Inverno agreed to play something for the princesses. So with breakfast finished up, they headed, to Inverno’s interest, a particular room called, “the Music Room.”
When they got there, the colt saw a huge circular room with a dome. All around him were instruments that he’d never seen before, with the exception of the organ, which was the only recognizable thing in the room. He examined the odd-looking instruments, from wooden boxes tied up with silvery strings, to the brass pipes that in the unicorn’s mind, looked like pipe organs that had been twisted into knots.
Yet, among all these things, near the center of the room, was a weirdly shaped black box that stood on three legs. What drew Inverno to the instrument was the fact that the only thing he recognized was the keys.
“What’s this thing?” he asked.
“We believe the old name for it is either Pianoforte or Fortepiano,” Luna answered, “Which, if my Istallion is correct, either means ‘soft and loud.’”
“Is it a type of organ?” Inverno inquired as he drew closer to the keys. At first glimpse, the instrument’s keyboard looked like that of an organ, though with a simpler in design. But when he touched one of the keys, he nearly jumped back. Not because this thing had made a sound, but because it was a completely unfamiliar tone.
“Oh no,” Celestia said, “A piano is a kind of string instrument where the strings themselves are hammered out by every key you press. The softer you touch them, the softer the sound it makes, or vice versa, if you hit it hard enough. It may not be as impressive as an organ, but it can make quite a bit of noise.”
Inverno reached a hoof up to the keys again, touching a key. Sure enough, the Solar Princess was right! When he pressed on one of the white rectangles gently, the sound of it was soft as laying one’s head on a pillow; but when he slammed his hoof on another random key, the sharp sound echoed in the room like the roar of his father’s voice, strong and commanding.
“Could I play on this?” the young unicorn asked, “At least, give it a try?”
“I suppose so,” Cadence said after thinking for a moment. She pulled up the black bench from beneath the piano, leaving enough room for Inverno to sit in. The pale unicorn climbed onto the bench and stared at the keys for a moment.
“Uh… What do I play?” he asked, turning to the Royals.
“How about playing something you’re familiar with,” Shining suggested. “Perhaps, something that’s your favorite.”
After thinking for a moment, Inverno lifted a hoof and touched a key near the middle of the board, “Okay, that’s a G Sharp…” Inverno put both hooves on the keys, and within a moment, he’d begun to play. Even though Inverno had played this many times on his complex organ, the sound that the piano was making was unlike any sound that he’d heard before. The melody was gentler, kinder than he’d ever heard. Even though he was familiar with the trills, the harmonic progressions, and the memorable notes, it was as if he was hearing this music for the first time.
The three princesses, and the prince, as they stood around him, couldn’t help but notice that the colt was in an almost hypnotic state. While his hooves moved, his cat-like irises had widened and focused off in the distance, seemingly at nothing in particular. Yet, while the sound wasn’t exactly perfect, the Royals were impressed by the fact that he seemed to have not only completely memorized this song but was able to play it on a different instrument.
When the music concluded, the royals applauded the colt’s performance. The sound of hooves on crystal caused him to snap his attention to them, giving each of them a confused look.
“What are you doing?” he questioned.
“We’re applauding you,” Cadence answered, “It’s a way in saying that it was good.”
“Then why not just say that?” Inverno asked, “Besides, it’s a weird sound to make, just to say that you liked something.”
“Perhaps,” Celestia mused, “It’s about time we start heading back to Canterlot. We’ll send up tutors as soon as possible for you, Inverno, along with a music teacher as well. While your performance here was good, there’s always room for new techniques and music that you can learn from.”
Inverno blinked, “New… music to learn from?”
“Indeed,” Luna answered, “Even we hath learned that in the course of a thousand years, music has had plenty of time to develop and evolve to make it sound better than its predecessors. Perhaps Cadence and Shining could show thee their phonograph, in order for thou to hear new music.”
The colt turned to the couple, looking at them as if asking, “What is she talking about?”
“We’ll show it to you later,” Cadence said. Eventually, the two tall Princesses had to bid their goodbyes, before leaving the Crystal Palace, and its Empire. However, they did not leave until they had reassured their citizens that they had nothing to be afraid of.
Before the Royal couple had to attend their duties for that day, Cadence had fetched out the phonograph that the Princess of the Night had been speaking of. The phonograph, along with a small number of records from Cadence’s personal collection was brought into Inverno’s new bedroom for him to hear.
“How does that thing play music?” Inverno questioned as he examined the device before him.
“Easy,” Cadence smiled as she lifted one of the black records with her aura. “All you have to do is place this record onto the turntable, then gently put the needle into the outer groove of the record. Make sure you have the spring wound up until it feels tight, and the music comes out of the horn.”
Inverno blinked, “You’re just making this up aren’t you?”
Cadence sighed, “Here, let me show you.” She used her magic to put the record into place, then placed the needle on carefully. Inverno watched as the crank handle rotated, making the box “click” several times until it began to sound strained. Cadence then flipped the switch, and the little round table that the record itself was laying on began to turn. Then, to Inverno’s astonishment, he heard music start to emanate from the wide circular mouth.
“Seriously, how are you doing this?” Inverno asked as he stuck his muzzle into the horn of the phonograph.
Cadence giggled, “I already told you how it works. But for now, I must go attend some of my duties for today. I trust that you know how to work this?”
“I think so.”
“Good, I’ll come back later for lunch, the guards will be outside if you needed anything.”
Cadence was about to leave until Inverno asked, “What’s it playing?”
The Princess of Love smiled, “One of my personal favorites, it's Tchaicoltsky’s Symphonic Poem of Roanio and Filliet.”
“Symphonic?”
“Just take a listen; I’m sure you’ll like it.”