"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 [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 2860
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 2479
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 367682
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (anthology)
Item no.: 583564
for: Harpsichord
Study score
Item no.: 256633
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 993288
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 315969
for: Harpsichord [organ manuals]
Music score
Item no.: 551836
from "Pièces de Clavecin"
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 768487
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 239777
for: Harpsichord [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 2183
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 278386
Johann Jacob Froberger. Neue Ausgabe sämtlicher Werke 2 (Gesamtausgabe, Sammelband, Urtextausgabe) (Complete edition, Collection, Urtext)
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 171612
for: Harpsichord
Stimme, Urtextausgabe
Item no.: 875484
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 358296
for: Organ [harpsichord], orchestra
Score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 425115
for: 4 harpsichords, strings, basso continuo
Score
Item no.: 304032
for: Harpsichord, flute, violin, strings, basso continuo
Score
Item no.: 287111
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 359306
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 123349
for: 2 harpsichords, strings, basso continuo
2 Piano reductions
Item no.: 359931
Organ Works, Volume 2
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Music score
Item no.: 115981
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 581610
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 284244
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord], string orchestra, basso continuo
Score
Item no.: 1549871
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 1011480
A collection
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 1613186
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Ensemble score
Item no.: 196226
Two copies needed for performance
for: Harpsichord, orchestra
Piano reduction (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 1558844
for: Harpsichord (solo), 2 flutes, 2 horns, string orchestra
Score
Item no.: 745691
for: Harpsichord
CD
Item no.: 1199709
for: Oboe, harpsichord, strings
Score
Item no.: 194529
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Music score (hardcover)
Item no.: 154677
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Item no.: 549789
(Urtext)
for: Harpsichord [harp], piano
Piano score, solo part (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 549586
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 492410
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 458644
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Item no.: 332744
for: Harpsichord
Buch
Item no.: 1343605
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 745011
Urtext Edition without fingering
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 1558305
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Item no.: 225134
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Item no.: 292259
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 613127
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 358212
for: Piano [harpsichord/organ]
Item no.: 288288
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 194697
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Book (softcover)
Item no.: 460328
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