"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.
Praeclassica
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 421735
Concerto grosso in A Minor
for: Violin, harpsichord, string orchestra
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 734044
No. 7 Bb Major
for: Violin, harpsichord, string orchestra
Single part Violin 1
Item no.: 783813
No. 7 Bb Major
for: Violin, harpsichord, string orchestra
Single part Violin 2
Item no.: 783812
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421249
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Violin 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 421231
Kantate (Psalm 117)
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Single part(n)
Item no.: 421758
Oboen-Konzert
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421562
3me Production - Concerto
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421398
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 229833
BuxWV 100
Einzelstimme B.c.
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 234419
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 232632
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 232563
Die deutsche Litanei
Komposition von Anon., durch Bruno Grusnick Schütz zugeschrieben
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 232154
Geistliches Konzert
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 232075
Die Worte der Einsetzung des heiligen Abendmahls. Aus: Zwölf geistliche Gesänge
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 231991
aus: Symphoniae Sacrae III
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 231889
aus: Symphoniae Sacrae III
Psalm-Konzert
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 231877
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 627477
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Violin 1 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 421230
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421512
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part(n)
Item no.: 421305
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421617
Oboen-Konzert
for: Harpsichord
Single part
Item no.: 421581
TVWV 7:28
Einzelstimme B.c.
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 234521
Cembalo (Klavier), Streicher und Basso continuo
for: Harpsichord, strings, basso continuo
Cello, double bass (orchestral part)
Item no.: 643274
No. 7 Bb Major
for: Violin, harpsichord, string orchestra
Single part Cello/Double bass
Item no.: 783810
No. 7 Bb Major
for: Violin, harpsichord, string orchestra
Single part Viola
Item no.: 783811
for: 2 horns, string orchestra, harpsichord
Cello, double bass (orchestral part)
Item no.: 646563
for: Harpsichord [piano], chamber orchestra
Horn 1, 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 1355233
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421413
Oboen-Konzert
for: Harpsichord
Single part(n)
Item no.: 421586
aus: Psalmen Davids
for: Basso continuo
Instrumental part 3 (Choir 1)
Item no.: 1160699
aus: Psalmen Davids
for: Basso continuo
Instrumental part 2 (Choir 1)
Item no.: 1160696
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 230220
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part(n)
Item no.: 421433
Oboen-Konzert
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421594
Ein Segen
Autorschaft unsicher, durch Christiane Engelbrecht Schütz zugewiesen
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 232170
aus: Symphoniae Sacrae III
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 231937
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 230512
Concerto grosso A Minor
for: Violin, harpsichord, string orchestra
Single part Viola
Item no.: 729360
Trauerkantate
for: Basso continuo
Single part(n)
Item no.: 457318
"La Cetra"
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421659
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part(n)
Item no.: 421550
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421538
fatto per la Solennita della Lingua di San Antonio
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421469
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Violin 1 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 421425
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421418
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