If you’re considering learning to play the piano or digital piano, your first thought when shopping is how many keys on a piano is best for you. Before you start keyboard lessons, it is important to understand why different models have different numbers of keys so that you can choose the right model for your specific requirements.
The issue of how many keys on a piano keyboard has become somewhat of a confusing one because, in recent times, there are pianos with different numbers of keys. However, going by the standard, a standard piano keyboard, mainly used by professionals has 88 piano keys of which 52 are white and 36 are black.
How Many Keys is Right For You?
It’s depend on your requirment, but basically, a standard 88 key piano is the best in most of the cases.
For Starting Out: 61 Key
A good starting point for complete beginners is a 61 key instruments. This will feature the piano keys that are most used, and it is where your piano teacher is likely to start you playing scales and chords. This makes it ideal for a new player who wants to develop their technique.
There are many 61 key digital pianos that are well suited for beginners, with features to support learning.
Check our previous review of Best Piano Keyboards For Beginners and Best Piano Keyboard Under $100 for more details of this kind of piano.
For Middle Ground: 76 Key
If you’re worried about not having enough keys, you can go up a level with a 76 key digital piano. This almost adds another octave to each end of your keyboard, to create the potential for extra notes to play with. While this is not a popular choice, there are still models that feature 76 keys to create a wider selection of music with the features and functions you may appreciate as you become a more experienced player.
Kindly remind that a 76-key keyboard commonly cost around $300, feel free to check our review of Best Piano Keyboards Under $300 for more details.
For Basics: 32 or 49 Key
If you prefer something compact and small or you’re buying for a child who may not stick with the lessons, there are basic digital pianos and keyboards that feature 32 or 49 keys. While these models lack the bells and whistles of the larger models, they tend to be lighter and smaller, making them ideal for smaller fingers and hands. These small models also tend to have the option for battery power, adding to portability, while allowing the player to get used to the layout of an octave and a basic keyboard.
We have do much research on finding the Best Piano Keyboard for Toddlers, feel free to check it any time!
Standard Size: 88 Key
Standard pianos have 88 keys. This includes 52 white keys and 36 black keys. On piano layouts, this provides the tones to play any piece of music. 88 keys has been a standard since the piano was created by piano manufacturer Steinway.
Before pianos, most music was written for the harpsichord, which limited to five octaves on the 60 keys. After the piano was invented in the 1800s, composers could become a little more ambitious with more complex pieces that could be accommodated across the seven octaves.
An 88 key layout has seven octaves with three lower notes below bottom C. This creates the ideal range for the human ear. Beyond the 88 key range, it is considered to be too low or too high for us to hear. However, there are still some exceptions, with some piano models having a 92 key or 102 key layout.
Note that we have spent much time on research to find the best 88-key digital piano on the market, check our previous review of Best Yamaha 88 Key Digital Piano.
How Did 88 Key Become the Standard? And why？
In order to better answer these pressing questions, we would have to take a step back into history and check out the evolution of the pia o keyboard or whatever it was called at the time. Let’s have a look.
A Bit of History: Before a ‘True Piano’ Was Invented
Before the invention of the piano, the harpsichord which had only 60 keys was already in existence. Composers wrote a lot of music to be played on the harpsichord, however, the harpsichord had only a five-octave range so every piece that they wrote was limited by this singular fact.
A little bit of time down the line, the first piano ever was invented. Bartolomeo Cristofori who was a musical instrument technician from Padua in Italy got an idea to update the harpsichord. It was in the process of doing this that he invented a new keyboard that worked using a hammer mechanism. This was around the year 1700.
Before this time, he was hired on in 1688 by the Florentine court of Grand Prince Ferdinando de’ Medici and charged with the care and maintenance of their harpsichords and subsequently, all other musical instruments.
An inventory from 1700 of Medici instruments made mention of an ‘arpicimbalo’ which was an instrument invented by Cristofori and bore a very close resemblance to a harpsichord. The instrument comprised of a damper mechanism as well as a brand-new hammer, two keyboards, and a four-octave range – it had 49 keys.
In 1711, the poet and journalist Scipione Maffei referred to it as a ‘gravicembalo col piano, e forte’ which interprets in the English language as “harpsichord with quiet and loud.” This was where the name ‘pianoforte’ originated from.
Further Development: Adding More Octaves
After Cristofori’s invention, the amount of music being composed for the piano began to increase drastically as composers began to explore even further.
However, the instrument had only a four-octave range and this was very limiting for most of the composers. This spurred piano manufacturers to begin to design new pianos that had a lot more keys. So top composers like Mozart and Haydn began to explore even further and came up with amazing Omaterials that had very wide ranges.
