Fake pianos (a.k.a. Keyboards)
by Angela Favazza
December 30, 2023
When I began teaching piano many years ago, the instrument students used was simply called a “piano”. But with the advancement of modern technology in music, I must now qualify that term as an “acoustic” piano. It is vitally important that parents and students who wish to study the piano understand that a keyboard is NOT a piano. The simple definition of a keyboard is an instrument which runs on electricity or battery. Advertisers often use clever nomenclature such as “digital” piano, etc. to woo prospective buyers and cause them to erroneously think it’s a piano. But understand, if you must plug it into the wall or add a battery, it is not a “real”, “acoustic” piano. And to clarify further, the term keyboard itself does not imply a standardization of features: the number of keys, whether the keys are weighted, the length and width of the keys, the number of pedals if any, the height from the floor (i.e. does it sit on a stand or do you place it on a table), etc. An acoustic piano comes with standardized features no matter the brand. In other words, you don’t choose the number of keys on an acoustic piano – they all have 88. You don’t choose weighted or non-weighted keys – all pianos are built with the same type of “action” – a hammer hits the string to produce the sound. You don’t choose how many pedals – they all have three. Keyboards are at best only a simulation of an acoustic piano. The purpose of this article is to explain why a keyboard is utterly inadequate for the serious, long term study of the piano.
I began playing piano at age nine and have had vast experience with both pianos and keyboards throughout a lifetime in music. I gave 10 solo recitals during my collegiate studies, and used pianos in university practice rooms to prepare for each of those. I have seen first-hand the wear and tear pianos get in the university music departments and know what holds up and what does not. I have studied repertoire from Bach to 20th century and know the intricacies of piano response needed for various types repertoire, sound, tone color, and technique. I have worked throughout Dallas-Fort Worth as an accompanist for band, choir, and orchestra at the precollege and collegiate levels and have given professional concerts and performances in the US and abroad. In short, I have seen and experienced A LOT with regard to pianos and keyboards. And it is from this accumulated knowledge that I will offer you my well informed perspective.
First, let me discuss some undeniable benefits of keyboards. When deciding on a musical instrument, parents must not only think about what their child might enjoy learning and have aptitude for, but also the cost. Keyboards are simply cheaper than pianos. According to 2023 prices and depending on the brand, a new upright can cost around $5,000-$12,000. Used pianos can be less. But as with used cars, you should seek expert advice and have a piano technician certify the instrument. A decent, new keyboard can be purchased for under $1,000. So the start up price for one semester of piano lessons – instrument plus tuition costs – can easily be $1,500 or more if you purchase a keyboard, and several thousand dollars if you purchase a piano. Parents are also faced with not knowing if their child will have enduring interest. Most parents, understandably, don’t want to risk $1,500+ on a child’s whim. So, cost is the primary reason many parents opt for a keyboard over a piano when their child begins lessons.
Second, much theory and basic musical knowledge can be learned using a keyboard. Every beginning piano student must learn the names of the white keys, how to read notes on the staff, rhythm values, etc. These rudimentary concepts can definitely be learned by using a keyboard. And depending on what age the child starts lessons and their pace of learning, a keyboard can be useful for a significant period of time. For example, a beginning 5 year old might take one year to learn the basics of notation and play simple middle C or C position pieces. So, a keyboard can provide some use for these early steps.
Third, keyboards maintain pitch and do not need to be tuned. Pianos are made of wood which responds to temperature and humidity. This affects the tuning of each pitch and why a certified piano technician must service the piano once or twice a year to maintain the pitch at A440. Because pianos can go “out of tune” and keyboards do not, many choir programs nowadays have opted to use keyboards in their classrooms. Learning to hear and tune voices to a center of pitch is vital for choir students. The ear and vocal muscles actually memorize where pitches “lay” in the voice. So if students learn a piece with an out of tune instrument in their classroom, and then go to a performance and the piano is in tune, their ears can get thrown off. And if the discrepancy is significant enough, the choir could fall apart during a performance. As an accompanist for choirs, I have witnessed this happen and understand why choir programs often purchase keyboards – because the pitch stays in tune.
And finally, keyboards are more portable and can be easily moved from room to room and house to house. Pianos however need specially trained movers which can cost quite a bit if families move into a new house, or to a new state. So if parents know they will move soon, they might initially opt for a keyboard instead of a piano to start lessons.
Keyboards offer a cheaper, portable option to cover rudimentary areas of music theory and pitch training in beginning piano lessons. But the crucial disadvantage that a keyboard – no matter how elaborate or expensive – can NEVER overcome, lies in the areas of sound production and healthy physical and technical development. The type of sound created and how that is achieved physically are why an acoustic piano is the only appropriate solution for long term piano study.
An acoustic piano produces the sound by a “hammer” striking the string. The key works as a lever or see-saw, responding perfectly to the touch of the performer. Shadings of volume and tone color are all within the pianist’s control. Keyboards, while often touted as having “weighted keys” do not operate as a lever, and have little to no sensitivity to the performer’s touch. As well, an acoustic piano is built with wood keys and a wood key bed which offer “spring” in the action. There is “cushion” at the bottom of the key. In this regard, keyboards are actually physically harmful because the key and key bed are made of plastic. With a keyboard, the delicate muscles in the hand, finger, and forearm, are repeatedly striking a hard, inflexible piece of plastic. The muscles can actually be damaged, particularly if playing pieces that require large chords, octave paying, forte sounds, etc. This is a similar concept as to why dancers and gymnasts must use special flooring – many times made of springy wood – to preserve their muscles and joints.
