The first Clavinova was created in 1983 to allow people to more conveniently enjoy the pleasure of playing a piano. From the first stages of development, Yamaha exercised its ingenuity to reproduce the sound and touch of a grand piano by developing a proprietary FM (Frequency Modulation) Sound Source, new keyboard mechanisms and other innovations. The YP-40 featured not only piano sound, but also the tone colors of 16 instruments including harpsichord, clavichord and guitar. It also provided the Stereo Symphonic Effect, allowing it to offer the power and feeling of depth of a performance in a concert hall or music club.

The CVP-7 was equipped with the piano Auto Bass Chord (ABC) function, the archetype of the highly regarded automatic accompaniment functions of today’s CVP Series. At the time, it was a revolutionary function that allowed a player to add an accompaniment simply by holding down chords with the left hand. It also had a ROM Music function that let players call up songs that they liked and play them like an orchestra or ensemble, expanding the fun of playing music. The Guide function, which uses guide lamps to indicate the next key to be struck, also made its debut in this model.

This model marked the first use of the Advanced Wave Memory (AWM) sampling method, which used data obtained by digitally recording the sound of actual musical instruments and processing them with proprietary technologies. This new sound source technology permitted the faithful reproduction of rich textures and beautiful lingering tones, beginning with the delicate sound startup at the moment the key of a grand piano is struck until the sound naturally attenuates.