>Play the piano
This colloquial expression derives from the fact that the white keys of piano keyboards used always to be veneered with ivory, and a few still are. Though this is comparitively a new expression, the term “tickling” had long been used to describe musical instruments.
Example
>I learned to tickle the ivories from a very young age so I’ve been dreaming of getting a grand piano for most of my life.
>My friends asked if I would tickle the ivory at their wedding reception.