View source for Celesta

{{Short description|Struck idiophone operated by a keyboard}}
{{For|the car model|Hyundai Celesta}}
{{Other uses of|Celeste|Celeste (disambiguation)}}
{{Distinguish|Celestia}}
{{Use Oxford spelling|date=November 2018}}
{{more footnotes|date=December 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2024}}
{{Infobox instrument
| name           = Celesta
| names          = Celeste
| image          = Celesta Schiedmayer Studio.jpg
| background     = keyboard
| classification = [[Idiophone]]<br>[[Metallophone]]
| hornbostel_sachs = 111.222
| hornbostel_sachs_desc = sets of percussion plaques
| inventors      = {{hlist | Charles Victor Mustel | {{ill|Auguste Mustel|fr|Auguste Victor Mustel}} }}
| developed      = {{hlist | 1860 | 1886}}
| range          = C<sub>3</sub> – F<sub>8</sub>
| related        = * [[Glockenspiel]]
| musicians      = 
| builders       = 
| articles       = 
| sound sample   = Excerpt from ''Raymonda'' by Alexander Glazunov, arranged for solo celesta and performed by [[Celia García-García]]
}}

The '''celesta''' ({{IPAc-en|s|ᵻ|ˈ|l|ɛ|s|t|ə}}) or '''celeste''' ({{IPAc-en|s|ᵻ|ˈ|l|ɛ|s|t}}), also called a '''bell-piano''', is a struck [[idiophone]] operated by a keyboard. It looks similar to an upright piano (four- or five-[[octave]]), albeit with smaller keys and a much smaller cabinet, or a large wooden music box (three-octave). The keys connect to hammers that strike a graduated set of metal (usually steel) plates or bars suspended over wooden [[resonator]]s. Four- or five-octave models usually have a damper pedal that sustains or damps the sound. The three-octave instruments do not have a pedal because of their small "table-top" design. One of the best-known works that uses the celesta is [[Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky]]{{'}}s "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" from ''[[The Nutcracker]]''.

The sound of the celesta is similar to that of the [[glockenspiel]], but with a much softer and more subtle [[timbre]]. This quality gave the instrument its name, ''celeste'', meaning "heavenly" in French. The celesta is often used to enhance a melody line played by another instrument or section. Its musical parts are often the duplicate of a theme played on flute, harp or piano; sometimes even a real solo part. It is also used in chamber music, but there are very few concertos written for it. The delicate, bell-like sound is not loud enough to be used in full ensemble sections.

The celesta is a [[transposing instrument]]; it sounds one octave higher than the written pitch. Instruments of different sizes exist with ranges of three to five and a half octaves. Its four-octave sounding range is generally considered to be [[middle C|C<sub>4</sub>]] to C<sub>8</sub>. The fundamental frequency of 4186&nbsp;Hz makes this one of the highest pitches in common use. The original French instrument had a five-octave range, but because the lowest octave was considered somewhat unsatisfactory, it was omitted from later models before eventually being added back when technology improved. The standard French four-octave instrument is gradually being replaced in [[symphony orchestras]] by a larger, five-octave German model. Although it is a member of the percussion family, in orchestral terms it is more properly considered a member of the [[keyboard section]] and usually played by a keyboardist. The celesta part is normally written on two [[Bracket#Curly brackets|braced]] staves, called a [[grand staff]].

== History ==
[[File:Celesta Schiedmayer mechanism.gif|thumb|The Mustel celesta mechanism]]
The celesta was invented in 1886 by the Parisian [[Pump organ|harmonium]] builder {{ill|Auguste Mustel|fr|Auguste Victor Mustel}}. His father, Charles Victor Mustel, had developed the forerunner of the celesta, the typophone, in 1860. This instrument produced sound by striking [[tuning fork]]s instead of the metal plates that would be used in the celesta. The [[dulcitone]] functioned identically to the typophone and was developed concurrently in Scotland; it is unclear whether their creators were aware of one another's instrument.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Mo|first1=Sue|title=Dulcitone|url=http://sumo55.co.uk/dulcitone.html|website=Sumo55 Websites & Multi Media Design|access-date=28 September 2016}}</ref> The typophone's and dulcitone's uses were limited by its low volume, too quiet to be heard in a full orchestra.

