"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.
Geistliches Konzert
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 232033
aus: Symphoniae Sacrae III
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 231975
Der zwölfjährige Jesus im Tempel. Aus: Symphoniae Sacrae III (1650)
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 231883
aus: Symphoniae sacrae III
mit singbarer englischer Übersetzung
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 231864
aus: Kleine geistliche Konzerte I
mit singbarer englischer Übersetzung
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 231797
O how fair are all thy dwellings
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 231722
Danket dem Herrn
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 631142
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 229733
für Streicher und Basso continuo
for: Harpsichord
Single part (Harpsichord solo)
Item no.: 327213
for: 2 horns, string orchestra, harpsichord
Violin 1 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 1355192
for: 2 horns, string orchestra, harpsichord
Single parts 1, 2 in C (Flute)
Item no.: 447159
Ouverture
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421335
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Violin 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 421304
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421229
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421821
Oboen-Konzert
for: Harpsichord
Violin 1 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 421583
BuxWV 43
Einzelstimme B.c.
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 234382
Kantate zum Ratswechsel
for: Basso continuo
Violin 1 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 641944
Wq 18
Einzelstimme Va.
for: Harpsichord, strings
Viola (orchestral part)
Item no.: 424308
Wq 18
Einzelstimme Vl. 2
for: Harpsichord, strings
Violin 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 424307
for: Harpsichord, piano, orchestra
Violin 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 497269
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 229752
freie Umarbeitung von Schütz' Motette "O süßer Jesu Christ" SWV 427 zum solistischen Vokalkonzert
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 232164
for: 2 horns, string orchestra, harpsichord
Violin 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 1355193
for: Harpsichord [piano], chamber orchestra
Violin 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 1355231
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Violin 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 421431
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Violin 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 421426
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421404
"Il Sospetto"
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421635
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421629
Oboen-Konzert
for: Harpsichord
Violin 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 421584
ars instrumentalis 072
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 261192
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 230339
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 230090
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 229987
Geistliches Konzert
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 232105
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 229745
Cembalo (Klavier), Streicher und Basso continuo
for: Harpsichord, strings, basso continuo
Violin 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 648599
für Streicher und Basso continuo
for: Harpsichord
Single part (Harpsichord solo)
Item no.: 156593
for: Harpsichord
Single part (Harpsichord solo)
Item no.: 375703
EOS - Eulenburg Orchestral Series
for: Harpsichord
Single part (Harpsichord solo)
Item no.: 421532
Praeclassica
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421302
for: 2 horns, string orchestra, harpsichord
Viola 2 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 447161
Ouvertüre (Suite) Es-Dur
for: Harpsichord
Single part Harpsichord
Item no.: 421622
for: Harpsichord, piano, orchestra
Cello, double bass (orchestral part)
Item no.: 497271
Cembalo (Klavier), Streicher und Basso continuo
for: Harpsichord, strings, basso continuo
Violin 1 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 648598
Kantate zum Ratswechsel
for: Basso continuo
Single part Viola
Item no.: 642028
Der reiche Mann und der arme Lazarus. Evangeliendialog
for: Basso continuo
Single part Basso continuo
Item no.: 232133
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