{"schema_version":"bf_book_companion_v1","release_id":"20261010T034321Z-reviewed-full-unique-works","book":{"amazon_purchase_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/0307279332?tag=bookfrontie00-20","asin":"0307279332","authors":["Stuart Isacoff"],"book_id":"9780307279330","canonical_url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/a-natural-history-of-the-piano-9780307279330","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780307279330.jpg?v=16ceb3c4657cf2ba","description":"A fascinating celebration of the piano, including tales of its masters from Mozart and Beethoven to Oscar Peterson and Jerry Lee Lewis, told with the expertise of composer and author of Temperament , Stuart Isacoff. This history takes us back to the piano's humble genesis as a simple keyboard, and shows how everyone from Ferdinando de’ Medici to Herbie Hancock affected its evolution of sound and influence in popular music. Presenting the instrument that has been at the core of musical development over the centuries in all its beauty and complexity, this explores the piano’s capabilities and the range of emotional expression it conveys in different artists’ hands. A Natural History of the Piano is fast-paced and intriguing, with beautiful illustrations and photos, a must-read for music lovers and pianists of every level.","forthcoming":false,"isbn13":"9780307279330","publication_date":"20121120","publisher":"Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group","slug":"a-natural-history-of-the-piano","subtitle":"The Instrument, the Music, the Musicians--from Mozart to Modern Jazz and Everything in Between","title":"A Natural History of the Piano"},"discovery":{"categories":{"all":[{"bisac_code":"MUS023030","confidence_band":"high","label":"Piano & Keyboards","score":0.8428,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"JNF036090","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Instruments","score":0.7674,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"JNF036010","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Classical","score":0.7639,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"hint":[{"bisac_code":"MUS023030","confidence_band":"high","label":"Piano & Keyboards","score":0.8428,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"JNF036090","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Instruments","score":0.7674,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"JNF036010","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Classical","score":0.7639,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"publisher":[{"bisac_code":"MUS020000","confidence_band":"high","label":"Music History","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"},{"bisac_code":"MUS023030","confidence_band":"high","label":"Piano & Keyboards","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"},{"bisac_code":"SOC022000","confidence_band":"high","label":"Pop Culture Studies","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"}]},"genres":[{"label":"Piano & Keyboards","score":0.8428,"slug":"piano-keyboards"},{"label":"Instruments","score":0.7674,"slug":"instruments"},{"label":"Classical","score":0.7639,"slug":"classical"}],"reader_fit":["Good for readers interested in piano history and its influential musicians","Pianists of every level"],"related_lists":[],"series":null,"similar_books":[{"authors":["David Dubal"],"book_id":"9781574670882","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781574670882.jpg?v=78267e6b910b9526","score":0.8141,"title":"The Art of the Piano","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781574670882"},{"authors":["Charles Rosen"],"book_id":"9780743243124","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780743243124.jpg?v=f18e54330534ff03","score":0.811,"title":"Piano Notes","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780743243124"},{"authors":["Carl Humphries"],"book_id":"9780879307271","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780879307271.jpg?v=3a78b8c891ee2d1a","score":0.7833,"title":"The Piano Handbook","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780879307271"},{"authors":["Charles Cooke"],"book_id":"9781616082307","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781616082307.jpg?v=c58a6fbea2dc60ac","score":0.7386,"title":"Playing the Piano for Pleasure","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781616082307"},{"authors":["Mary Richards","David Schweitzer"],"book_id":"9780500652473","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780500652473.jpg?v=7bf68d78ce1bbbda","score":0.7294,"title":"A History of Music for Children","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780500652473"},{"authors":["Jan Swafford"],"book_id":"9780062433572","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780062433572.jpg?v=51d1b566cba03135","score":0.7161,"title":"Mozart","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780062433572"},{"authors":["Richard Troeger"],"book_id":"9781574670844","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781574670844.jpg?v=5ee631da87c63887","score":0.7105,"title":"Playing Bach on the Keyboard","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781574670844"},{"authors":["Thomas Mark","Roberta Gary","Thom Miles"],"book_id":"9781579992064","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781579992064.jpg?v=c92e364d7f621abb","score":0.708,"title":"What Every Pianist Needs to Know About the Body","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781579992064"}],"topics":[{"evidence_refs":["keyword:history"],"label":"History","score":0.4536,"slug":"history"},{"evidence_refs":["keyword:books about music"],"label":"About","score":0.1333,"slug":"about"},{"evidence_refs":["keyword:music books for piano"],"label":"Music","score":0.0456,"slug":"music"}],"what_you_get":["Themes: Piano history and evolution, Emotional expression through music, Piano's influence in popular music.","Pacing: fast, momentum-driven storytelling.","Themes: History, Music."]},"llm_signals":{"confidence":0.96,"pacing":"fast","reader_fit":["Readers interested in piano history and its influential musicians","Pianists of every level"],"themes":["Piano history and evolution","Emotional expression through music","Piano's influence in popular music"],"tropes":[]},"source_presence":{"amazon":true,"book_detail":true,"goodreads":true,"llm_signals":true,"similarity_seed":true},"stats":{"amazon_ratings_count":148,"goodreads_ratings_count":334,"goodreads_reviews_count":53,"quality_score":0.9072}}