In what ways is piano chamber music different?
A piano uses a “tempered” scale. That is, the intervals between notes in an octave are divided up slightly differently than they are for a stringed instrument, which uses “perfect” fifths. This means that string players have to make slight adjustments in the pitches of their notes to match the piano’s harmony. Cellos and violas, especially, have to tune their lower two strings slightly higher than for playing in a string quartet. Woodwind instruments generally use a tempered scale, so they don’t have this problem.. The sheer volume of sound generated by a modern grand piano can easily overpower other instruments. Therefore, pianists playing with strings or woodwinds have to learn to be moderate in their volume and must pedal sparingly. There is a popular myth that keeping the piano’s lid down cuts its volume. This is false. Playing with the piano lid down doesn’t help with achieving a good balance between instruments. It merely makes the piano sound muddy. Pianists take note — you hav
