Research & Development

Kaduk develops musical instruments from first principles. Research and development are not a separate department, but the basis on which our instruments are conceived, engineered, and tested.

Our work addresses the instrument as a single system: the interaction between the human body, mechanical action, sound generation, and control. This includes acoustics, mechanics, ergonomics, electronics, materials, and system architecture, considered together rather than as isolated disciplines.

Where required, this research is supported by collaboration with external specialists, including medical professionals and biomechanical researchers, particularly in areas related to physical load, injury mechanisms, and long-term playability.

The sections below outline the core research domains through which this work is carried out.

Core Domains

Human–Instrument Interaction & Musical Agency

Research into how musicians physically and perceptually interact with instruments over time. This work integrates ergonomics, reach, leverage, fatigue, medical and biomechanical research, psychophysics, and performer-centered psychoacoustics to determine which aspects of touch, timing, and geometry are musically meaningful, and which impose unnecessary physical load.

Mechanical Actions, Keys & Ballistic Instrument Theory

Research into piano actions and key systems for acoustic, digital, hybrid, and active instruments, treated as dynamic physical systems. This includes inertia, friction, compliance, deformation, regulation, and long-term stability, with a central focus on the piano as a ballistic instrument where timing, predictability, and control are defined by physical causality.

Physics-Based Sound, Synthesis & Energy Radiation

Research into sound as a physical phenomenon unfolding in time and space. This includes applied physics and mathematical modeling, sound synthesis as a tool for acoustic understanding, wave propagation, temporal coherence, and the study of traditional, active, and hybrid soundboard systems as energy-radiating structures.

Extreme Mechatronics, Electronics & System Control

Research into ultra-precise systems where mechanics, electronics, and software form a single closed-loop structure. This includes extreme sensing, nanosecond-scale timing, active mechanical systems, and deterministic real-time control under severe spatial and reliability constraints, enabling levels of precision beyond conventional musical engineering.

Materials, Methodologies & Instrument Continuity

Research into materials, manufacturing methods, and design methodologies for developing new instruments with predictable long-term behavior. This includes the use of automated design systems, advanced materials and production techniques, and the critical study of historical construction methods where they inform stability, playability, and durability rather than stylistic imitation.

Research-level collaboration inquiries may be directed via our general contact address.

Contact

Piano keys under loads and stresses

Investigating the Deformation of Piano Action Components and Its Impact on Playability

Our research into piano action components delves deep into the relationship between material properties, production methodologies, and their effects on the playing experience. Over the years, we have developed thousands of keys using a wide range of materials, including ceramics, metals, and various types of wood, each manufactured using different processes such as molding, additive technologies, and subtractive techniques. These efforts have been complemented by extensive testing of critical components like bushings and bearings, all grounded in scientific principles.

Central to this research is our proprietary key design software. This software not only designs the keyboards but also provides detailed simulations of how each design will perform. It predicts the level of key deformation under specific playing conditions—whether during delicate pianissimo or forceful forte passages—and programs the machines for manufacturing. The result is a streamlined process that ensures both ergonomic interfaces and production scalability, making our designs more accessible and reliable than ever.

Our research doesn’t stop at understanding deformation. We also conducted controlled studies to explore how players respond to keys that deform under load. By intentionally designing sets of keys with specific, controlled levels of deformation, we were able to identify the “just noticeable difference” (JND)—the point at which players begin to perceive a change in the key's response. This invaluable data helps us not only design more ergonomic keyboards but also ensure that these designs stay within thresholds that maintain optimal playability.

This holistic approach to research and development, where data-driven insights meet real-world testing, enables us to continually push the boundaries of piano design. Through our rigorous testing, we can anticipate how each material and method will impact both performance and manufacturing, ensuring that each keyboard we produce offers the best possible playing experience.

Psycho-acoustics

Where is the just noticeable difference? The JND?

The Surprising Truth About Audio Cables: What Really Matters?

There’s a long-standing debate in the audio world about whether expensive interconnect cables genuinely enhance sound quality. While technical measurements often reveal minimal differences, a double-blind study uncovered something far more intriguing: people consistently perceive differences between cables, even when those differences are nearly measurable.

In the study, over 100 participants compared five interconnect cables—ranging from a €1 brandless cable to a €1,600 Siltech—using a high-quality analog sound system. Participants were asked to perform tasks like drawing frequency response curves and identifying instrument placement. Remarkably, every participant gave the same responses for the same comparisons. For example, when comparing the Cardas cable to the Siltech, all identified the Siltech as offering a broader soundstage and better high frequencies.

Interestingly, many participants initially believed they wouldn’t hear any differences between the cables. Yet, not only did they consistently perceive distinct characteristics, but they also identified the more expensive cables as better—except when comparing the cheapest to the most expensive. In that instance, all participants incorrectly identified the cheaper cable as the pricier one. Otherwise, they consistently pointed out the cheapest cable when compared to any other and correctly identified the most expensive cable in every other pairing.

