Cello inexpensive wood that has been blackened or "ebonized" to look like ebony, which is much harder and more expensive. Ebonised parts such as tuning pegs may crack or split, and the black surface of the fingerboard will eventually wear down to reveal the lighter wood underneath. Historically, cello strings had cores made out of catgut, which, despite its name is made from sheep or goat intestines which are dried out. Most modern strings used in the 2010s are wound with metallic materials like aluminum, titanium and chromium. Cellists may mix different types of strings on their instruments. The pitches of
Piano history and musical performance century, the possibility exists that performers might profitably experiment with what would count as "authentic" pianos, in light of the particular composer's own musical preferences. To this end the pianist Gwendolyn Mok has recently made commercial recordings of Ravel's music on an 1875 Erard piano; see External Links below. Piano history and musical performance The modern form of the piano, which emerged in the late 19th century, is a very different instrument from the pianos for which the classical literature for piano predating this time was originally composed. The modern piano has a heavy metal frame, thick strings made of