Pallas
Wait.. by kittens are you referring to you and Josephine?
And why would you need a pedicure for mud wrestling?
Btw thanks for lightening the mood of this discussion. Nothing like a pillow fight / mud-wresting match between my two favorite freshly pedicured kittens.
Edit: ok now that the mood has been restored we can resume piano talk.
Double edit: oh no! I thought the fight was between you and Josephine, but it was against @Sophia ! Sorry for the confusion! But let's include Josephine. She's already impeccably pedicured.

      Josephine that is cool!

      One of the music theory books was introducing triads with snowmen.
      These two can be V and I. OK that is cheesy so I will stop talking 🙂

        There's Acoustic Piano and Digital Piano. Both are instruments used to make music. Buy whichever one you like, or can afford, or have space for, and enjoy it. I've owned a few of each type, pros and cons, but presently own a digital piano. It does what I want it to. Does anyone who owns one, or the other, or both, really care what anyone else thinks? When I sit down to play, I don't even think about what it is. I think about what I want to play.

        How 'bout we all call this, so called, debate, (and a useless one at that), done.

        Rubens But let's include Josephine

        Oh I'm totally willing to give up my mud wrestler position to Josephine. I'm generous like that!

            Sophia

            That's so sweet of you! 🙂
            I have never tried mud wrestling before, so I think I should definitely be able to do that.

              Pedicures, kittens, pillow fights, mud wrestling, and now we're adding peepee to the mix. You ladies are getting me dizzy. Don't stop.

              Ok, now we totally need to rename this forum... "Welcome to iano Tell. Notice there is no P in it. Let's keep it that way!"

              I'm going to start by saying it's unfortunate that we, as a society, seem incapable of having a civil debate about anything without it devolving into an argument, replete with name-calling and insults. Internet forums seem to have made things worse.

              The OP's original question "A question that one might ask or eventually ask is - is a digital piano a piano?"
              COULD have the potential for an interesting debate, in that I believe the underlying premise is attempting to define "What is a piano?".

              Without attempting to be too exhaustive, I define a piano as what I believe "most" people visualize when they think of a piano: A musical instrument that produces sound by hammers striking metal strings of different lengths, those strings being strung on a harp, with the hammers being actuated by a set of "keys". The strings are capable of being dampened or un-dampened to control sustain. It can be played softly, loudly, and anywhere in-between. The shape of the piano doesn't matter; grand, upright, box, spinet, etc.

              Based on "my" definition of what a piano is, I'm going to say "No, a digital piano is not a piano, regardless of the fact that "piano" is in the name".

              I own two digital pianos, along with some VST's, that I enjoy immensely. I would love to own another acoustic piano (notice I'm intentionally leaving out the word "real" here). However, for me an acoustic piano comes with too many tradeoffs in my situation (living arrangements, amount of maintenance required, cost of acquisition, etc.).

              • keff replied to this.

                BKN1964 A musical instrument that produces sound by hammers striking metal strings...

                This is the current definition of piano in an English dictionary. The dictionaries I have looked at do not mention digital pianos. English is always evolving and I am sure that in the not too distant future digital piano will appear under the piano definition. When I looked for organ in one of the dictionaries it did include electronic organ so I concluded this set the precedent.

                  It depends on the dictionary 🙂 Cambridge has the following definition:

                  I'd say that kinda covers all 😃

                  Oh and the American dictionary:

                  Works for me!

                    I don't mind how the instrument is called that you are playing, I only hope that you do get to play it often. And also that it gives you some joy. I have an acoustic grand and also a synth key digital piano. I like both and they get along splendidly. The one is very portable and the other one is clearly not. One is very loud, the other can bet turned very silently. I you prefer only to play on an acoustic and like to excel on that, then that is great. If you play on a 2-octave Casio and love it, that is also great. The other day I heard someone play on a short Casio and it was impressive. If a digital piano is what you love, that is also wonderful. However, if you prefer to try to replicate a acoustic piano by evolving the digital piano in the direction of hybrids, that's also cool. The digital piano can strive to match the acoustic piano, but it does not have to, it could also simply be a stand-alone musical instrument. Either way works. And then there people that intentionally mix piano sounds with strings and other instruments. That's me. That works as well. And some like to even add a little sustain electronically without having a foot pedal. That can work great in a band. And there are already plenty of names for all of these. Acoustic piano, digital piano, keyboard, hybrid, Midi-board with VST, etc.

