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Playing techniques[edit]

Despite their apparent similarity, keyboard instruments of different types require different techniques.

With a piano, the piano hammer mechanism produces a louder note when the key is struck faster

and harder, and a softer note when the key is pressed lightly and gently. In contrast, the

harpsichord's plectrum mechanism does not perceptibly ary the olume of the note with different

touch on the keyboard. !he pipe organ's olume and timbre are controlled by the flow of air from the

bellows and the stops preselected by the player. "ressing a pipe organ's keys harder or faster does

not make the notes sound louder. "layers of these instruments use different techniques on

harpsichord and pipe organ, such as note length and changing the stops, to add e#pression to their

playing. $ %&()era electronic arranger keyboard may be preset to produce any of a range of oices

as well as percussion and other accompaniment patterns *e.g., an automatic bassline+ that matches

the chords played by the left hand.

Different keyboard instruments hae different types of keyboards. $n acoustic piano has wooden

weighted keys, an approach which is imitated on high)end digital pianos and stage pianos.

Ine#pensie electronic keyboards hae lightweight, unweighted keys made from plastic. Different

keyboard instruments hae a different touch and feel. "rofessional players must hae training

and e#perience with the different types of keyboard instruments to be able to perform on them at a

professional standard. -ome keyboard students in music conseratories and uniersities study more

than one style of keyboard playing. eyboard players who aim to speciali/e in 0aroque music *ca.

1&&)2(&+ often study pipe organ and harpsichord. 3ach instrument has a different type of

keyboard and different stops. $ harpsichord may hae stops that add additional octaes to the keys

that are pressed or a lute stop which imitates the sound of a lute. $ pipe organ may hae stops for

adding octae pipes aboe and below a key that is pressed, a fifth aboe *called the quintet stop+

and stops that imitate wind instruments such as horns. "ipe organ players also learn to play the foot)

operated pedal keyboard, which is use to play deep bass notes.

-ome keyboard students preparing for a 4a// performance career study both the acoustic piano and

the 5ammond organ. With the 4a// e#ample, each of these keyboard instruments requires a different

playing technique and each has its own idioms and stylistic features that students must learn about.

6rom a technical perspectie, an skilled acoustic piano student learning to play the 5ammond organ

will immediately be able to play chord and scales in the organ, but she would hae to learn a number 

of new techniques. -he would need to learn to use the features of the organ which are not present

on a piano7 tone)controllingdrawbars, two manuals *two rows of keyboards stacked stepwise+, bass

pedalboard played with the feet, use the olume pedal and operate the 8eslie speaker , a rotating

speaker horn which has controls allowing the organist to start the speaker rotation and change the

speed for e#pressie chorus effects.

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 $ typical piano keyboard

3en though the keyboard layout is simple and all notes are easily accessible, playing requires skill.

 $ proficient player has undertaken much training to play accurately and intempo. 0eginners seldom

produce a passable rendition of een a simple piece due to lack of  technique. !he sequences of

moements of the player's hands can be ery complicated. "roblems include wide)spanned chords, 

which can be difficult for people with small hands, chords requiring unusual hand positions that caninitially be uncomfortable, and fast scales, trills and arpeggios.

"laying instruments with velocity sensitive *or dynamic + keyboards *i.e., that respond to arying

playing elocity+ may require finger independence, so that some fingers play harder while others

play more softly. eyboardists speak of playing harder and softer, or with more or less force. !his

may accurately describe the player's e#perience9but in the mechanics of the

keyboard, elocity controls musical dynamics. !he faster the player depresses the key, the louder

the note. "layers must learn to coordinate two hands and use them independently. :ost music is

written for two hands; typically the right hand plays the melody in the treble range, while the left

plays an accompaniment of bass notes and chords in the bass range. 3#amples of music written forthe left hand alone include seeral of 8eopold <odowsky's (= -tudies on >hopin's 3tudes, :aurice

?ael's"iano >oncerto for the 8eft 5and and -ergei "rokofie's "iano >oncerto @o. A for the left

hand. In music that uses counterpoint technique, both hands play different melodies at the same

time.

Other uses[edit]

eyboard of a 8etter)"rinting !elegraph -et built by -iemens B 5alske in -aint "etersburg, ?ussia, ca. C&&

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 $ number of percussion instruments share the keyboard layout, although they are not keyboard

instruments with leers that are depressed to sound the notes. Instead, the performer of instruments

such as the #ylophone, marimba, ibraphone, and glockenspiel strikes the separate)sounding tone

bar of metal or wood for each note using a mallet. !hese bars are laid out in the same configuration

as a common keyboard.

!here are some e#amples of a musical keyboard layout used for non)musical deices. 6or e#ample,

some of the earliest printing telegraph machines used a layout similar to a piano keyboard.[A][(]

Keyboards with alternative sets of keys[edit]

!here are some rare ariations of keyboards with more or fewer than % keys per octae, mostly

used in microtonal music, after the discoeries and theoretical deelopments of musician and

inentor uliEn >arrillo *F2(GC1(+.

-ome free)reed instrument keyboards such as accordions and Indian harmoniums includemicrotones. 3lectronic music pioneer  "auline Hlieros plays one of these. 3gyptian belly)dance

musicians like 5assam ?am/y use custom)tuned accordions so they can play traditional scales. !he

small <armon accordion played in the :usic of $/erbai4ansometimes has keys that can play

microtones when a shift key is pressed.