# ‘Simple’ things that are surprisingly difficult **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 1, 2023, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404 "2023-07-01T15:16:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2023, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404/101 "2023-07-08T04:58:30Z")
I never realized there was so much triangle mastery in Pink Panther theme. Check this live cut: [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/jBupII3LH_Q/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEmCOADEOgC8quKqQMa8AEB-AG-AoAC8AGKAgwIABABGHIgVyg7MA8=&rs=AOn4CLAEofzezl09-3cS4kVKj-lfcCYL0w "Henry Mancini, "Pink Panther Theme"") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBupII3LH_Q) ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2023, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404/102 "2023-07-08T12:40:06Z")
> [@jnglmassiv](#): > > I never realized there was so much triangle mastery in Pink Panther theme. Check this live cut The triangle is as integral to the Pink Panther theme as the cowbell is to ‘Don’t Fear the Reaper’! ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2023, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404/103 "2023-07-08T22:24:29Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > On a piano it’s anywhere from 1 to 8 notes at a time. And Why did you stop at eight? You have ten fingers. Plus you can play two keys with one finger (usually the thumb) if necessary (though you see that more in modern/gospel music and more with electric pianos.) ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2023, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404/104 "2023-07-09T00:44:31Z")
I’m not a musician; just a more than averagely theory-aware listener. I was simply thinking that most chords are 3 or 4 notes times two hands = 8 notes tops. I wasn’t aware of 5 or more note chords / fingerings per hand. I’m not disputing you, but do you have any good cites or better yet vids where I could watch & listen to such in action? Always learning. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2023, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404/105 "2023-07-09T01:02:46Z")
My first thought was “Maybe something by Liszt or Rachmaninoff?” What I found in just a short time searching definitely uses all 10 fingers, but I can’t find a place where there are more than 8 keys pressed at a time. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/sCtixpIWBto/maxresdefault.jpg "Rachmaninoff - Prelude in C Sharp Minor (Op. 3 No. 2)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCtixpIWBto) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/ALqOKq0M6ho/maxresdefault.jpg "Liszt - Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALqOKq0M6ho) ---
**Author:** ![Moonrise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonrise/32/14764_2.png) [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2023, 8:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404/106 "2023-07-09T08:06:58Z")
You can even play more than ten notes simultaneously if you use your fists, elbows and forearms. Actually, you have no other choice when confronted with something like this : [![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Cowell_tone_clusters.png/220px-Cowell_tone_clusters.png) ](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Cowell_tone_clusters.png/220px-Cowell_tone_clusters.png) ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2023, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404/107 "2023-07-09T11:40:14Z")
You can play all 88 notes at once if you toss the piano out a window from a high floor. The hard part is playing any notes at all after that. @Thudlow_Boink Seriously, thank you. Interesting to watch the Rachmaninoff piece and at least for the first third notice it was essentially written for a single 10-fingered hand. There was no notion of bass + melody. There’d be various two-ish octave 8-ish fingered melody chords, and the occasional jump down 3 or 4 octaves to deliver a bass counterpoint that was itself essentially a single 8-fingered two octave chord. Lather rinse repeat. I also liked the “player piano” graphic. Helped to visualize what was going on tonally. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2023, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404/108 "2023-07-10T13:11:06Z")
[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/ifKKlhYF53w/hqdefault.jpg "IGUDESMAN & JOO - Rachmaninov had big Hands") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifKKlhYF53w) ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2023, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404/109 "2023-07-10T15:31:30Z")
In addition to the 10 fingers, oganists may use their feet for bass pedals. ---
**Author:** ![its\_the\_daddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bb73d2/32.png) [@its\_the\_daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/its_the_daddy)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2023, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404/110 "2023-07-10T15:51:39Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > You can play all 88 notes at once if you toss the piano out a window from a high floor. And if you drop a piano down a mineshaft, you get A flat miner. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-things-that-are-surprisingly-difficult/986404.md?page=5)