TY - BOOK AU - Isacoff,Stuart TI - A natural history of the piano: the instrument, the music, the musicians--from Mozart to modern jazz, and everything in between SN - 0307266370 PY - 2011/// CY - New York PB - Alfred A. Knopf KW - Pianists KW - Piano KW - History KW - Piano music KW - History and criticism N1 - Includes bibliographical references and index; A gathering of traditions -- The piano is born -- The first piano superstar -- Piano fever -- Performers on the road -- The four sounds -- The combustibles -- The alchemists -- The rhythmizers -- The melodists -- The cultivated and the vernacular -- The Russians are coming -- The Germans and their close relations -- Keys to the world -- On the cutting edge -- Everything old is new again N2 - Unfolds the ongoing history and evolution of the piano and all its myriad wonders: how its very sound provides the basis for emotional expression and individual style, and why it has so powerfully entertained generation upon generation of listeners ER -