The History of the Piano Bartolomeo Cristofori

The piano first known as the pianoforte evolved from the harpsichord around 1700 to 1720, by Italian inventor Bartolomeo Cristofori. Harpsichord manufacturers wanted to make an instrument with a better dynamic response than the harpsichord. Cristofori, the keeper of instruments in the court of Prince Ferdinand de Medici of Florence, was the first to solve the problem. The instrument was already more than 100 years old by the time Beethoven was writing his last sonatas, around the time when it ousted the harpsichord as the standard keyboard instrument. Bartolomeo Cristofori Cristofori was born in  Padua  in the  Republic of Venice.  At age 33, he was recruited to work for Prince  Ferdinando. Ferdinando, the son and heir of  Cosimo III, Grand Duke of  Tuscany, loved music. There is only speculation as to what led Ferdinando to recruit Cristofori. The Prince traveled to  Venice  in 1688 to attend the  Carnival, so perhaps he met Cristofori passing through Padua on his return trip home. Ferdinando was looking for a new technician to care for his many musical instruments, as the previous worker had passed away. However, it seems possible that the Prince wanted to hire Cristofori not just as his technician, but specifically as an innovator in musical instruments. During the remaining years of the 17th century, Cristofori invented two keyboard instruments before he began his work on the piano. These instruments are documented in an inventory, dated 1700, of the many instruments kept by Prince Ferdinando.  The  spinettone  was a large, multi-choired spinet  (a harpsichord in which the strings are slanted to save space). This invention may have been meant to fit into a crowded orchestra pit for theatrical performances  while having the louder sound of a multi-choired instrument. The Age of the Piano From 1790 to the mid-1800s, piano technology and sound was greatly improved due to the inventions of the Industrial Revolution, such as  the new high-quality steel called piano wire, and the ability to precisely cast iron frames. The tonal range of the piano increased from the five octaves of the pianoforte to the seven and more octaves found on modern pianos. Upright Piano Around 1780, the upright piano was created by Johann Schmidt of Salzburg, Austria, and later improved in 1802 by Thomas Loud of London whose upright piano had strings that ran diagonally. Player Piano In 1881, an early patent for a piano player was issued to John McTammany of Cambridge, Mass. John McTammany described his invention as a mechanical musical instrument. It worked using narrow sheets of perforated flexible paper which triggered the notes. A later automatic piano player was the Angelus patented by Edward H. Leveaux of England on February 27, 1879, and described as an apparatus for storing and transmitting motive power. McTammanys invention was actually the earlier one invented (1876), however, the patent dates are in the opposite order due to filing procedures. On March 28, 1889, William Fleming received a patent for a player piano using electricity.

The Gravitational Pull into WWI-U.S Involvement - 720 Words

Europe felt strong, secure, and stable before WW1. Every country seemed to have a backup plan, or in this case a country, to call on for aid. The majority of European leaders were in some way related and the treaties were abundant. The triple Entente and the Triple Alliance seemed like a solid and logical support system in case of a war. However, these alliances would later prove to be the catalyst to ignite a colossal fire of war and blood for the entire world. That spark came from Austria, Hungary and the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand. The United States seemed like an unlikely candidate for being involved with WW1 because they were Isolationists and stood neutral in the conflict for three years. The reasons for US involvement in WW1 was because of economic instability if Britain loses the war, political unrest that Germany provoked, and the social yearning for war; shaped by the media. The threat of economic instability influenced the U.S to get into WW1. The U.S had loaned money to allies in Europe for the three years that the war had been going on. Trade with the Allies had increased from $825 million in 1914 to 3.2 billion in 1916, as trade with Britain went up, trade with Germany and Austria went down to nearly nothing as Document (B)’s graph sufficiently shows. Britain was more than three billion dollars in debt to the U.S. If Britain loses the war; that would mean the economy of the United States would be in peril. â€Å"How to remain neutral without inflicting

Ruby Moon Free Essays

