Sustainable Keyboard

Four resulting technologies

The digital pianos on display were crafted using the following four wood processing technologies: (1) High fill WPC (Wood Plastic Composite) (2) Molded wood (3) Waxed MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard) (4) Yamaha OSB (Oriented Strand Board)

Towards the antiques of the future

These were attempts to create sustainable materials, as well as to attain the look and feel of wood.
Two "new but nostalgic" designs were created on DIY and antique themes, both concepts long treasured as a part of daily life.

Upper left: The Yamaha Culture Chair that inspired the "antique" design. In the 1930s, Yamaha produced a folding table and chair set, grounding at the time. This is an excerpt from a catalog of the time.
Upper right：A poster depicting the atmosphere of the times.

100% for 100 years

The keys are made of grenadilla, a wood that is essential for making clarinets. It takes 100 years for a grenadilla seedling to mature into a tree, and only about ten percent of the log can be used in musical instruments.
Yamaha has been researching technologies to use the remaining 90 percent of the wood, seeking to increase the value of trees and forests and to help promote social and economic development in Africa.

Grenadilla, the pure black wood

Grenadilla (also known as African blackwood)
Countries of origin: Tanzania, Mozambique
Grenadilla is among the heaviest types of wood and is essential for making clarinets.
Yamaha has been engaged in a wide range of activities such as seedling cultivation, tree planting, forest surveys, and research since 2015, starting from the village of Nanjirinji in Tanzania.

Were the black and white keys reversed in the past?

Long ago the keys of organs and harpsichords featured a reverse black and white pattern to that now seen today. There are a variety of theories on why, but it is said that bright white keys came to be preferred with the growing popularity of the piano.

The magic of heat and pressure

The black keys are entirely made of grenadilla wood powder. Yamaha uses a "molded wood" technique of deforming wood along the mold by applying pressure to it under heat. This has recreated the luxurious appearance and texture of solid wood.

The silky feel of "70% wood"

The white areas of the keys are made with a wood-plastic composite using high-fill WPC (Wood Plastic Composite) technology. By using a 70% wood ratio, we have been able to achieve a wood-like appearance, and warm, moisture-retentive playing feel.

1.1 kg per instrument

Replacing 70% of the plastic used in the white keys with wood has reduced the amount of plastic used in each instrument by 1.1 kg.

1.1 kg of plastic replaced by wood
*This plastic is different from the type normally used in our products.

MDF shines when polished

The bodies of Yamaha digital pianos are usually made with MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard, boards made of wood powder hardened with glue), with a PVC sheet adhered to its surface.
The "Antique" type eliminates this PVC sheet, enhancing the value of the MDF surfaces by engraving them and carefully polishing with wax and oil.