Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2019 February 3

Welcome to the Wikipedia Entertainment Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is a transcluded archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.

February 3

Unused keys on a piano

Assuming that this photo is legit, why would the usage of the keys be so different? Are some keys just rarely used? Matt Deres (talk) 14:33, 3 February 2019 (UTC)

It looks like the (relatively) clean keys have been replaced. Not before time. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 19:13, 3 February 2019 (UTC)

Unless the player's repertoire is exactly one piece, there's virtually no chance that all the keys except those at the extreme ends of the keyboard will not be used frequently. Maybe some more than others, but nowhere like the extreme difference that this photo might seem to suggest. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 19:19, 3 February 2019 (UTC)

The brown keys have lost their ivory at some point, assuming it is old enough to be an ivory piano and not a plastic piano. So, the person would be playing directly on the soft wood. 209.149.113.5 (talk) 18:52, 4 February 2019 (UTC)

D'oh, that all makes perfect sense - thank you both. I'm so musically illiterate that I thought maybe there were notes that just seldom got used. Matt Deres (talk) 16:56, 5 February 2019 (UTC)