"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.
Part 1: BWV 846-869
Henle Urtext Edition
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 401105
Henle Urtext Editions
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 401124
Leichte bis mittelschwere Vor-, Zwischen- und Nachspiele
for: Organ [harmonium/harpsichord/piano]
Music score
Item no.: 1317242
Corpus Mensurabilis Musicae 57
for: Harpsichord
Music score (anthology)
Item no.: 580927
Based on historical sources
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music lesson book
Item no.: 671934
London, B1 Bs. Add. 31501, II-III
Tastata – Opere d'intavolatura d'organo e cimbalo
for: Harpsichord [organ]
Music score
Item no.: 773422
Part 2: BWV 870-BWV 893
Edition without fingering
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 401228
Its Style, Significance and Influence
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Book (Hardcover)
Item no.: 227700
for: Harpsichord
Music lesson book
Item no.: 154075
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Item no.: 348610
Bärenreiter Urtext
with Fingerings
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 172511
(1–44)
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 265340
Erstveröffentlichung
for: Harpsichord, strings
Set of parts
Item no.: 361256
Bärenreiter Urtext
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 116759
without fingering
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 664942
Livre 2
Le Pupitre 22
Collection de musique ancienne publiée sous la direction de François Lesure
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 177101
K 1-52
Oeuvres complètes pour clavier, volume 1
Le Pupitre 31
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 177108
BWV 870-893
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 401125
bearbeitet für Cembalo
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 671306
Erstveröffentlichung
for: Harpsichord, strings
Score
Item no.: 335591
Fingerübungen und Etüden 1571-1760
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music lesson book
Item no.: 282917
A Self-Paced Primer in Playing from a Figured Bass
for: Harpsichord [organ manuals]
Music lesson book
Item no.: 565277
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 138800
Un choix d'exercices et de pièces pour débutants en deux volumes
for: Harpsichord
Music lesson book
Item no.: 466495
Jazz Scales & Patterns in all 12 Keys
Phrase like a pro!
for: Instrument [voice]
Music lesson book
Item no.: 493356
Special edition for the Handel memorial year 2009
Bärenreiter Urtext
for: Piano [harpsichord]
4 music scores (Urtext)
Item no.: 483531
A Historical Guide to the Basics
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music lesson book
Item no.: 155243
Four and Four for Organ 1
for: Organ [harpsichord/ piano] four hand
Ensemble score
Item no.: 160919
for: harpsichord [organ/piano]
Book
Item no.: 583679
Dances, Polish Songs, Untitled, and Unidentified Works
Volume 5
Corpus Of Early Keyboard Music 6
Bound copy temporarily out of stock!
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Music score
Item no.: 625996
Für Klavier oder Cembalo. Erstmalig veröffentlicht von A. Kranz
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 418879
Cravistas Portuguezes
Volume 2
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (anthology)
Item no.: 288886
Urtextausgabe
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Item no.: 609150
Miscellaneous Suites and Pieces. First Part
Urtext of the Halle Handel Edition
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 116296
Bärenreiter Urtext
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
4 music scores (Urtext)
Item no.: 582227
Embellished Version
Bärenreiter Trtext
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 116761
Le pupitre vol. 52
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Music score
Item no.: 177099
Dover Piano And Keyboard Editions
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (anthology)
Item no.: 284761
for Piano (Harpsichord)
Breitkopf Urtext
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 285692
for: 2 horns, string orchestra, harpsichord
Piano reduction, solo parts
Item no.: 139356
Livre 3
Le Pupitre 23
Collection de musique ancienne publiée sous la direction de François Lesure
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 177102
Dover Piano And Keyboard Editions
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 136169
inspired by Johann Sebastian Bach
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score
Item no.: 1479679
Variations on Songs and Dances
Breitkopf Urtext
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 304381
Revised Urtext of the New Bach Edition
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 116747
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 695374
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Score
Item no.: 419198
Miscellabeous Suites and Pieces. Second Part
Urtext of the Halle Handel Edition
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score (Urtext edition)
Item no.: 116297
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