As the director and dramaturge for a fully mounted production of, Ruby Moon by Matt Cameron for a festival with a focus on Australian society I must select a relevant scene for an audience to promote the entire play. Ruby Moon was written in 2003 by Matt Cameron (1969), a Melbourne playwright who was heavily â€Å"influenced by headlines in the newspaper† regarding missing children which sparked many of his plot lines.His plays, in particular Ruby Moon, comment on the notion of a decimated community where there is no longer any communication between neighbours and how the suburbs are now deemed as unsafe and frightening. We will write a custom essay sample on Ruby Moon or any similar topic only for you Order Now This is the paradox of Flaming Tree Grove, the street where Ruby Moon sets off to visit her grandmothers and is never seen again. . When an ominous parcel arrives on her parents, Sylvie and Ray Moons doorstep, they are prompted to call on their weird eccentric neighbours in an attempt to solve the mystery of Ruby’s disappearance. Ruby Moon is a fractured fairytale. The dramatic structure is cyclical and episodic. It is episodic in that it contains a prologue and an epilogue with a series of ten short, self-contained scenes which run strictly with no interval, each scene having its own narrative and complication. It is a contemporary Australian drama containing absurdist elements with many different acting styles such as representational, presentational, heightened naturalism, absurdism and mime with influences from Growtoski. To promote the play, I decided to preview Scene Seven to an audience as it best represents this decimated community at stake throughout this play which is a reacurring theme while also containing many Australian influences, being a place of high tension, engaging the audience and persuading them to see the rest of that play. As a dramaturge I must be able to study and interpret plays for actors and directors. I may advise on selecting plays, adaptations, translations, program notes, stagecraft’s etc. I must also be able to look at the interpretations through the dialogue and stage directions and create meaning from them. I decided to preview scene seven as it challenges Australian attitudes and values revolving around this terrifying paradox of the suburbs and decimated community which has now been formed in Australian neighbourhoods. There is a lack of trust in the suburbs whereas both Sylvie and Ray are stereotypically trustworthy challenging the audiences previous assumptions about safety within Australian suburbs, making them feel betrayed. It shows the fear existing in Australian society and the grief of the parents, putting their trust in the community which inevitably can’t be trusted. It highly demonstrates the invasion of privacy and the safe haven in Australian neighbourhoods, for example when Sylvie states that, â€Å"Someone’s been in our home, Ray. † The play overall is suitable for the festival as it challenges Australian attitudes and values about safe neighbourhoods which is clearly non-existent within the play and the fear of the unknown as well as how it comments on this terrifying and frightening paradox heavily existing in Australian suburbs today and the effect it has on not only the parents, but the loss of community as well. As a director also, I must be able to supervise actors as they develop interpretations as well as co-ordinating all the elements that support performers. I must be able to shape, interpret and use the elements of drama to create particular effects for an audience. To enhance conflict I decided to place Ruby and Ray upstage so that they have a closer proximity with the audience. I decided to create many pauses between Sylvie and Ray’s dialogue to redefine the conflict. For example when Sylvie says, ‘Ray†¦? Where’s Ruby? ’ and Ray responds with, ‘I don’t know, Sylvie! I don’t know! ’ I decided to place the actors so that they’re facing each other with a pause after Ray’s dialogue to show the climatic moment. I decided for Sylvie to imagine the mannequin of Ruby is outside the front under the street lamp so she is looking out into the audience enhancing the conflict revolving around the missing mannequin which she says. ‘The mannequin! She’s not under the street lamp. Somebody’s taken her. Who could be that cruel? ’ Sylvie is looking out frantically into the audience making the audience feel uncomfortable and uneasy enhancing the conflict of this missing mannequin. One last way in which conflict is shown is through the body part of Ruby being sent in a parcel and how they don’t know the answers to who sent it and why and how it event got there reinforcing the invasion of a safe neighbourhood. Read also:  Moon By Chaim Potok How to cite Ruby Moon, Essay examples

