yamaha lines up and photographs the 8,000 parts that make up concert grand piano CFX

Yamaha Design Laboratory’s photographs of ‘the art of sound’

Yamaha Design Laboratory dissects the insides of its grand concert piano CFX, lines up each of the 8,000 parts thoroughly, and photographs them in the series ‘The Art of Sound’ in hopes of informing the viewers how its keys and components harmonize when it makes its melodic sounds.

Yamaha Design Laboratory wants to highlight the importance of each part that makes up the concert grand piano CFX, that a missing component may hinder its rich sounds, and that behind the gloss of the piano from afar, there are thousands of keys inside working on transforming the player’s key touch into a surround tone.

CFX Key Action | images courtesy of Yamaha Design Laboratory

8,000 parts that make up concert grand piano CFX

The sounds coming from the instrument’s keys are now seen rather than heard the moment Yamaha Design Laboratory photographs them. They divide the components into six images to detail the 8,000 parts of the concert grand piano CFX. The photographs show the key action; the 88 keys, including the hammer structure; the frame supporting the strings; the soundboard that resonates sound into the concert hall; a scene that evokes a grand piece of architecture; and an overall picture showing all the components together.

Yahama’s grand concert piano CFX’s 88 Keys

The design laboratory starts with the Key Action Piano, or the key typically tuned at a slightly higher 442 Hz compared to the usual world standard pitch 440 Hz tuning fork to match the requirements of the orchestra and to show off the pianist’s mastery. They also lay down the concert grand piano’s 88 keys with around 70 parts, lined up from low to high, and organized intricately by changing the shape little by little.

Yamaha CFX’s cst-iron frame

Viewers are afforded a glimpse of the Yamaha CFX’s cast-iron frame, which can hold the concert grand piano’s strings far greater than a person’s weight. ‘All 243 strings together have a tension of about 20 tons, and the frame plays a major role in supporting the tension and keeping balanced,’ says Yamaha Design Laboratory.

The soundboard follows next, the protagonist of resonating the grand piano’s sound into the concert hall. In Yamaha Design Laboratory’s photographs, the heart of the piano is made up of selected timbers joined one by one so that the grain of the wood stands out.

Yamaha CFX’s soundboard

Inside out for Yamaha’s concert grand piano, CFX

The concert grand piano’s jet-black exterior finish is not to be overlooked, and Yamaha Design Laboratory’s makes sure of it as a photograph appears to showcase the piano’s solid frame, evoking a grand piece of architecture. Yamaha’s CFX and its black color are finished after many processes, such as painting, grinding, and polishing.

Yamaha CFX’s Piano Black exterior

Completing the visual journey is the ‘unibody concept’ of the concert grand piano, which, with each of the 8,000 components, helps viewers appreciate not only the sounds but also the craftsmanship, science, and design process that go into making a piano, specifically a Yamaha CFX. ‘We hope that by revealing what is normally unseen, this will spark new interest and understanding of musical instruments and equipment,’ says Yamaha Design Laboratory.

8,000 parts make up Yamaha’s grand concert piano CFX