The piano was invented by Bartolomeo Cristofori in Padua, Italy, around the year 1700. Before the piano, the most popular keyboard instruments were the harpsichord and the clavichord. The harpsichord was limited because it could not vary the volume of notes based on how hard the keys were pressed; it simply plucked the strings at a uniform volume. Cristofori's invention was originally named the 'gravicembalo col piano e forte' (harpsichord with soft and loud), later shortened to pianoforte and eventually just piano. He achieved this by creating a complex mechanical action where hammers struck the strings and then immediately recoiled, allowing the string to vibrate freely. This allowed musicians a much greater range of expression and dynamics, revolutionizing Western classical music and paving the way for the Romantic era's emotive compositions.