Celeste, also spelled celesta, is an orchestral percussion instrument which looks like a small upright piano. It was patented by a Parisian, Auguste Mustel, in 1886.
A celeste is made of a keyboard connected to small felt hammers that strike a series of small metal bars. Each bar is resonated by a wooden box that reinforces the fundamental tone of the bar. A pedal lifts a felt-pad damper from the bars, enabling the performer to allow the notes to ring on or to shorten them. A celeste usually has a range of four octaves upward from middle C.
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