By the mid-1800s when Romantic composers like Liszt and Chopin were writing music, the piano already had as many as seven octaves. This implied that they fewer restrictions and could basically write anything that they wanted – pieces with wide ranges.
The 88-Key Piano: Firstly Created in Late 1880s
Piano manufacturer Steinway was the first to create the 88-key piano and this was in the late 1880s. After this groundbreaking invention, other piano manufacturers followed in Steinway’s footsteps and it became the standard and still remains the standard today.
A typical 88-key piano has seven octaves alongside three lower notes (B, B flat and A), all below the bottom C. In addition, it has 52 white keys and 36 black keys on the piano (sharps and flats) and each octave consists of seven white keys and five black keys.
This is the piano that is used for professional purposes. As a beginner, starting out with an 88 key piano could make learning very difficult because they are difficult to play and they are pretty expensive as well. In terms of maintenance, it is also one of the most expensive as it requires constant maintenance.
However, if this instrument is being used by a professional player, it would be a whole different story. Apart from being the ideal size, it also offers players the opportunity to play a very extended range of music pieces and is also used for composing music as well. Therefore, for any standard piano keyboard, 88 keys is a compulsory feature.
The reason for the 88-key piano keyboard becoming a standard is because composers in contemporary times writing piano music that fits perfectly within the 88-key model range. Also, it is accepted as a limit by most piano makers because anything outside of the 88-key model is considered either too high or too low for the human ear.
However, there are, of course, a few exceptions such as the 102-key Stuart and Sons piano which gives for around £220,000. Also, Bösendorfer has 92-key pianos on sale but the extra four keys are colored black to enable the pianist to differentiate between the standard 88 and the extra 4.
Although the keys are not very functional, they serve to contribute to giving the instrument a rich sound thanks to the extra bass strings and harmonic resonance.
What Other Features of Key Should be Considered?
While the number of keys will affect the notes you can play, it is also important to assess the type of keys on the specific digital piano. Acoustic pianos are built with hammers and strings to create the notes. When you press the key, the hammer strikes the string, causing it to vibrate and create the noise we hear as a note. The hammer is connected to the key with a lever system that has natural weight or resistance that you can feel when you hit the note.
This weight feels natural as we play, and it helps the player to gauge how hard to hit the key. When you press softly, the note will have a softer resonance, while pressing harder causes the hammer to hit the string harder and create a louder sound. It is this design that allows the player to express different piano styles, such as pianoforte, where the soft notes are immediately contrasted by louder notes.
Digital pianos or keyboards have a computer that detects the speed and pressure on the keys to automatically produce the correct sound, but without weighted keys, it can be difficult for players to distinguish the feel. Here we’ll explore the types of keys available on digital pianos to highlight how it can change your playing.
Unweighted Keys
Most budget friendly models lack weighted action, but there are some larger keyboards that also have unweighted keys. With unweighted keys, there are no weights inside the keybed, but there is still usually touch and velocity sensitivity to create responsive sounds.
Semi Weighted Keys
Semi weighted action offers more resistance than unweighted keys as it has sprung action. This provides more touch responsiveness, so even beginners will be able to feel the difference.
Hammer Action Keys
Hammer action keyboards feature a mechanism to replicate the hammer action used on an acoustic piano. This usually involves a lever system attached near the keys to increase resistance as you’re playing.
Graded Weighted Keys
Graded weighted digital piano keys mimic the resistance of an acoustic piano, where there is more resistance on lower notes and less resistance on the higher notes. These types of keys are often individually weighted to increase the playability of the digital piano. Many models also have mock ivory keys to further enhance the acoustic feel. While this action isn’t needed to generate the note, since the onboard computer automatically provides the correct sound according to how hard and fast the key is pressed, weighted keys can help players to feel more accustomed to playing.
This is particularly helpful if you are practicing with a digital piano and playing an acoustic with your piano teacher. Weighted keys can help develop piano finger techniques that will allow the player to feel comfortable playing on any type of piano.
Should You Choose Weighted Keys?
As we’ve touched on above, weighted keys can offer some benefits to both beginner and more experienced players. Weighted keys not only provide a more natural feel, replicating the feel of an acoustic piano, but also helps to build finger strength, to encourage good playing habits, and enhance your overall playing technique.
Of course, weighted keys may not be appropriate for every player. If you want a MIDI keyboard that you can easily take to gigs and practice sessions, the extra weight of weighted keys can make transportation more challenging. However, if you take your playing seriously, and you’re not restricted to needing a lighter weight keyboard, the weighted action will create a more realistic feel as you play.
Don’t forget to check our review of Best Digital Pianos with Weighted Keys if you want to have a try.