The "authenticity" problem has haunted music since the era of recorded music began. The public asks for a "real" sound, and yet simultaneously, our recording pr

The "authenticity" problem has haunted music since the era of recorded music began. The public asks for a "real" sound, and yet simultaneously, our recording practices indicate that we don't actually want "real" recordings - we want larger than life recordings with "punchy" sound, with all the flaws processed and spliced out, and mixed in a way so that it translates down to the humblest radios and up to the most extravagant audiophile system, and can be played in both noisy crowds and quiet living rooms. This tends to affect musicians as well - the idea that only a brand name piece of gear can give you the authentic sound you're looking for and perhaps heard on some recording from the 60s or 70s, which itself was treated with the specific recording processes of that era. But the truth of it is found right in the article - even the famous composers were simply trying to use the particular pianos they had at the time as effectively as possible. When they changed equipment, their sound changed as well.