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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z 0-9

Piano
At the start of the 18th century, there were two similar instruments which were played using a standard keyboard, the harpsichord and the clavichord. Both had weaknesses: the volume of these instruments was not dynamic nor particularly loud. In 1709, Bartolomeo Cristofori produced what he called a "gravicembalo col piano e forte," which translates roughly to "harpsichord with soft and hard." But it wasn't until the introduction of iron in piano construction that the modern piano began to take shape. In 1856, Steinway & Sons of New York made one of the biggest advances in the history of piano building, which included the manufacturing of the first "grand piano" with a one-piece iron frame. At about the same time, the keyboard had grown from a modest four octaves to today's standard seven and a quarter octaves or 88 keys. Today, the piano exists in several configurations, the most universally revered being the nine-foot grand piano, though "baby" grands and upright pianos make up a significant percentage of piano purchases because of their relatively small size. Electric pianos, such as those manufactured by Wurlitzer and Rhodes, gradually earned their own place in the evolutionary process by virtue of their mobility and characteristic sound, both of which earned them a place in modern jazz and rock combos. By the beginning of the 20th century, the modern grand piano was perfected and since then, has remained virtually unchanged.

P-94

p-n Junction

P-Pop

P90

PA

PACE

Pad

PAF

Page

PAIA

PAL

Palm Muting

Palo Escrito

Pan (Panning)

Pancake

Pang Cymbal

Panic Button

Panther

Parabolic Reflector

Paradiddle

Paragraphic Equalizer

Parallel

Parallel/Parallel Port

Parallel Compression

Parameter

Parametric Equalizer

Parasitic Oscillation

Parity

Parlor Guitar

Partial

Partition

Pascal

Pass

Passband

Passive

Passive Monitor

Passive Pickup

Passive Radiator

Password

Paste

PA System

PA System

Patch

Patch Bay

Patch Change

Patch Cord

Patch List

Patchlist

Patch Mapping

Patent Number Pickup

Path

Paua

PC3200

PC4200

PCB

PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect)

PCI-X

PCI Express (PCIe)

Pulse Code Modulation (PCM)

PCMCIA

PCM Deck

PD Drive

PDF

Peak

Peak Hold

Peak Power Handling

Pearloid

Pedal

Pedalboard

Pedal Point

Pedal Stacking

Pedal Steel

Peer-to-Peer

Peghead

Pencil Mic

Penny Whistle

Pentachord

Pentatonic Scales

Pentium

Pentode

Perceptual Coding

Percussion Switch

Perfect Fifth

Perfect Pitch

Period

Peripheral

Perkins EQ

Permeability

Perpetual Looper

petaFLOPS

PeterGabrielizing

Pre-Fade Listen (PFL)

Phantom Channel

Phantom Image

Phantom Power

Phase

Phase Cancellation

 Phase Invert

Phase Lock

Phase Locked Loop

Phase Modulation

Phase Quadrature

Phase Shifter

Philharmonic

Phon

Phon

Phone Plug

Phones

Phono Plug

Phono preamp

Phosphor Bronze

Photona

Phrase

Phrase Sampler

Phrasing

Physical Modeling Synthesis

Pianissimo

Piano

Piccolo Snare

Pick

Pick Guard

Pickup

Picofarad

Piezo

Piggyback Amp

Pigtail

Pinch

Pinch Roller

Pink Noise

Pinna Effect

Pin Out

Pipe Organ

Pitch

Pitch-to-voltage Converter

Pitch Bend

Pitch Correction

Pitch Shifter

Pixel

Pizzicato

Plainsong

Plain String

Planar Loudspeaker

Plate

Plate Reverb

Platter

Playability

Playhead

Play List

Plectrum

Plenum

Plesiochronous

Plesiochronous

Plexi

Abbreviation for Phase Locked Loop.

Plosive

Plug

Plug-in

Plug and Play

PMPO

Pocket

Pocketing

Podcast

Point-to-Point Wiring

Point Source Monitor

Polarity

Polarize

Polar Pattern

Pole

Pole Piece

Polka

Polyester

Polyphonic

Polyphony

Polyrhythm

Polytonality

Polyurethane

Poly WAV File

Ponticello

Pop

Pop Filter

Popsicle Brace

Port

Portamento

Portative Organ

Position

Positional Sensing

Post Fader

Post Production

Pot

Potential Acoustic Gain

Potentiometer

Potting

POW-r

Power

 Power Amp

Power Amp Input

Power Amplifier

Power Attenuator/Power Attenuation

Power Calibration Area

Power Chord

Power Compression

Power Conditioner

Power Cycle

Power Down

Powered Monitor

Powered Speaker

Power Factor

Power Rail

Power Spike

Power Strip

Power Supply

Power Surge

Power Tube

Power Up

PPG Wave

Peak Program Meter (PPM)

PPQN (Pulses Per Quarter Note, sometimes Parts Per Quarter Note)

PQ Subcode

P-Ram - (a.k.a. PRAM)

Pre-bend

Pre-CBS

Pre-delay

Pre-roll

Preamp

Preamplifier

Preamplifier

Preamp Output

Preamp Tube

PrecedenceEffect

Pre Fade/Post Fade

Pre Fader

Preference File

Preferences

Premiere

Prepolarization

Presence

Preset

Pressed Top

Pressure-gradient Microphone

Pressure Microphone

Pressure Wave

Presto

Primary Tones

Princess Ensemble

Print

Printed Circuit Board

Print-Through

Producer

Profiling

Program

Program-dependent Compression

Program-dependent Release

Program Change

Program Material

Progression (Chord)

Progressive Hammer Action

Progressive Scan

Project-O-Sonic

Projection

Propagation

Proprietary

Prosumer

Prosumer

Protocol

Proximity Effect

Proxy Icon

PS/2

Psychoacoustics

PTP

Public Address System

Public Beta

Public Beta Test

Public Performance Right

Pull-off

Pull Down

Pulldown Menu

Pulse

Pulse Wave

Puma

Pumping

Punch

Punch Block

Punch In

Pure Tone

Pure Tone

Purfling

Purple Heart

Push-Pull

Pulse Width Modulation (PWM)

PZM

     
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