"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.
aus "Pièces de Clavecin, Dix-Huitième Ordre"
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 4243
Edition Schott
for: Piano [harpsichord/organ]
Music score
Item no.: 728629
from Op. 1, Op. 2, Op. 5
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 743943
aus "Il secondo libro di toccate d’intavolatura di cembalo e organo"
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 2900
for: Harpsichord [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1154
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 3270
aus: VIII Sonate per cembalo, op. 1
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 5749
Edition Schott
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 736778
aus: "Tabulatura / Darinnen Etzliche Präludia, Toccaten und Couranten uff das Clavir gesetzt"
Leipzig, 1645
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 5272
aus "Toccate, Canzoni, ed altre Sonate, ..."
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 3471
from: Il primo libro di Capricci, Rom 1624
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 6447
aus: "Tabulatura / Darinnen Etzliche Präludia, Toccaten und Couranten uff das Clavir gesetzt"
Leipzig, 1645
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 5273
from "Ye Tuneful Muses"
Z. T681
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 4117
aus: Sonate per Gravicembalo
London 1739
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 6183
Edition Schott
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 748846
BWV 902
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1052
aus: „Four Lessons and two Voluntaries for the Harpsichord or Organ“
for: Piano [harpsichord/organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 5446
aus: "Recueil des differentes pièces pour clavecin"
Mannheim, 1787
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 6444
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
aus dem Klavierbuch von Anna Maria van Eijl
Amsterdam, 1671
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 3475
aus "Toccate, Canzoni, ed altre Sonate, ..."
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 5392
aus: "Toccate e Corenti d’Intavolatura d’Organo e Cimbalo..."
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 2725
aus: Huit Fugues pour le Clavecin ou l'orgue
for: Piano [harpsichord/organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 3049
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 2649
zeitweilig J. S. Bach zugeschrieben
(BWV Anh. 182)
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 6095
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 2889
aus "Toccate, Canzoni, ed altre Sonate, ..."
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 3198
aus: Clavierübungen, Erste Sammlung
Berlin 1761
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 3020
Edition Schott
for: Harpsichord
Music score
Item no.: 729534
Edition Schott
for: Organ manuals [harpsichord/piano]
Music score
Item no.: 752437
C-Dur, BWV 772
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1438
aus "Das Wohltemperierte Klavier" Teil 1, BWV 846
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1035
faist sur ma Mort future la quelle se jove avec discretion
for: Harpsichord
Sheet music
Item no.: 1124
aus: VI Ouverturen nebst zween Folgesätzen
Nürnberg, c. 1745
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 5233
from "The Old Bachelor"
Z. T685
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 4230
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 4560
nach Antonio Vivaldi, BWV 1065
für 4 Claviere, 2 Violinen, Viola und Basso continuo
for: 4 harpsichords, strings, basso continuo
Score, parts (pdf download)
Item no.: 3994
Eulenburg Miniature Scores
for: Harpsichord, strings
Study score
Item no.: 749242
aus: B. Schmid, Tabulatur Buch Von Allerhand außerlesnen Schoenen Lieblichen Praeludijs, Toccaten, Motetten, Canzonetten, Madrigalien vnnd Fugen ...
Straßburg, 1607
for: Organ (manuals) [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 5645
aus: Huit Fugues pour le Clavecin ou l'orgue
for: Piano [harpsichord/organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 5782
BWV 935
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 6081
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 734244
Suite
aus: Musicalischer Parnassus, Augsburg 1738
for: Harpsichord [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 2898
aus: „Six Fugues pour les Orgues ou le Clavecin“
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 5867
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 2545
Obras de Musica
for: Piano [harpsichord]
Music score
Item no.: 726337
aus: Huit Fugues pour le Clavecin ou l'orgue
for: Organ [harpsichord]
Sheet music
Item no.: 4385
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