A piano maker inspired by Stradivari

It may have been an Italian that invented the piano, but the country had long ceased to make them. Until Paolo Fazioli decided to combine his education in mechanical engineering with his musical training to reinvent the instrument, that is.

An Italian may have invented the piano but when 63-year old Paolo Fazioli was a child, the Italians certainly weren't making them any more. "The idea was stolen by the Germans, who were very wealthy. They developed the piano."

Unrefined and sometimes brutal, the current look and sound of the piano was hardly in line with the more colourful and elegant characteristics of Italian design, says Fazioli, who as a budding pianist yearned for a lighter tone and faster keyboard action. But his musical ambitions didn't seem of much use to the family's furniture business, based in Sacile, a small village 30 miles north of Venice.

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Jody Clarke

Jody studied at the University of Limerick and was a senior writer for MoneyWeek. Jody is experienced in interviewing, for example digging into the lives of an ex-M15 agent and quirky business owners who have made millions. Jody’s other areas of expertise include advice on funds, stocks and house prices.