As Stewart Pollens has documented, in late 18th century France it was believed that the piano had been invented not by Cristofori but by the German builder Gottfried Silbermann.
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Ferdinando, a lover and patron of music, was the son and heir of Cosimo III, Grand Duke of Tuscany.
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However, as Stewart Pollens points out (see References below), this person cannot be Bartolomeo Cristofori, since the census records an age of 13, whereas Cristofori according to his baptismal record would have been 25 at the time.
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Soundboard: Cristofori used cypress, the wood traditionally favored for soundboards in the Italian school of harpsichord making.
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According to Stewart Pollens, there were already a number of qualified individuals in Florence who could have filled the position; however, the Prince passed them over, and paid Cristofori a higher salary than his predecessor.
The piano (originally called gravicembalo col piano e forte by its inventor, Bartolomeo Cristofori)
Bartolomeo | Bartolomeo della Gatta | Bartolomeo Merelli | Bartolomeo Gastaldi | Bartolomeo Eustachi | Bartolomeo Colleoni | ''Christ carrying the Cross'', either by Bartolomeo Coda | Bartolomeo Tromboncino | Bartolomeo Maranta | Bartolomeo di Breganze | Bartolomeo della Rocca | Bartolomeo d'Alviano | Bartolomeo Cristofori | Bartolomeo Coda | Bartolomeo Bulgarini | Bartolomeo Bon | Bartolomeo Ammannati | Bartolomeo Altomonte |
This book examines the work of numerous makers, including Henri Arnaut de Zwolle, Bartolomeo Cristofori, Giovanni Ferrini, Domenico del Mela, Henrique Van Casteel, Joachim José Antunes, Francisco Pérez Mirabal, Gottfried Silbermann, and Christian Ernst Friederici.