Figure 1: This keyboard has 24 keys. The music notes are MP3 files
sourced from the
Internet Archive.
Keys
The number of keys on a keyboard or piano varies between models.
A standard piano has 88 keys, 52 white and 36 black.
A standard keyboard has 61 keys, 36 white and 25 black.
Regardless of the total number, boards are configured in a pattern of
repeating seven white keys and five black keys.
Each iteration encompasses a full octave, and contains one key for
each of the notes in the Western musical scale
Misc
The
world's largest piano
is 15ft tall, it's so big that you need to climb a flight of stairs
to play it.
LEGO released a 3,622-piece
model
of a grand piano that plays beautiful
music.
The piano was originally called the pianoforte, referring to the
instruments ability to play both loud (forte) and soft (piano)
notes.
Pianos keys were once made with ivory. Hence the phrase
"tickle the ivories." Fortunately,
that fell out of fashion (because ivory is porous and easily
dirties, not because PETA stepped in).