[[File:Чайковский Танец Феи Драже из балета Щелкунчик.webm|thumb|Abbreviated concert performance of ''Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy'' by the orchestra of the [[Moscow Conservatory]]]]
[[Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky]] is usually cited as the first major composer to use this instrument in a work for full [[orchestra|symphony orchestra]]. He first used it in his [[symphonic poem]] ''[[The Voyevoda (symphonic ballad)|The Voyevoda]]'', Op. posth. 78, premiered in November 1891.<ref>[[Richard Freed|Freed, Richard]]. [LP Jacket notes.] "Tchaikovsky: 'Fatum,' ... 'The Storm,' ... 'The Voyevoda.{{'"}} Bochum Orchestra. Othmar Maga, conductor. Vox Stereo STPL 513.460. New York: Vox Productions, 1975.</ref> The following year, he used the celesta in passages of his ballet ''[[The Nutcracker]]'' (Op. 71, 1892), most notably in the ''Variation de la Fée Dragée'' (commonly known as the ''Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy''), in response to instructions from the [[Balletmaster]] [[Marius Petipa]] that the music should resemble ''"...drops of water shooting out of fountains..."''.<ref>{{cite book |last= Wiley|first= Roland John|author-link= |date= 1985|title= Tchaikovsky's Ballets|url= https://www.worldcat.org/title/10185315|location= New York|publisher= Oxford University Press|page= 379|isbn=9780193153141}}</ref>

However, [[Ernest Chausson]] preceded Tchaikovsky by employing the celesta in December 1888 in his [[incidental music]], written for a small orchestra, for ''La tempête'' (a French translation by [[Maurice Bouchor]] of [[William Shakespeare]]'s ''[[The Tempest]]'').<ref>Blades, James and Holland, James. "Celesta"; Gallois, Jean. "Chausson, Ernest: Works", [http://www.grovemusic.com Grove Music Online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080516041031/http://www.grovemusic.com/ |date=16 May 2008 }} (Accessed 8 April 2006) (subscription required)</ref>

The celesta is also notably used in [[Gustav Mahler]]'s [[Symphony No. 6 (Mahler)|Symphony No. 6]], particularly in the 1st, 2nd and 4th movements, in his [[Symphony No. 8 (Mahler)|Symphony No. 8]] and ''[[Das Lied von der Erde]]''. [[Karol Szymanowski]] featured it in his [[Symphony No. 3 (Szymanowski)|Symphony No. 3]]. [[Gustav Holst]] employed the instrument in his 1918 orchestral work ''[[The Planets]]'', particularly in the final movement, ''[[Neptune]], the Mystic''. It also features prominently in [[Béla Bartók]]'s 1936 ''[[Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta]]''. [[Ottorino Respighi]] included it in a number of his works, particularly the "Roman triptych" of tone poems. [[George Gershwin]] included a celesta solo in the score to ''[[An American in Paris]]''. [[Ferde Grofe]] also wrote an extended [[cadenza]] for the instrument in the third movement of his ''[[Grand Canyon Suite]]''. [[Dmitri Shostakovich]] included parts for celesta in seven out of his fifteen symphonies, with a notable use in the [[Symphony No. 4 (Shostakovich)|fourth symphony]]'s [[Coda (music)|coda]]. [[Erich Wolfgang Korngold]] featured it in many of his works, from [[Glück, das mir verblieb|Marietta's lied]] in act 1 of his opera [[Die tote Stadt]], through his film career, to his [[Violin Concerto (Korngold)|Violin Concerto]] (particularly in the second movement), and beyond.

Twentieth-century American composer [[Morton Feldman]] used the celesta in many of his large-scale chamber pieces such as ''Crippled Symmetry'' and ''For Philip Guston'', and it figured in much of his orchestral music and other pieces. In some works, such as "Five Pianos" one of the players doubles on celesta.

