The concept of a prepared piano is a fairly simple one, but the range of tonal possibilities a prepared piano can produce is nearly infinite.<\/p>\n
A prepared piano<\/b> is a piano that has had its sound altered by placing objects (called preparations<\/i>) on or between the strings.<\/p>\nJohn Cage<\/h2>\n
The invention of the “prepared piano,”\u00a0per se<\/i>, is usually traced to John Cage. Cage first prepared a piano when he was commissioned to write music for “Bacchanale,” a dance by\u00a0Syvilla Fort in 1938. For some time previously, Cage had been writing exclusively for a percussion ensemble, but the hall where Fort\u2019s dance was to be staged had no room for a percussion group. The only instrument available was a single grand piano. After some consideration, Cage said that he realized it was possible \u201cto place in the hands of a single pianist the equivalent of an entire percussion orchestra. . . . With just one musician, you can really do an unlimited number of things on the inside of the piano if you have at your disposal an exploded keyboard.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t