"Brightly the keys, all twinkling, linked, all harpsichording, called to a voice to sing the strain of dewy morn..." James Joyce
The harpsichord is widely seen as the forerunner of the modern day piano, the main difference being its plucking mechanism, rather than hammers, which gives it its distinct sound, the sound of the Renaissance and the Baroque, signalling in a new dawn for early music.
Concert pitch at the time was 415 Hz, approximately a semitone lower than today, which is 440 Hz. The harpsichord it very sensitive to fluctuations in temperature and humidity, and needs to be tuned at least once a day. The tuning process only takes about 20 minutes on average, so it is a small price to pay, for a beautiful, clean tone.
Not only is the harpsichord an excellent solo instrument, for which many works (such as sonatas, suites, toccatas, variations and many more) were written by composers such as B. Sweelinck, J. S. Bach, his son C. P. E. Bach, D. Scarlatti, Handel and F. Couperin, but the harpsichord, alongside the Organ, Theorbo and Lute, plays a central role in the basso continuo in most Baroque ensembles.
The harpsichord forms the harmonic bridge between melody and bass, and its central role within the basso continuo is comparable to the modern keyboard’s function in a rock, pop or jazz band.
One of the main features of the Baroque style for harpsichord is ornamentation, such as trills, mordents, turns and tremolo, which are particularly prominent in the French Baroque with composers such as Francois Couperin and Rameau. Many such ornaments can also be found in the famous Well-Tempered Clavier (1722) by J. S. Bach.
As a favoured instrument of the bourgeoisie and royalty, the untimely end of the harpsichord was brought about by the people’s revolts of the French Revolution (1789 to 1799), harpsichords and clavichords were thrown out of the windows onto the streets of Paris in anger and burned!
With the revival of early music in the 1970s, more and more new harpsichords were built. Pioneers such as B. Gustav Leonhardt, Ton Koopman and Nikolaus Harnoncourt reinvented Renaissance and Baroque style, and the harpsichord grew in popularity, and was once again seen on concert stages, and in chamber venues all around the world.
Today you can find harpsichords built in Flemish, French, Italian, Austrian and German styles all over the world. They all have their own individual character and tone. Historical performance practice has now become second nature for harpsichord players, and has influenced the way we approach modern keyboard instruments, and most importantly how we view the piano.
Musicalady~Komponistinnen Des 18. Und 19. Jahrhunderts
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 298816
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 421453
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 421255
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 1643505
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 639174
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Item no.: 355864
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 305566
for: Harpsichord
Score
Item no.: 420100
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Score
Item no.: 474361
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 1006683
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 1565280
for: Harpsichord
Score
Item no.: 390313
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Book
Item no.: 992506
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Book (critical commentary, hardcover)
Item no.: 767758
for: 4 harpsichords, strings, basso continuo
Viola (orchestral part)
Item no.: 328046
for: 2 harpsichords, strings, basso continuo
Single part harpsichord 1
Item no.: 188603
for: Harpsichord, strings, basso continuo
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 170274
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 388759
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 1327306
for: Harpsichord [organ manuals]
Music score
Item no.: 1021900
Performers' Facsimile 121 (Faksimile) (Facsimile)
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 296694
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 305569
Tschechische Barockmusik 45
for: Basso continuo
Item no.: 142025
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 469178
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Item no.: 132265
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Item no.: 338891
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 999056
for: Basso continuo
[französisch]
Item no.: 374501
Musik Aus Dem Alten Bern 3
for: Piano [harpsichord/organ]
Item no.: 120107
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 999016
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 456506
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 999098
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Item no.: 195353
Kantate
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 229972
Entstehungszeit evtl. um 1610
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 232071
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 242761
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 420101
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421234
H43.4/Wq474
for: Harpsichord (solo), 2 flutes, 2 horns, string orchestra
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 745690
Reprint von 1731
Neuausgabe 2010
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music lesson book (reprint, hardcover)
Item no.: 302031
for: Harpsichord, flute, violin, strings, basso continuo
Viola (orchestral part)
Item no.: 341082
for: Harpsichord, flute, violin, strings, basso continuo
Violin (orchestral part)
Item no.: 341706
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 893020
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part(n)
Item no.: 421306
for: Harpsichord, strings
Score
Item no.: 487163
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Score
Item no.: 103500
for: Harpsichord
Score
Item no.: 1111132
for: Harpsichord, organ
Score
Item no.: 424197
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