Exibition room << Back exhibit information online Name Baroque Description In the 17th Century the invention of the piano changed the course of music history. A section of the museum's second hall is devoted entirely to the works of Bartolomeo Cristofori, the piano's inventor. One of the most valuable instruments in the museum's collection is the world's oldest fortepiano surviving in its original state; the instrument was built by Cristofori in 1726. Passages Bartolomeo Cristofori Renaissance   Exhibit Tenor viola da gamba, 1688 Tenor viola da gamba, 1697 Tenor viola da gamba, 1731 Pardessus de viole, 1758 Dessus de viole, 1750 Pardessus de viole, 18th century Virginal, 18th century