This suggests that when the gap in quality is too large, unfamiliarity with the high-end product can lead to surprising results. Even though participants could recognize quality differences, it seems that truly appreciating the highest-end products may take time. Initially, a superior product might feel off-putting, but with familiarity, it could become preferred.

This study suggests that while subtle differences in sound quality are real and detectable, learning to fully appreciate those differences—especially in high-end audio—requires both time and exposure.

On the fly customization

How can pianists fully adapt their instrument to themselves in a practical way?

Exploring Adaptable Keyboards for Enhanced Ergonomics

Our research into adaptable keyboards has focused on creating a system that transforms the interface itself—adjusting key sizes and layouts dynamically without the need for replacement. This innovation allows for the expansion or contraction of the keys, ranging from 3/4 to 5/4 size, and supports various custom layouts. The transformation process is primarily electronic, minimizing user involvement, and can be completed in as little as 15 minutes in our current prototype.

A key aspect of this development is ensuring that these transformations do not affect the action of the instrument, which remains stable and customizable independently. The ability to adjust the action on demand further enhances the adaptability of the system, offering a truly personalized experience.

This area of research is crucial because it opens up possibilities for mass customization in keyboard ergonomics. By making it easier to tailor the instrument to individual needs, we are moving towards a future where pianos can be more adaptable without sacrificing playability or stability, allowing for better performance and comfort for a wider range of musicians.

Sensing Ballistics

Sensing Ballistics: Rethinking Velocity in Piano Design

Our research in piano ballistics has revealed critical flaws in the current digital piano designs, which rely on measuring average key velocity. While this simplified measurement is used to trigger sound samples, it does not accurately represent the complex dynamics of a real piano’s action.

In our experiments, we used the same sensors employed by traditional systems to measure key velocity and compared the results with the actual terminal hammer velocity, which determines for the most part the loudness of the tone on an acoustic piano. The findings were clear: the average key velocity measured by traditional digital pianos has little correlation with the terminal hammer velocity. In fact, even with identical touch, the two velocity values were significantly different.

To address this, we developed software that accurately calculates terminal hammer velocity and other relevant dynamic values. By comparing these to the simplified average velocity used in digital pianos, we found that our system provides values that directly correspond to what would happen on a real piano, while the conventional method provides an oversimplified and inaccurate representation.

This research underscores the need to move beyond velocity-based measurements in digital instruments. Accurate sensing of ballistic behavior is essential for creating instruments that truly reflect the musician's input, this is the core of what the piano playing experience really is about.

Improved Soundboard Design

How to create a soundboard with an even more open sound, capable of retaining quality and responsiveness while performing even in large halls

Active Soundboard Technology: Achieving Openness Without Sacrificing Playability

In piano design, the size of the soundboard compared to its environment plays a critical role in determining the tonal quality of the instrument. Larger soundboards generally produce a more open and resonant sound, while smaller soundboards result in a more compressed tone, much like how smaller drivers in a loudspeaker compress sound. However, this relationship is further influenced by the acoustics of the performance space. For example, in a typical living room, a small grand piano’s soundboard is large enough to provide an open sound. But in a concert hall, the same instrument may sound compressed, unable to project as openly in the larger environment.

The Challenge of Scale and Acoustics
While increasing the size of a soundboard improves openness, it often compromises both playability and tonal development. Concert grands, while capable of projecting well in large venues, tend to have slower, heavier actions compared to smaller grand pianos. Additionally, the tone on these larger soundboards often develops more slowly, diminishing the responsiveness and clarity that a musician needs during performance. Even in large spaces, the soundboard’s ability to resonate openly can be limited by the relative size of the instrument to the performance hall.

In contrast, some approaches have tried to artificially increase soundboard amplitude by adding shakers to traditional wooden soundboards. This method often combines the disadvantages of both technologies, resulting in heavy, fragile soundboards that sound like low-quality loudspeakers. These setups rely on shaking the soundboard from one side and letting the motion develop, which misses the key principles of soundboard resonance, leading to less nuanced and responsive performance.

Our Solution: Active Soundboard Technology
Our active soundboard technology redefines this challenge by directly inducing the necessary vibrations and wave motions in the soundboard without the need for intermediate elements like strings or shakers. Rather than relying on components to start vibrating the board from one side, our system immediately creates the proper wave motion across the entire soundboard, ensuring optimal resonance and tonal richness from the very beginning.