AVEO Company for Journal of Financial Management- myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theAVEO Company for Journal of Financial Management. Answer: Weighted average cost of capital (WACC) depicts a companys financial position in (miles Ezzell, 2012)consideration to its ability to finance innovative projects or other payments by raising cash from external sources. These sources appear in two main classes: stocks and bonds. The two have distinct costs to the firm, and WACC is a subjective average of the entire price of getting funds via debit and equity. Suggestion of Aveo group WACC Recent research shows a considerable decrease in cumulative percentage of Aveo group Weighted Average Cost of Capital. According to 2016 statistics the group WACC was recorded to have declined to a percentage of 3.4.The decline brought about several suggestions to the financial analysts. Briefly, the suggestions attempt to explain the reasons which might have led to this considerable decline(Pricing Tribunal, 2013). The company might have lowered the price of issuing equity Price of equity basically is used by financial analysts to refer to the stockholders required return rate on the company equity investment. It similarly depicts the return rate that would have been realized by investing the cash in a different venture with an equivalent risk level. Price of equity is a crucial factor of stock analysis. An investor will always expect an equity share to propagate by at least the price of equity; price of equity is commonly used as concession rate to compute an equity ventures fair price. Considering the Aveo group scenario, lowering the terms of issuing equity will attract investors and this might have been the reason behind the decline in the average WACC(Arditti Levy, 2014). The company might have reduced the price of debt Price of debt basically denotes the rate at which a company recompenses its current debt. In most cases, it is used to refer to the after-tax price of debt; it can also denote to a firms price of debt before putting taxes into consideration. This measure is essential for giving a notch on the overall rate in the process of payment by a company using debt financing. The measure gives investors an insight on the company risk in comparison to the others; riskier companies usually have a greater cost of debt. Lowering the price of debt by the Aveo group might have attracted potential investors and hence reducing the WACC(Arditti, 2015) . The WACC is settled through intricate calculations and conventions about the different types of capital (debt and equity) used by Aveo group to fund its operations. Costs are restrained against approximate risk elements. Greater subsidy costs and greater risks create a greater WACC. A lesser WACC increases incomes because the company can borrow cheaply(Brusov, et al., 2011). Calculating the WACC The formula is: WACC = E / (E + D) * Cost of Equity + D / (E + D) * Cost of Debt * (1 - Tax Rate) Weights Companys possessions are funded by both debts and equity. For that reason, in calculating the companys WACC the burden of equity and the burden of debt must be considered first. The equity market value of Aveo group also known as the Market Cap has been recorded as $M 1,388.The value of debt in the market typically being hard to compute, this paper uses the book figures of debt to carry out the calculations. According to the book value $0(Bourdex Long, 2013). a)Weight of equity = E / (E + D) = 1,388 / (1,388 + 0) = 1 b) weight of debit = D / (E + D) = 0 / (1,388} + 0) = 0 Price of Equity: This paper makes use of CAPM (Capital Asset Pricing Model) model to compute the required return rate. The formula used is: price of Equity = Risk-Free Rate of Return + Beta of Asset * (Expected Return of the Market - Risk-Free Rate of Return) (Linke Kim, 2013) a) The paper evaluates a 10-Year Reserves Perpetual Maturity Rate as the risk-free rate. The current risk-free rate of Aveo group is 2.41000000% b) Beta refers to the volatility of the anticipated surplus asset paybacks to the anticipated surplus market paybacks. Aveo group beta is 3.15 c). This paper considers the market premium of Aveo group to be 20%. Price of Equity = 41000000%+ 3.15 * 20% = 63.241% The Price of Debt: The research uses last fiscal year end expenses on interest and divide them by the two year average debt to attain a simplified cost of debt; Cost of Debt = 0 / 0 = %. Multiply by one minus Average Tax Rate: The paper makes use of the current 2-year tax rate for computation. The current 2-year Average Rate of Tax is 0% The Aveo group WACC can hence be computed as: WACC = E / (E + D) * Cost of Equity + D / (E + D) * Cost of Debt * (1 - Tax Rate) = 1 * 63.241% + 0 * % * (1 - 0%) = 63.241% Lowering the WACC Considering all the different components forming the weighted average cost of capital is the initial step to making efforts to lower it. With consideration to debt, firms can lower their cost of giving bonds by reducing