A piano nobile, Italian for “noble floor,” is the main level of a house, raised above a ground floor. It is where the bigger and more public rooms, such as the primary dining and living rooms, are located.
Though the expression is utilized to describe classical villas, such as the Villa Rotunda by Palladio, it may be used to describe a elevated first floor in a more contemporary home.
Minch Construction
The main dwelling amounts of many 19th-century row houses and brownstones are increased a half or full story above the road level. The kitchens, storage areas and utility rooms were on the ground-floor level. Raising the Primary level creates a separation between activities on the road- and – main-level rooms, allowing the latter to get bigger windows
A raised main level, or piano nobile, can also be utilized in certain modern structure, such as Le Corbusier’s Villa Savoye. This iconic house on the outskirts of Paris is very modernist yet relies on the classical arrangement of a ground-floor flat , or basement, under a principal level, followed by an upper-level attic”
Walsh Krowka & Associates, Inc
Homes in coastal areas prone to storm surges are usually supposed to have a piano nobile above utility spaces such as storage and garages, to reduce flooding of the primary living areas.
Landis Architects / Builders
While the ground-floor level of classically designed homes has been used for storage, for kitchens and even as barns, a house that has a piano nobile can be renovated so that this reduced level can be put to another usage. For example, a storage area can become a playroom or living space together with the installation of bigger windows.