                    So to answer your original question ... yeah, a digital piano is also a piano, i.e., a digital one 😃 Sometimes I refer to it simply as keyboard or slab. A hybrid piano is also a piano, i.e., a hybrid one. But are digital pianos, hybrid pianos, etc. the same as an acoustic piano ... probably not, because there is no need to tune the digital piano, the way the sound is generated is just different and that is o.k. as well.

                    So, whatever instrument it is that you like, play it and hopefully it makes your day brighter. Better yet, play and sing together with someone.

                    I'll never own a grand piano so I'm thankful for all of the advances we've seen in actions and VST's. Love to check out a hybrid but probably better off not knowing what I'm missing. 🙂

                    Sophia Oh and the American dictionary:

                    I'm surprised that a dictionary has "I play piano" instead of "I play THE piano". 🤣

                        Of all the things I have at my disposal to spend emotional energy on today, this ain't one of 'em that I'm gonna spend much on. LOL!!

                        Glad to know that some are so passionate about it. I just wanna hear a nice sound when I press down a piano key shaped object. Even that is subjective enough. 🙂

                        johnstaf I'm surprised that a dictionary has "I play piano" instead of "I play THE piano". 🤣

                        They want to give it an air of sophistication. You know, more like "I play football", "I play hockey" etc. And less like "I play the fool". Or are we getting the silly again? 😂🤣😅

                          SouthPark is a digital piano a piano? Preview answer is yes. Absolutely. It is a piano. A real piano.

                          I think this thread has pretty much exhausted everything there is to say on the subject of how one defines "piano", and the significance (or insignificance) of how a digital keyboard is classified. I'm pretty much of the mind that it doesn't matter for most intents and purposes. Ultimately, instruments are about making music. If you own a digital piano at home and can use it to play piano music, then we have common musical ground. Who cares if it's a "real" piano or not? If you enjoy it and can make music, then do so.

                          With that said, I think it's a bit nonsensical to claim that a digital keyboard is a "real piano". Not even Pianoteq claims this. In fact, their website describes it as a "virtual instrument":

                          Pianoteq is an award-winning virtual instrument for PC, Mac, Linux and iOS. It can be used both in standalone mode and as an instrument plug-in in VST, AAX, and AudioUnits hosts. What makes Pianoteq superior to other virtual instruments is that the instruments are physically modelled and thus can simulate the playability and complex behaviour of real acoustic instruments.

                          If you visit their artist testimony page, you'll find numerous examples of artists using the word "realistic" to describe Pianoteq. If it was a real piano, how can it be "realistic"?

                          Because of course it's not a real piano. It's simulating a real acoustic piano, often a very specific type of piano (e.g. Bosendorfer 280VC, Steinway D, etc). The analogy of planes and cars, originally being fully mechanical and then becoming more advanced, does not apply. A Tesla is not trying to simulate a Model T. It's aspiring to be its own vehicle.

                          A digital piano simulating the sound of a Steinway D is, of course, not a "real" Steinway D. Attempting to argue this is ridiculous, and it doesn't even matter. If the instrument in front you - be it a digital or acoustic - helps you make music, then it is serving its purpose. One need not be offended by whether the instrument is "real" or "virtual".

                              Frankly this reminds me of Matt Walsh's videos where he keeps asking "what is a woman?", as part of the inevitable trans debate. Does a digital piano have to identify as an acoustic piano to be considered a piano? Arghhh my head!!