"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.
Vol. 2
Trascrizione per Organo o Clavicembalo secondo la prassi esecutiva del periodo barocco
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 642874
"Was der Generalbass sey?" Teil II: Beiträge zu Theorie und Praxis
Schola cantorum Basiliensis
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Book (softcover)
Item no.: 190538
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 655488
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music lesson book
Item no.: 605717
Ricercari
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Item no.: 149329
Canzoni alla francese, Libro sesto & ultimo
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Item no.: 292259
Part 2: BWV 870-BWV 893
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (Hardcover, Urtext edition)
Item no.: 401136
Part 1: BWV 846-869
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (Hardcover, Urtext edition)
Item no.: 401116
Variations
Corpus of Early Keyboard Music Volume 5
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 605407
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 999069
for: Harpsichord
Book
Item no.: 999070
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 648623
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 193695
Corpus Of Early Keyboard Music 40/1
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 605408
Wanda Landowska und die Alte Musik
Bildband groß
for: Harpsichord
Book (Hardcover)
Item no.: 560065
pro pulsandis organis, spinettis, manuchordis etc.
Spiridionis a Monte Carmelo
Tastata – Opere d'intavolatuta d'organo e cimbalo
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music lesson book
Item no.: 691940
for: Harpsichord, strings
Score (spiral binding)
Item no.: 661722
Parte terza (No. 101-150)
EMB Urtext
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 197562
Opera omnia per Cembalo
for: Harpsichord [organ]
Music score
Item no.: 638186
(45–88)
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 265341
Corpus of Early Keyboard Music 13
Ricercar Tabulatura 1624
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 349348
Parte quarta (No. 151-200)
EMB Urtext
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 197563
Variations on Songs and Dances
Breitkopf Urtext
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 304381
per Organo o Clavicembalo
Band 2 (Nr. 4 - 6)
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 579951
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck. Sämtliche Orgel- und Clavierwerke 2,1 | BÄRENREITER URTEXT
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Spielpartitur, Sammelband, Urtextausgabe
Item no.: 140029
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck. Sämtliche Orgel- und Clavierwerke 1,2
Bärenreiter Urtext
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 242996
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck. Sämtliche Orgel- und Clavierwerke 4,1 | BÄRENREITER URTEXT
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Spielpartitur, Sammelband, Urtextausgabe
Item no.: 482118
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck. Sämtliche Orgel- und Clavierwerke 4,2 | BÄRENREITER URTEXT
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Spielpartitur, Sammelband, Urtextausgabe
Item no.: 482119
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck. Sämtliche Orgel- und Clavierwerke 3,1 | BÄRENREITER URTEXT
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Spielpartitur, Sammelband, Urtextausgabe
Item no.: 426099
for the Organ or Harpsichord
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 1093144
Les Indes Galantes. Balet, reduit a quatre grands concerts (1735/36)
Bärenreiter Urtext
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 171930
The Books of 1705-6 and 1724
Bärenreiter Urtext
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 131798
Gesamtausgabe. Originale Vorworte, Spielanweisungen und Verzierungstabellen
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 116109
Il terzo libro de Ricercari
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Item no.: 132081
Canzoni alla francese e Ricercari ariosi
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Item no.: 245688
HWV 348-351
Keyboard fireworks
for: Harpsichord [organ]; Flute [oboe/violin], basso continuo ad lib.
Ensemble score, solo parts
Item no.: 634734
6 Suites
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 1551570
Corpus Of Early Keyboard Music 15
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 346723
Corpus Of Early Keyboard Music 37/1
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 168306
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 208922
Classic Chorale Preludes
Arranged for Keyboard and Any Solo Instrument
for: Melody instrument (C/B-flat/E-flat/F), organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Piano score, Solo part (pdf download)
Item no.: 692671
op. 19
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 479724
Ein Lehrbuch nach zeitgenössischen Quellen
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Book
Item no.: 117744
30 pieces for harpsichord, virginal or clavichord
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 429783
Intonationen, Toccaten, Präambeln
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Item no.: 167997
Berlin 1781 und 1782 , 4. Reprint
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Book (Hardcover)
Item no.: 347070
Corpus Of Early Keyboard Musik 45
for: Harpsichord
Item no.: 301394
(Urtext)
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 602477
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