Learning the Piano

Grand Piano
With a grand piano the strings and the frame are all placed horizontally. The strings actually will extend themselves away from the keyboard and because of this a grand piano is quite large. Ideally a grand piano should be played in a room that is large with pretty high ceilings. Grand Paino's come in different sizes ranging from the smaller boudoir grand piano at between 1.7 and 2.2m to the concert grand piano which can range between 2.2 to 3m long. There is also baby grand pianos which are typically shorter than they are wide. The rule of thumb usually is that longer grand pianos result in the strings having lower inharmonicity and better sound overall.

Upright Pianos
This type of piano which is sometimes referred to as a vertical piano are a lot smaller than the grand pianos largely due to the fact that the strings and frame are actually placed vertically extending out both directions. When the hammers move horizontally it can be more difficult to produce a sensitive piano action. At the higher priced end of upright pianos you can however compete with grand pianos in terms of responsiveness and overall tone quality.