wippen

The wippen is a crucial component within a piano's intricate action, the mechanism that translates a key press into a hammer striking a string. When a piano key is depressed, its back end rises, lifting the wippen. This movement initiates a chain reaction, causing a jack to push the hammer upward towards the strings. The wippen's design allows for a rapid hammer strike and a quick rebound, enabling the player to strike the same key multiple times in rapid succession, a feature essential for nuanced musical expression. This complex system, with thousands of parts, allows the piano to produce its characteristic dynamic range, from soft to loud.12