SI photographs by Robert C. Lautman

In 19th-century America the public came to regard the home and the family circle as a sanctuary. Among the middle class, the piano was the high altar of this shrine, tended by the women of the house. The piano in the parlor became as necessary as a kitchen range in a respectable middle-class home, serving as a symbol of morality and refinement.

In terms of design, Americans preferred square pianos in their homes until the 1870s; by the early 19^th century, Europeans preferred upright or vertical pianos.

SI photographs by Hugh Talman

Every well-bred girl was expected to play the piano, whether she had talent and desire or not. A musical daughter was a status symbol both for wealthy and upwardly mobile families. Some women used the skill to lure a husband, discarding the piano after marriage. Others played throughout their lives, to accompany singing and dancing at social gatherings, to provide music at church, or to comfort themselves in solitude. Advice books in the 19th century defined an educated woman as one accomplished in music, dance, needlework, drawing, and manners.

SI photograph by Eric Long