the rates of interest they offer to the investors. They become more creditworthy as a result: Firms with bad credit ratings are forced to offer greater rates on bonds. The firm can also move to a location with a greater tax rate, but this is perhaps counterproductive(Ross, et al., 2013). In regards to equity, a firm that offers stocks with small beta is a reduced amount of risky to the investors and consequently can offer small of a risk premium. The other components, the threat-free premium and the overall market risk, are outside of the firms control(Reilly Wecker, 2014). Aveo group capital arrangement The capital structure refers to how a company funds its general activities and development making use of different sources of reserves. Debt emerges in bond form issued or extended-term cash payable, whereas equity is classified as common/ preferred stock or reserved earnings(Nantell Carlson, 2015). Analysis of Aveo group Capital structure Aveo group capital structure as per the recent research has indicated an ill proportion of equity to asset proportion. This simply shows that the company relies largely on debt capital as compared to its equity. Since a healthy proportion of equity capital indicates that a company is financially fit, this trend of Aveo group to rely mainly on debt is a clear indication that the company is financially unfit(Titman Wessels, 2013). Appropriate capital structure recommendation for Aveo group The word capital structure is used to exemplify the proportionate connection between the numerous long-term categories of capital schedules the equity, debentures, inclination shares, long- term liability, capital excess, and reserved earnings. For a capital structure to be termed as appropriate, it must meet some important features(Brusov, et al., 2011), Flexibility The impression of adaptability gives the back administrator the ability to adjust the company's capital structure with a base cost and deferral, if justified by the changed condition. It ought to likewise be workable for the organization to give reserves at whatever point expected to back its productive exercises(Bourdex Long, 2013). Profitability A sound capital structure should allow the greatest utilization of use at least cost in order to give better productivity and consequently expanding profit per share(Nantell Carlson, 2015). Solvency Broad obligation debilitates the dissolvability and FICO score of the organization. The obligation financing ought to be just to the degree that it can be overhauled completely and furthermore be paid back (if required)(Brusov, et al., 2011). Conservatism No organization ought to surpass its obligation limit. As of now clarified that the intrigue is to be paid on obligation and the foremost aggregate is likewise to be paid. These installments rely upon future money streams. In the event that future money streams are not adequate then the money indebtedness can prompt lawful bankruptcy(Evans Kelvin, 2014). Control The capital arrangement ought not to prompt loss of regulation in an organization. The Proposed capital structure for Aveo group The Optimal capital structure An optimum capital arrangement is the best debt-to-equity ratio for Aveo Group in order to maximize its value. The optimum capital arrangement adoption by the Aveo group will offer a balance between the companys ideal debts to equity level and minimize its price of capital. Theoretically, debt funding offers the lowest price of capital because of the tax deductibility(Brusov, et al., 2011). Risky associated with optimum capital structure In monetary terms, debt is a moral instance of the reputed 2-edged sword. Intelligent utilization of debt upsurges the aggregate of monetary assets available to a firm for its advance and enlargement. The postulation is that management can get additional on loan reserves than it recompenses in interest expenditures and charges on these reserves. Though, as effective as this formula may appear, it requires a firm to uphold a solid record of conforming to its numerous borrowing obligations(Bourdex Long, 2013). A company reflected to have high debts may find its liberty of actions limited by its creditors and its productivity offended as a consequence of repaying high interest costs. Of course, the situation is considered to be worst-case if the company faces distress meeting functioning and debt obligations in times of hostile economic circumstances. Lastly, Aveo group being a highly competitive firm, shuffled by huge debt, will find its opponents taking advantage of its hitches to seize large market shares(Harris Raviv, 2015). Dividend policy Because dividends signify a form of revenue for investors, a company's dividend policy is an essential contemplation for some investors. Intrinsically, it is crucial consideration for company