when was the piano invented

The piano was invented around the year 1700 by Italian instrument maker Bartolomeo Cristofori in Florence, Italy.

Quick Scoop: When was the piano invented?

• Most historians agree the first true piano appeared around 1700.

• Its inventor was Bartolomeo Cristofori (1655–1731), a harpsichord maker working for the Medici family in Italy.

• Early documents from the Medici court show that a “pianoforte” built by Cristofori existed by 1700.

• A few of Cristofori’s original pianos from the 1720s still survive in museums today.

So if you’re answering the classic question “when was the piano invented?” the best short answer is:

It was invented around 1700 , by Bartolomeo Cristofori in Italy.

Tiny timeline snapshot

• Before 1700: Harpsichords and clavichords dominated, but they couldn’t easily play loud and soft on the same key the way a piano can.

• Around 1700: Cristofori builds the first pianoforte using hammers to strike strings instead of plucking them.

• 1709–1720s: He refines the mechanism (like early escapement) and several of his instruments survive from this period.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.