About celesta
The celesta is a musical instrument which strikes glockenspiel-like metal plates by hammers activated with a keyboard. Used in 'The Nutcracker' ballet, this musical instrument makes its presence felt in the world of classical music with its distinctive timbre.
The distinctive, captivating timbre has a familiar ring
The celesta looks similar to an organ at the first glance, but the sound is completely different. The celesta is a musical instrument which produces a distinctive and lovely timbre that carries well.
This instrument was developed surprisingly recently. It was invented by a Frenchman Victor Mustel in 1886. On the inside, metal plates similar to a glockenspiel are laid out, and hammers strike the plates to produce sound. We may describe the celesta as a percussion instrument with keyboard action, but it is sometimes classified as a keyboard instrument as well.
The earliest models of the standard celesta had a four-octave range from middle C up. Now five-octave celestas have become the mainstream. At present, some celestas have a 5 and 1/2-octave range.
Today's celesta, with enhanced expressiveness
The celesta is also popular among contemporary musicians and has become well-established as a musical instrument. In addition to being frequently used in orchestras, the celesta has been also used as a solo instrument in such events as composition contests.
Yamaha celestas have grand piano actions. Thus, the strength of the tones produced can be more easily controlled and this further enhances the music produced. Since the way the keys are struck has also been greatly improved, the instrument can now be used more easily in faster pieces.
Related Products
Related Series
- Celesta
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The first single-layer grand piano action mechanism ever used in a Celesta provides a uniform feel across the entire keyboard, for better performance in an ensemble setting.