management, particularly because firm leaders are often the prime shareholders and have the most to advance from a substantial dividend policy. Most firms consider a dividend policy as a fundamental part of the company strategy. Board must resolve on the dividend extent, timing and some other factors that impact dividend overheads over time. There are three categories of dividend policies: stable, constant and residual dividend policy(Titman Wessels, 2013). The current analysis based on the Aveo group Analysis of Aveo group has shown an ill trend based on the dividend practices, this is depicted by its percentage stand of 3.91%. this is a low stand basically(Brusov, et al., 2011). Dividend pattern and policy followed by the Aveo group Stable Dividend Policy This is the easiest and most frequently used policy by many organizations. The policy goal is to achieve steady and foreseeable dividend disbursements every year, which is what many investors really like(Teshtesh Titus, 2013). When remunerations are up, shareholders get a dividend. Still when remunerations are down, investors as well receive a dividend. The goal is to support the dividend policy with the long-term advance of the firm rather than with periodical earnings instability. This approach permits the investor to have more confidence around the amount and scheduling of the dividend. Analysis on Aveo group share price and company performance Aveo Group's share price according to recent research shows its below the impending cash flow worth, and at a substantial discount of below 20 percent. Dividends per stake has gone down over the previous 10 years(Evans Kelvin, 2014). General decline in Share prices There have been falls in the general share prices in the Aveo group. The stock market is pretty impulsive, upsurge and decline in the share prices wont shake its general business directly. Conversely, if there is a constant decline in share prices(Brusov, et al., 2011), it may discourage the firm from supplying more shares to increase revenue. For example, in the climate of stock market instability, firms wouldnt have much assurance in supplying more shares as they would get a low profit. A large decline in share prices may cause broader economic hitches. Underperforming Shares Afirm may see a sharp fall in share value with respect to different firms (rest of money markets). This will happen if speculators are not hopeful about prospect of firm to make benefit and pay great profit. e.g. in the event that firm makes an extensive misfortune it won't have the capacity to pay a profit to investors and this makes the offer less appealing(Bourdex Long, 2013). This decline in the offer cost could make the company powerless beside an assume control. This would apt an alteration in proprietorship. The new management may decide to adjust the approach for dealing with the organization. They could sale unfruitful parts of the corporate and significantly change things(Arditti, 2015). Work cited Arditti, 2015. The weighted average cost of capital:some questions and its definition, interpretation and use. journal of finance, Volume 654, pp. 34-45. Arditti Levy, 2014. The weighted average cost of capital as a cutoff rate, a critical analysis of weighted average. journal of financial management, Volume 567, pp. 234-254. Bourdex Long, 2013. weighted average cost of capital as a cutoff rate; a further analysis. s.l.:s.n. Brusov, Filatova, Orehova Brusova, 2011. weighted average cost of capital in the theory of modigliani-miller, modified for finite lifetime company. journal of applied economics, Volume 234, p. 56. Evans Kelvin, 2014. corporate perfomance analysis. journal of recent finance states, Volume 8765, p. 564. Harris Raviv, 2015. The theory of capital structure. journal of finance, Volume 254, p. 34. Linke Kim, 2013. More on weighted average cost of capital: a comment and analysis. journal of financial and quantitative analysis, Volume 987, p. 345. miles Ezzell, 2012. the weighted average cost of capital, perfect capital markets and project life. journal of financial and quantitative analysis, Volume 2345, pp. 123-145. Nantell Carlson, 2015. The cost of capital as weighted average. journal of finance, Volume 567, p. 76. Pricing Tribunal, 2013. Weighted average cost of capital. journal of economics, Volume 765, pp. 123- 345. Reilly Wecker, 2014. On the weighted average cost of capital. journal of financial and quantitative analysis, Volume 876, p. 234. Ross, Westerfield Jaffe, 2013. Corporate finance. s.l.:s.n. Teshtesh Titus, 2013. the basics of dividend policy. journal of corporate finance, Volume 453, p. 34. Titman Wessels, 2013. choices of capital structure in the economy analysis. journal of finance, Volume 453, p. 45. Titman Wessels, 2013. determinants of capital structure choice. journal of finance, Volume 1097, p. 543.