The celesta is used in [[Carl Orff]]'s cantata ''[[Carmina Burana (Orff)|Carmina Burana]]'' (1936),<ref>[http://www.stagepass.com/groupartist/artist_item_detail.hperl?Artist=Quiles%2C+Juan+Vicente+Mas&Invnum=49012080 "Juan Vicente Mas Quiles – ''Carmina Burana''], published by [[Schott Music]]</ref> and in some 20th-century operas such as the Silver Rose scene in ''[[Der Rosenkavalier]]'' (1911).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Luttrell |first1=Guy L. |title=The instruments of music |publisher=Taylor & Francis |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oLw9AAAAIAAJ&q=celesta+rosenkavalier&pg=PA163 |date=1979 |page=165 |language=en |via=books.google.com}}</ref>

The [[keyboard glockenspiel]] part in Mozart's ''[[The Magic Flute]]'' is nowadays often played by a celesta.<ref>{{cite web |title=Musical Chime Instruments and Mallet - Yamaha USA |url=http://usa.yamaha.com/products/musical-instruments/percussions/celesta/an_overview_of_yamaha_celestas/?mode=model |website=usa.yamaha.com |access-date=13 March 2012 |language=en}}</ref>

== Use in other musical genres ==
=== Jazz ===
Since [[Earl Hines]] took it up in 1928, other [[jazz pianist]]s have occasionally used the celesta as an alternative instrument. In the 1930s, [[Fats Waller]] sometimes played celesta with his right hand and piano simultaneously with his left hand. Other notable jazz pianists who occasionally played the celesta include [[Memphis Slim]], [[Meade "Lux" Lewis]], [[Willie "The Lion" Smith]], [[Art Tatum]], [[Duke Ellington]], [[Thelonious Monk]], [[Buddy Greco]], [[Oscar Peterson]], [[McCoy Tyner]], [[Sun Ra]], [[Keith Jarrett]], and [[Herbie Hancock]]. A celesta provides the introduction to ''Someday You'll Be Sorry'', a song [[Louis Armstrong]] recorded for [[RCA]], and is featured prominently throughout the piece.{{citation needed|date=January 2012}} A celesta is used by the pianist [[Russ Freeman (pianist)|Russ Freeman]] on tracks from [[Chet Baker Sings]] (such as ''My Ideal'' and ''[[I Get Along Without You Very Well (Except Sometimes)]]''). A number of recordings [[Frank Sinatra]] made for [[Columbia Records|Columbia]] in the [[1940s in music|1940s]] feature the instrument (for instance ''[[I'll Never Smile Again]]''),<ref>{{cite web |title=All or Nothing at All: A Life of Frank Sinatra (Chapter 3 The Band Singer) |url=http://www.donaldclarkemusicbox.com/all-or-nothing/detail.php?c=4 |website=www.donaldclarkemusicbox.com |access-date=3 March 2024}}</ref> as do many of his albums recorded for [[Capitol Records|Capitol]] in the 1950s (''[[In the Wee Small Hours]]'', ''[[Close to You (Frank Sinatra album)|Close to You]]'' and ''[[Songs for Swingin' Lovers]]'').<ref>"[https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-19691231/in-the-wee-small-hours-frank-sinatra-19691231 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, 100/500: In the Wee Small Hours – Frank Sinatra] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120527181018/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-19691231/in-the-wee-small-hours-frank-sinatra-19691231 |date=2012-05-27 }}", ''RollingStone.com''.</ref>

The use of celesta in jazz rapidly declined with the advent of the [[vibraphone]].

