Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews

A bright, colorful introduction to a beloved instrument.Rusch pairs up with Caldecott honoree Priceman (Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin!, 1995) to produce this biography of the white Italian musician and craftsman Bartolomeo Cristofori. In 1688, Fernando de Medici chose Cristofori to build and restore harpsichords and other instruments. Priceman's signature artwork is a perfect match for the words, which emphasize Cristofori's desire for a keyboard instrument capable of the nuance of the violins he hears at the opera and the color he sees in paintings. Banners defining musical terms run across the tops of pages. Throughout are visual and textual cues to the meanings of those terms. One page is headed "pianissimo (very soft)," while the narrative reads, "a hush envelops the room….Feet pad across the room. Cloth rustles. Sand falls silently through an hourglass." Here, soft purple watercolors surround the words, and a sleeping cat curls around the hourglass. Horses "whinny, snort, and stamp as a young prince and his entourage spring from the carriages to the cobblestones" in reflection of "crescendo (becoming louder)." By 1700, Cristofori's new instrument, the pianoforte, is complete. Colorful waves of sound pour out of the opened instrument. Source material for the story is effectively embedded in the pages. Extensive backmatter further illuminates the text and invites readers to listen to recordings of surviving and replica pianos. Delightfully energetic, this will inspire young pianists. (Picture book/biography. 4-8)

ALA Booklist (Wed Feb 01 00:00:00 CST 2017)

The modern piano is so ubiquitous, many might take its origin for granted, but Rusch's latest offering brings the instrument's history merrily to the center stage. Through extensive research and consultation with replica-instrument makers, Rusch pieces together the story of Bartolomeo Cristofori, an Italian harpsichord builder with the title of "master instrument maker and tuner." While Cristofori builds much-admired harpsichords, which play loudly, and clavichords with soft tones, he is frustrated that he cannot make an instrument that successfully does both. But while wandering around the city, he's inspired by the ingenuity of artisans around him to build a wholly new kind of instrument. Priceman's gouache-and-ink illustrations exuberantly fill all available page space. Musical terms are incorporated into the images to amplify what is happening in the text, and short excerpts from primary sources appear throughout the book to give it historical context. Fast-paced, lively, and informative, this book will appeal to music lovers as well as a wider audience, who may be creatively inspired by these passionate musicians and their instruments.

Horn Book (Tue Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2017)

Hired by Prince Ferdinando de Medici to restore and build musical instruments in Florence, Bartolomeo Cristofori dreams of creating a new instrument. "If only Cristofori's keyboard instruments could so fully express the music of life!" In 1700, he creates the first pianoforte, a precursor to today's piano. Rusch's evocative text is underscored by Priceman's breezy but detailed gouache-and-ink illustrations and the book's dynamic design. Timeline. Bib.

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

A bright, colorful introduction to a beloved instrument.Rusch pairs up with Caldecott honoree Priceman (Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin!, 1995) to produce this biography of the white Italian musician and craftsman Bartolomeo Cristofori. In 1688, Fernando de Medici chose Cristofori to build and restore harpsichords and other instruments. Priceman's signature artwork is a perfect match for the words, which emphasize Cristofori's desire for a keyboard instrument capable of the nuance of the violins he hears at the opera and the color he sees in paintings. Banners defining musical terms run across the tops of pages. Throughout are visual and textual cues to the meanings of those terms. One page is headed "pianissimo (very soft)," while the narrative reads, "a hush envelops the room….Feet pad across the room. Cloth rustles. Sand falls silently through an hourglass." Here, soft purple watercolors surround the words, and a sleeping cat curls around the hourglass. Horses "whinny, snort, and stamp as a young prince and his entourage spring from the carriages to the cobblestones" in reflection of "crescendo (becoming louder)." By 1700, Cristofori's new instrument, the pianoforte, is complete. Colorful waves of sound pour out of the opened instrument. Source material for the story is effectively embedded in the pages. Extensive backmatter further illuminates the text and invites readers to listen to recordings of surviving and replica pianos. Delightfully energetic, this will inspire young pianists. (Picture book/biography. 4-8)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Rusch (Electrical Wizard: How Nikola Tesla Lit Up the World) playfully weaves aural imagery throughout this engaging story of how Bartolomeo Cristofori came to invent the piano. Sounds of 17th-century Italian life abound as the instrument maker heads to the Medici court in Florence to work alongside other craftsmen: -Wool beaters thump and looms clatter-clack. Ka-chunk goes the printing press.- The auditory motif continues as dynamics notations headline each spread: a booming -forte (loud)- rises from a noisy harpsichord, while -pianissimo (very soft)- curls across a scene of Cristofori tuning a clavichord. Wanting an instrument that can be played either loudly or softly, he builds the pianoforte, later shortened to piano. Priceman-s (Miracle on 133rd Street) bold brushstrokes and vibrant colors add energy and humor; an orange tabby cat, often comically startled awake by music, appears in most scenes. Extensive endnotes include a timeline, comparisons between the original and modern pianos, suggested listening (from Chopin to Tori Amos), and thorough discussion of the sources Rusch used. It-s a spirited, informative tale that will resonate with music aficionados young and old. Ages 4-8. Author-s agent: Kelly Sonnack, Andrea Brown Literary. (Apr.)