Music Musing Monday - Toy Pianos

One Saturday recently I drove from home to WAAPA listening (as I do most Saturdays) to Andrew Ford’s Music Show on ABC Radio National.

The featured guest that day was Margaret Leng Tan, known for her work in championing the work of John Cage since the 1980s but also in more recent times, for her use of the toy piano as a serious musical instrument.

During the program Margaret Leng Tan spoke extensively about the toy piano as a musical instrument in its own right. She also performed pieces composed for the instrument by Jed Distler and Phyllis Chen.

You can catch the program on https://www.abc.net.au

As I listened, I mused on several things.

Firstly I have never thought of using a toy piano as an actual musical instrument. I thought of them as cheap, rather tinny and unattractive-sounding Christmas gifts for children from childless relatives – the family members who would also give a toy drum kit gift to a toddler.

A quick online search revealed a number of sources for buying better quality toy pianos, though it should be noted that Margaret Leng Tan considers that the toy pianos being manufactured today are not as good as those from the last century. 

My second train of thought started when there was brief discussion about the toy piano being the perfect instrument for scoring the soundtrack for a horror movie. As I listened to performances on the instruments during the show I could definitely hear how the quality of the sound – very different from a full sized piano - could invoke tension and suspense.

As I reflected on the show I wondered - could a toy piano make a useful and versatile addition to a school performing arts department? The music department could certainly use it in improvisation and composition projects.

The media department could utilise it in sound effects. And no doubt the drama department would get in on the act as well.

Toy pianos – who would have thought!