"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.
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 999110
Musica Britannica 102
for: Piano [harpsichord/organ]
Music score (hardcover, anthology)
Item no.: 929320
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 819006
aus: "6 Pariser Quartette"
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 1642681
for: 2 pianos [harpsichords/ organs]
Ensemble score
Item no.: 1018317
inspired by Johann Sebastian Bach
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 1479679
for: Harpsichord, piano, orchestra
Set of parts
Item no.: 1215685
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 977476
Easier Piano Pieces 58
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 1043573
for harpsichord
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 727188
Edition Schott
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 748846
per cembalo
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 1670683
Harpsichords – Spinets – Clavichords – Virginals
Portrait of a Collection. The Beurmann Collection in the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg and at the estate of Hasselburg in East Holstein
for: Harpsichord
Book (softcover)
Item no.: 1478461
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 1162666
per organo o clavicembalo
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 997410
Nos. 2, 4, 6 and 8
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 929334
for: Harpsichord
Buch
Item no.: 981189
Pian & Forte Vol. 142
for: Harpsichord
Music score (hardcover)
Item no.: 1163519
Esercizi Per Clavicembalo
for: Harpsichord
Score
Item no.: 833036
Gegenwartsmusik
for: Harpsichord
Buch
Item no.: 1163898
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 1565283
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 1190631
for: Harpsichord
Buch
Item no.: 1135911
Klassik
for: Harpsichord
Buch
Item no.: 857828
Klassik
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 1625057
for: Harpsichord [piano], chamber orchestra
Violin 1 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 1355230
for: Harpsichord [piano], chamber orchestra
Cello, double bass (orchestral part)
Item no.: 1355232
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 1009392
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 748615
"Triple Concerto"
Bärenreiter Urtext
for: Harpsichord, flute, violin, strings, basso continuo
Single part (Harpsichord solo)
Item no.: 817357
"Triple Concerto"
Bärenreiter Urtext
for: Harpsichord, flute, violin, strings, basso continuo
Single part (Flute solo)
Item no.: 817355
for: Clarinet (A), harpsichord
Score, solo part
Item no.: 1050365
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 999123
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 999069
"Alternative versions, ammendments and addtions included in appendix / with the supplement "Mirror Fugues for two Harpsichords"
Bärenreiter Urtext
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 1671158
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (anthology)
Item no.: 930554
Klassik
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 1102954
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 977368
Part 1 Nos. 1–30
Studj per cembalo con partimenti diversi
Monuments of Partimento Realizations Volume 1a
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Music score (spiral binding)
Item no.: 798229
Studien-Edition
for: Harpsichord, orchestra
Study score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 1558843
No. 7 B flat Major
for: Violin, harpsichord, string orchestra
Stimmensatz 5 Violinen I; 5 Violinen II; 3 Violen; 5 Violoncelli/Kontrabässe
Item no.: 721677
Edition Schott
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 726059
Edition Schott
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 725302
Edition Schott
for: Violin, harpsichord, string orchestra
Piano reduction, solo part
Item no.: 726652
from "Pièces de clavecin", Vol. 2, Ordre No. 6
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 755921
Edition Schott
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 732639
Op. 52
for: Harpsichord
Solostimme
Item no.: 1626562
Purcell Society Companion Series 6
for: Piano [harpsichord/organ]
Music score (hardcover, anthology)
Item no.: 929281
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