=== Rock and pop ===
<!--PLEASE NOTE: This is /not/ meant to be a comprehensive list. If there are any other truly notable examples, please use the talk page to drop a note/discuss FIRST before adding them.-->
Notable pop and rock songs recorded with the celesta include:
* "[[Ain't No Mountain High Enough]]" by [[Marvin Gaye]] and [[Tammi Terrell]]
* "[[Jethro Tull – The String Quartets]]" by [[Jethro Tull (band)|Jethro Tull]] 
* "[[Rhythm of the Rain]]" by [[The Cascades (band)|The Cascades]]
* "As If You Read My Mind" by [[Stevie Wonder]]
* "[[Everyday (Buddy Holly song)|Everyday]]" by [[Buddy Holly]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Everyday by Buddy Holly |url=http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=2492 |website=www.songfacts.com |date= |access-date= |archive-date=21 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110821182736/http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=2492 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* "[[Baby It's You]]" as recorded by [[The Beatles]]<ref>{{cite web |title="Baby It's You" by The Beatles. The in-depth story behind the songs of the Beatles. Recording History. Songwriting History. Song Structure and Style |url=http://www.beatlesebooks.com/baby-its-you |website=www.beatlesebooks.com |date= |access-date=3 March 2024}}</ref>
* "[[Girl Don't Tell Me]]" by [[The Beach Boys]]
* "[[Cherish (The Association song)|Cherish]]" by [[The Association]] 
* "[[Sunday Morning (The Velvet Underground song)|Sunday Morning]]" and "[[Stephanie Says]]" by [[The Velvet Underground]]<ref>{{cite web |title=CREEM ONLINE: Lou Reed — Sunday Morning |url=http://www.creemmagazine.com/_site/BeatGoesOn/LouReed/SundayMorning001.html |access-date= |date=2 November 2009 |archive-date=2 November 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091102072948/http://www.creemmagazine.com/_site/BeatGoesOn/LouReed/SundayMorning001.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* "Wee Baby Blues" by [[Climax Blues Band]]
* "[[Northern Sky]]" by [[Nick Drake]]
* "[[Maggie May]]" and "[[Mine for Me]]" by [[Rod Stewart]]
* "New York City" by [[Owl City]]
* "[[Raw Power|Penetration]]" by [[The Stooges]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Iggy Pop keeps Stooges raw, real |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2010/08/27/iggy-pop-keeps-stooges-raw-real/ |website=[[Chicago Tribune]] |access-date= |date=27 August 2010}}</ref>
* "[[Novocaine for the Soul]]", "Flyswatter", "Trouble with Dreams" and many other songs by [[Eels (band)|Eels]]
* "[[Every Single Night]]" by [[Fiona Apple]]
* "[[Tarkus (song)|Tarkus]]" by [[Emerson, Lake & Palmer]]
* "Here Today" by [[Illinois Speed Press]]
* "Love is a Beautiful Thing" by [[Vulfpeck]]
* "Queen of Them All" by [[Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young]]
*"[[Wuthering Heights (song)|Wuthering Heights]]" by [[Kate Bush]]
*"Lost Track" by [[HAIM (band)]]
*"[[Figure of Eight (song)|Figure of Eight]]" by [[Paul McCartney]]
* "Too Much Sea Between Us" by [[Procol Harum]]
* "Bells of the Evening" by [[Gordon Lightfoot]] (celesta played by Nick DeCaro)
* "[[Love Makes the World Go 'Round (Deon Jackson song)|Love Makes the World Go Round]]" by [[Deon Jackson (singer)|Deon Jackson]]
* "[[Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun]]" by [[Pink Floyd]]
* "[[Vespertine]]" album by [[Björk]]
* "[[La marche de l'empereur]]" by [[Émilie Simon]]

Icelandic band [[Sigur Rós]] included celesta on their album ''[[Takk...]]'',<ref>{{cite web |title=Takk... documentary |url=http://www.sigur-ros.co.uk/band/disco/takk-documentary.php |website=sigur-ros.co.uk |access-date= |date= |archive-date=9 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090509193307/http://www.sigur-ros.co.uk/band/disco/takk-documentary.php |url-status=dead }}</ref> as did lead singer [[Jónsi]] on ''[[Go Quiet]]'', the acoustic version of his solo album ''Go''. [[Steven Wilson]] also uses it on various tracks in his solo works.

The Italian 1970s [[progressive rock]] band Celeste was named after the instrument.

[[Bruce Springsteen]] and the [[E Street Band]] used a celesta heavily in their early days, with [[Danny Federici]] often playing a Jenco Celestette in the band's live performances throughout the 1970s and 80s.

[[Sheryl Crow]] plays celesta on her 2017 album, ''[[Be Myself]]''.<ref>{{Discogs release|10378122|Be Myself}} accessed 3 March 2024</ref>

The band [[A-ha]] used, among other instruments, a Jenco celesta during their [[MTV Unplugged: Summer Solstice]] performances, recorded and released in 2017.