Because the height and position of keyboards vary, it’s practically impossible to teach students to use body weight into the keys to produce the sound. Keyboards are lighter than acoustic pianos, so even if the keyboard “looks” like an upright piano, you cannot use the full weight of your body into the keys. And if it is a low quality keyboard that sits on a criss-cross stand or must be placed on a table, then there is no way a pianist can use body weight. The keyboard will move out of position or even fall over. As well, with keyboards there is often less leg room and it may not come with a bench at a standard height. So again, students cannot learn how to position their bodies optimally to play the piano. In short, if a student practices on a keyboard, their hand/finger/arm muscles, etc. are being trained improperly. This results in a lack of tonal and physical control when playing an acoustic piano.
In addition to using their hands, pianists must also learn to use their feet to work the pedals. Again, there is no standardization of pedal design for keyboards. Some keyboards come with only one flat pedal as an attachment that can slide around, whereas some come with three pedals already attached. Depressing a keyboard pedal, much like depressing the keys, merely activates an electronic sensor which then simulates the desired effect. Acoustic pianos always come with 3 pedals, each having different mechanisms, functions, and effects. On a piano, the damper (right) pedal lifts all the dampers off the strings in order to sustain the sound. The una chorda (left pedal) actually shifts the piano keys slightly to the right so that the hammers strike fewer strings. Each pitch on a piano has three strings, so striking fewer strings creates a softer sound and different timbre. The sostenuto (middle) pedal, mainly used for special effects, allows the pianist to pre-select which pitches will sustain by only lifting those particular dampers. The pedal mechanism on an acoustic piano also allows the pianist to vary the depth of descent, giving the performer greater control of sound production and tone color. And the vast difference in how a keyboard pedal and acoustic piano pedal feels under the foot, ensures a student cannot learn proper hand-foot coordination and sound control with the inferior pedal design found on keyboards.
As a pianist develops physical control over the sound, their ears are simultaneously developing sensitivity to the quality of sound produced. Subtle shadings and nuances to sound are what distinguish artistic interpretations from the crude. Our inner ears dictate to the fingers what type of sound is desired. So, if an instrument lacks the ability to respond, our bodies do not learn how to create the variety of tone colors available. And our ears become dull to the possibilities of sound available on a piano. There are stark differences in the acoustic sound produced by a piano and the electronic sound of a keyboard. On a piano, the vibrations of the string on a pitch not only create that note, but also produce “overtones”. The overtone series is comprised of additional strings that vibrate softly at defined intervals, in response to a specific pitch played on the piano. This greatly enriches the tone quality of the note played and occurs most gloriously on a piano because all the 88 strings are laid bare. (As opposed to a violin which has only 4 strings.) Because a keyboard produces sound electronically, no strings vibrate acoustically. As a result, the keyboard sound is devoid of overtones and much more sterile and lifeless, no matter how great the technology.
From a teaching perspective, keyboards, depending on their individual specifications, will greatly limit the repertoire a student can learn. For example, if the keyboard only has 60 keys, then a piece that requires all 88 keys cannot be assigned. And even if the piece only uses 60 keys, students are always disoriented as to where to put their hands when they play an acoustic piano. That confusion is compounded if the piece requires several different hand positions. In addition, if the keyboard has only one pedal, then pieces which use the una corda or sostenuto cannot be assigned either. And if the keyboard pedal design is flat and square, students can’t learn to vary the depth of descent in order to achieve variations in sound. Impressionistic repertoire, which relies on highly refined pedal techniques, would be extremely difficult to master in this scenario. And pieces requiring fast virtuoso playing or extensive repeated notes would be nearly impossible to control even if the keyboard has weighted keys. As a dedicated pedagogue, I want to be able to assign pieces that are best for a student’s musical progress at any point in their development. But a keyboard significantly limits my ability to assign the best repertoire and teach it effectively. Concepts, techniques, and sounds that the teacher illustrates in lessons cannot be replicated at home due to an inferior instrument. The unfortunate result is that students will experience constant frustration due to the inability to reproduce the sounds and techniques required by various repertoire. Prolonged use of a keyboard severely hinders a student’s musical progress and substantially limits their potential.
The disadvantages students have when using a keyboard becomes even more apparent when students perform in piano recitals, festivals, and competitions. Professional piano teacher organizations always use pianos, never keyboards, for student events. So as a young student develops, their physical technique and aural sensitivity will suffer greatly by continued practice on a keyboard. As they become eligible for contests and festivals, they will be at a distinct disadvantage because they will not be training on a comparable instrument. They will not have acquired the technical prowess to bring out the best sounds on a piano. Consequently, their scores and ranking at performance events will be negatively affected. This creates a downward spiral of failure and frustration that decreases a student’s motivation to practice and perform.
Lastly, keyboards are much less durable than an acoustic piano and often break. Parents are then faced with added costs of repairing or replacing the keyboard if their child studies piano long term.
So while a keyboard may initially seem like the cheaper option to begin lessons, it really is only a short term solution and will ultimately need to be replaced. When parents ask for my advice about purchasing a keyboard to start piano lessons, it always feels like a Faustian bargain: on one hand I understand their hesitancy to spend a lot of money up front on an instrument; on the other, I know the extremely limited value of keyboards for serious piano study. Herein lies my dilemma – I want to be understanding of parents’ budgets but without sacrificing proper pedagogical standards and goals. Sure, Van Gogh can create a masterpiece using a paint by number kit. But how much more glorious the result would be if he had the proper tools. While I can certainly teach music theory, simple pieces and basic aural skills on a keyboard, it isn’t possible to teach proper physical technique and sensitivity to sound. Students who practice on an acoustic piano will always have a greater advantage and achieve an infinitely better result than those who use a keyboard.