Piano. Some background info

SOME BACKGROUND INFO
The piano is an acoustic, stringed musical instrument invented around the year 1700 (the exact year is uncertain), in which the strings are struck by hammers. It is played using a keyboard,[1] which is a row of keys (small levers) that the performer presses down or strikes with the fingers and thumbs of both hands to cause the hammers to strike the strings. The word piano is a shortened form of pianoforte, the Italian term for the early 1700s versions of the instrument, which in turn derives from gravicembalo col piano e forte[2] and fortepiano. The Italian musical terms piano and forte indicate "soft" and "loud" respectively,[3] in this context referring to the variations in volume (i.e., loudness) produced in response to a pianist's touch or pressure on the keys: the greater the velocity of a key press, the greater the force of the hammer hitting the strings, and the louder the sound of the note produced and the stronger the attack. The first fortepianos in the 1700s had a quieter sound and smaller dynamic range.

The invention of the piano is credited to Bartolomeo Cristofori (1655–1731) of Padua, Italy, who was employed by Ferdinando de' Medici, Grand Prince of Tuscany, as the Keeper of the Instruments. Cristofori was an expert harpsichord maker, and was well acquainted with the body of knowledge on stringed keyboard instruments. He used his knowledge of harpsichord keyboard mechanisms and actions to help him to develop the first pianos. It is not known exactly when Cristofori first built a piano. An inventory made by his employers, the Medici family, indicates the existence of a piano by the year 1700; another document of doubtful authenticity indicates a date of 1698. The three Cristofori pianos that survive today date from the 1720s. Cristofori named the instrument un cimbalo di cipresso di piano e forte ("a keyboard of cypress with soft and loud"), abbreviated over time as pianoforte, fortepiano, and later, simply, piano.

Why I love playing the piano
It's a versatile instrument. I can play a variety of styles on it, and the use of two hands allows me to play different voices simultaneously.
It's easy to express ideas on the piano as it takes little work to produce a note. This is of course, unlike instruments such as wind instruments, strings, etc. where you have to learn the embouchure, or how to hold it properly, to play a note.
The sound. Simply, I just love the sound this instrument produces.

HOW A PIANO PLAYS
So what happens when you press the key of a piano? The key is actually a wooden lever, a bit like a seesaw but much longer at one end than at the other. When you press down on a key, the opposite end of the lever (hidden inside the case) jumps up in the air, forcing a small felt-covered hammer to press against the piano strings, making a musical note. At the same time, at the extreme end of the lever behind the hammer, another mechanical part called a damper is also forced up into the air. When you release the key, the hammer and the damper fall back down again. The damper sits on top of the string, stops it vibrating, and brings the note rapidly to an end.

PIANO THROUGH THE YEARS
The piano as an instrument has been being played for centuries and is still currently being used very often in modern day popular songs like:
Unsteady – X Ambassadors
Sign of the Times – Harry Styles
Rolex – Ayo and Teo
Bad and Boujee – Migos, Lil Uzi Vert
And many more