=== Soundtrack ===
The celesta has been common in cinema for decades. In addition to supplementing numerous soundtrack orchestrations for films from the [[1930s in film|1930s]] through to the [[1960s in film|1960s]], the celesta has occasionally been spotlighted to invoke a whimsical air. For example, in ''[[Pinocchio (1940 film)|Pinocchio]]'' (1940), a small motif on the celesta is used whenever the Blue Fairy appears out of thin air or performs magic. Celesta also provides the signature opening of ''[[Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory#Music|Pure Imagination]]'', a song (sung by [[Gene Wilder]]) from the [[1971 in film|1971]] film ''[[Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory]]''.{{citation needed|date=January 2012}} Composer [[John Williams]]'s scores for the first three [[Harry Potter (film series)|Harry Potter]] films feature the instrument, particularly in the first two films' frequent statements of "[[Hedwig's Theme]]".

Another use of the celesta was in the music on the [[children's television series]] ''[[Mister Rogers' Neighborhood]]''. It was heard in the intro to the theme song of the programme, "Won't You Be My Neighbor", which began with a dreamy sequence on the instrument. The song was sung by [[Fred Rogers]] and played by [[Johnny Costa]]. It was also used from time to time in other music sequences throughout the programme.{{fact|date=May 2025}}

== Manufacturers ==
[[File:Celesta Schiedmayer mechanism 2.jpg|thumb|Inside view of a celesta]]
[[File:Celesta Schiedmayer Studio open backview.jpg|thumb|Celesta with back cover removed]]
[[Schiedmayer]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.alt.celesta-schiedmayer.info |title=Schiedmayer Celesta |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |publisher=Schiedmayer GmbH |access-date=3 January 2016}} Schiedmayer's website claims that it "... is today the only Celesta manufacturer worldwide": Schiedmayer is the only company manufacturing celestas according to the patent of A. Mustel and claims the instruments build by Yamaha are "keyboard glockenspiels". However, this claim is contradicted by Yamaha.</ref> and [[Yamaha Corporation|Yamaha]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://usa.yamaha.com/products/musical-instruments/keyboards/celesta/an_overview_of_yamaha_celestas/?mode=model |title=An Overview of Yamaha Celestas |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |publisher=Yamaha Corporation |access-date=3 January 2016 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20160625131611/http://usa.yamaha.com/products/musical-instruments/keyboards/celesta/an_overview_of_yamaha_celestas/?mode=model |
archive-date=2016-06-25}} Yamaha's website states that it has manufactured Celestas since 1992.</ref> are the only companies currently making celestas. Other known manufacturers that made celestas in the past include:
* Mustel & Company (Paris, France) 
* Simone Bros. Celeste MFGS (Philadelphia and New York, US)
* Morley (England)
* Jenco (Decatur, Illinois, US)
* Helmes (New York, US)

== Substitutes ==
If an ensemble or orchestra lacks a celesta, a piano, synthesizer, or sampler and electronic keyboards are often used as a substitute.

== See also ==
* [[Electric piano]]
* [[Voix céleste]] on organs

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== References ==
* "Celesta", ''[[The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians]]'', second edition, edited by [[Stanley Sadie]] and John Tyrrell (London, 2001).
* "Celesta", ''The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz'', second edition, edited by Barry Kernfeld (London, 2002).

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Celestas}}
* [https://www.yamaha.com/en/musical_instrument_guide/celesta/mechanism/mechanism004.html Comparison of Schiedmayer and Yamaha celesta designs] - Yamaha Musical Instrument Guide
* [https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1568920 "The Celesta: The Sound of the Sugar Plum Fairy"], by Miles Hoffman (2003-12-24). Listen on npr.org.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20101206045539/http://weekendamerica.publicradio.org/display/web/2008/12/13/celesta/ "Songs for Celesta"], by Marc Sanchez

{{Plaque percussion idiophones}}
{{Musical keyboards}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1886 introductions]]
[[Category:C instruments]]
[[Category:French inventions]]
[[Category:Keyboard instruments]]
[[Category:Orchestral instruments]]
[[Category:Plaque percussion idiophones]]
[[Category:Transposing instruments]]
[[Category:Struck idiophones]]