Piano vs Casio: Difference and Comparison

Where would we the modern society be without music? Whether it be for passing leisure time, to express emotions, for finding the motivation to work, or for just immersing ourselves in something soothing, one always turns to music.

And this has been the case since time immemorial. Musical instruments have been known to exist even thousands of years ago.

One of these musical instruments, the piano, has been looping people in its melodies ever since it was invented.

Key Takeaways

1. A piano is a large, acoustic musical instrument with strings, hammers, and keys, while Casio is a brand that produces electronic keyboards and digital pianos.
2. Pianos produce sound through strings’ vibrations when keys are pressed, while Casio keyboards use digital technology to generate sound.
3. Acoustic pianos have a richer and more complex sound than digital pianos and keyboards, but they are more expensive and require regular maintenance.

Piano vs Casio

Piano is an acoustic instrument that uses hammers to strike strings and produce sound. It has a traditional wooden frame and a heavy weighted keyboard that provides a tactile and responsive playing experience. Casio is an electronic keyboard that uses digital technology to produce sound.

A piano is a large musical instrument. The frame of the instrument is made up of cast iron. It consists of white and black keys, which upon pressing, hammer the strings inside the piano.

This hammering effect produces musical notes which are further used to create music. 

Casio is the name of a company that manufactures a wide range of electronic products.

One of these products, their electronic keyboard, has earned the generalized name of Casio due to its sheer popularity in the market for musical instruments.

The set up of the electronic keyboard itself consists of a synthesizer and an amplifier.

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	Piano	Casio
Type	Modern pianos are largely acoustic instruments.	Keyboards by Casio are electric instruments.
Size	The modern piano is a very large instrument.	Casio keyboards are much smaller and compact.
Price	A standard piano is a pretty expensive instrument.	In comparison to pianos, keyboards are much cheaper.
Notes produced	Notes are produced by striking action with a hammer on strings.	There are no strings on a keyboard. Amplifier and speaker are used to produce sound.
Usage in Music	Modern pianos have a wide range of music and can be used to fit in any genre of music.	Keyboard’s settings can be used to tune them like any type of piano and use it accordingly.

What is Piano?

The piano is a keyboard musical instrument with rows of black and white keys. These keys, when pressed, strike strings inside the keyboard with a hammer to produce vibrations and sound.

Each key is attributed to a different note. There are two main types of modern piano: the grand piano and the upright piano. 

Each key on a modern piano is affixed to felt-covered hammers to produce the finest quality of sound.

The cast-iron frame of pianos allows them to withstand the tension of the strings as well as produce sounds louder than their older counterparts.

Other parts include pedals, which are used for different purposes. 

Pianos have the widest range of notes on any musical instrument, as it covers more than seven octaves.

These extremities in the notes of a piano allow pianists to choose and play from a wide range of genres of music, including but not limited to classical, popular, and jazz. 

The modern piano was invented around the year 1700 AD, by Italian inventor Bartolomeo Cristofori. It was named ‘pianoforte’ since it could be both soft (piano) and loud (forte).

Although the piano is not the first string instrument, it is easily one of the most popular and widespread. 

What is Casio?

Casio Computer Company, Limited is a Japanese world-renowned company that is involved in the manufacture of a wide variety of electronic products, ranging from watches and calculators to music instruments.

The electronic keyboards by Casio are so widely used that they are simply referred to as a Casio. Casio also manufactures electronic pianos. 

Unlike pianos, Casios are not string instruments. Each key on a Casio keyboard is assigned to a sensor, and each sensor, in turn, is assigned to a musical note.

The correct term for Casio keyboards would be a synthesizer, which is modeled to resemble a piano. Electronic pianos by Casio, although large and weighted, also make use of the same sensor technology to produce music. 

Since Casios are technically synthesizers with amplifiers and speakers, they come pre-loaded with a wide range of settings to choose from.

The modes include different genres of music, which can be used to tune the Casio to produce music relevant to the desired genre. Other functions include an in-built recorder for musicians to record their sessions. 

It is also possible to upload the sounds of other instruments to the settings. Pianists can then play the recordings while they practice the piano and play in sync with the said instruments.

Main Differences Between Piano and Casio 

1. The term ‘piano’ originated from the early versions of the modern piano, which was known as a pianoforte. Casio is the company that manufactures electronic products, one of which is the electronic keyboard, popularly called Casio. 
2. Pianos produce sound and vibration through hammers striking strings. Casio keyboard use sensors technology to produce sound. 
3. Modern pianos are huge and heavy, which also results in a much higher price tag. On the other hand, Casio keyboards are much smaller and can easily be seated on a table of average size, making them portable and cheaper. 
4. Although Casio keyboards can cover a wide range of music and genres, they are more popularly used to produce commercial music. Pianos produce a much more original sound and are therefore used for almost all genres of music, with a special emphasis on classical music. 
5. The origin of the modern piano can be dated back to around the year 1700, making them almost 280 years older than the first batch of Casio’s electronic keyboards. The Casiotone Model-101 was released in the year 1981. 

References 

1. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1930-00309-000
2. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=dG3CAgAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA19&dq=piano&ots=i_kfCfinU8&sig=YUQVWeipW4k9J0mtUVl7MkICJiU
3. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/7459113/