The old square piano or Tafelklavier can be rightfully called the gemstone of the exhibition at the Lipetsk Regional Museum of Local Lore. This is a keyboard stringed percussion instrument that originated from the cimbalom. It was modified and fitted with a keyboard mechanism. The square piano has an oblong rectangular case with rounded corners. The keyboard is located on one of the long walls, with strings of the same length stretched parallel to it.
The square piano has a brown walnut veneer and is decorated with wooden carvings featuring floral patterns. It stands on four round, conical legs. In the middle, the legs are shaped like amphoras with spoon-like sections. They end in elegant yellow wheels made of non-ferrous metal. The panel above the keyboard is inlaid with mother-of-pearl. To some extent, this modification of the piano can be considered an intermediary stage between early upright pianos and later modern pianos. The design of this instrument was finalized by the mid-18th century. Before that, it was a rather imperfect combination of a hammer action and dampers. By the third quarter of the 19th century, modifications of these keyboard instruments resulted in the construction of large, heavy square pianos that could even compete in size with grand pianos. In their design, square pianos are similar to grand pianos, as the strings are also arranged horizontally. Although they did not match the sound quality of grand pianos, they were smaller and could easily fit in cramped living rooms. Moreover, such pianos fit perfectly into the interior design and served a dual purpose: when the fallboard was closed, such a piano could be used as an elegant table on which flowers, candles, or photographs could be placed. In Russia and other countries, they were used until the second quarter of the 20th century.
In the 1880s, such instruments were replaced by more resonant pianos with designs that were closer to modern models. However, some square pianos continued to be used until the 1930s. The early designs became a thing of the past forever.