The Tendens piano exemplifies this approach, available in both a 2-panel version and a 4-panel version. The 2-panel version, at 2.75 meters long, is comparable to a traditional concert grand. The 4-panel version, with an overall length exceeding 4 meters, demonstrates how even larger setups can produce open, resonant sound in large concert halls while maintaining a direct, light, and responsive action. Despite its size, the tone develops quickly, offering both projection and clarity, which are typically lost in larger concert grands.

Moreover, our technology allows for a more "singing" tone and a sound that is capable of "speaking"—qualities that have been lost in much of modern acoustic grand piano design but remain highly sought after. By bringing these parameters back into the design, the Tendens piano offers a level of tonal richness and expressiveness that surpasses traditional instruments.

Unlike loudspeakers, which are engineered to avoid resonance, our soundboard actively works with its natural resonant panel frequencies. These resonances, key to generating a rich, complex tone, are embraced in our design, resulting in a fuller, more harmonically nuanced sound that maintains the immediacy of response needed by performers.

Practicality and Portability
In addition to enhancing tonal openness and playability, our soundboard technology is practical. Traditional large soundboards are heavy and prone to cracking, making them difficult to transport. Our design, on the other hand, is lightweight, durable, and resistant to environmental stress, ensuring that the Tendens piano can be transported and set up in various performance settings without compromising its sound quality or structural integrity.

Conclusion
The active soundboard technology in the Tendens piano represents a significant leap forward in piano design. By directly inducing wave motions in the soundboard without relying on intermediate components, we have created an instrument capable of delivering both openness and precision. This approach, combined with the ability to produce a singing tone and speaking quality, offers a truly innovative solution that bridges the gap between projection, clarity, and playability in large performance spaces.

Improved Action Mechanics

Enriching the Acoustic Piano with More Control, Smoother, and Faster Playing

The familiar piano action design found in most modern pianos was developed using wood and felt, the only feasible materials available at the time. While much better-playing actions existed in the past, they were too expensive to survive economically. The action design we know today was created to maintain cost efficiency with these materials, leading to the geometry and structures used in modern pianos. However, this design has inherent limitations: felt swells with humidity and deteriorates, while wood reacts to environmental changes as well in its own ways. The need for cost efficiency also led to simplistic shapes, further compromising performance.

The Limits of Traditional Design
Traditional piano actions, like those in Steinways, were optimized for efficiency—both in production and in creating a louder, more percussive sound for the same energy input. This design, however, sacrifices smoothness and control. While older actions, such as those found in high-quality original Bechsteins, offered superior control and smoother play, modern manufacturers often prioritize copying Steinway’s design without fully understanding its trade-offs.

Our Prototype: A Better Approach
Our research prototype prioritizes control, smoothness, and efficiency—in that order. We’ve redesigned the action geometry to offer more precise, responsive key interactions, allowing for greater dynamic control. The new axle design and the use of more stable materials eliminate issues caused by wood and felt, significantly reducing friction and ensuring consistent performance, regardless of environmental changes.

Our prototype already demonstrates much smoother play, much more control and much faster repetition than traditional actions. Early prototype images are available on our website, the current model will be only presented when it will get to the market.

Practicality and Playability
While we focus on enhancing performance, our design also takes into account the realities of manufacturing. We aim to make these advancements scalable and realistic for production, ensuring that the superior playability we are developing can at some point actually reach real musicians, our companies' main goal.

Conclusion
Our action prototype addresses the limitations of traditional piano actions by delivering greater control, smoother play, and faster key repetition and also higher dynamics. Though still in testing, it represents a significant leap forward in piano mechanics. With improved geometry, materials, and axle design, our goal is to offer an action that surpasses existing models while remaining practical for future production.

Improved Ergonomics Research

On the picture a study for the effect of wrist angles

Studying Wrist Angles and Joint Health: Redesigning for Ergonomics

In collaboration with doctors, a hand surgeon, physiotherapists, and pianists, we conducted a study to explore how different playing setups affect pianists' hands. Using MRI scans, we were able to observe existing joint issues in the hands of participants. This gave us a unique opportunity to see how certain setups could alleviate these problems, offering insights into how the issues emerged in the first place, effectively disproving accepted medical theories on our way.

Wrist angles are a well-known factor in ergonomics, but we also discovered challenges specific to the original Janko keyboard layout. The row arrangement in this layout can cause strain on the wrists. One temporary solution involved adjusting the chair to an extreme angle, as shown in the image, but this introduced other inefficiencies. Based on these findings, we are now able to work on redesigning keyboard interfaces to reduce strain and improve ergonomic alignment.

This research has given us the ability to implement prevention strategies for pianists and provided a solid foundation for informing doctors about the need to look beyond traditional diagnoses. We recently presented our findings at a medical conference for doctors for musicians in Berlin, where we highlighted these insights. Our work offers a basis for further exploration in both ergonomic design and medical treatment, helping prevent injury and improve care for musicians.