but more were added over time. When many strings were added, the monochord became the polychord. These two instruments were also plucked (Crombie 4-5). The first instrument with strings intended for striking was the dulcimer. It was trapezoidal in shape and played with two padded hammers. It is still played today in folk music. The hurdy-gurdy, or organistrum, was the first stringed instrument with a keyboard. It was created in the 10th century...... middle of paper ......ks CitedBego, Mark. Billy Joel: The Biography. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press, 2007. Crombie, David. Piano. San Francisco: Miller Freeman Books, 1995. Gaines, James R. The Life of the Piano: A Consideration, Celebration, History, and Genealogy of Pianos and Their Friends. New York: Holt, Rineheart and Winston, 1981. Grover, David S. The Piano: Its History from Zither to Grand Piano. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1978. Healy, Nick. The piano. Mankato: Creative Education, 2006.McCombie, Ian. The piano manual. New York: Charle's Scribner's Sons, 1980. On a roll with a Steinway reproduction piano. October 28, 2008. Oringer, Judith. Passion for the piano. Los Angeles: Jeremy P. Tarcher, Inc., 1983. Rosenthal, Elizabeth J. His Song: The Musical Journey of Elton John. New York: Wilson-Guptill Publications, 2001.