The Construction and Usage of Harpsichord in the Baroque Era

The Construction and Usage of Harpsichord in the Baroque Era
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Abstract
There are multiple interesting instruments in the world of music, but the harpsichord made it possible to create many different sounds that led to greater compositions. The harpsichord was one of the main instruments used during the baroque music era and the renaissance period, whereby the instrument was used as a soloing and accompaniment instrument. The harpsichord was a vital instrument in developing the contemporary string instruments seen today. The instrument has many keys created from ivory and ebony and chords made from brass wire that is vertical to the harpsichord keyboards. The idea of the baroque period stood because music should not only be pleasing but must also stir passions of the soul and induce strong visceral emotions. Harpsichord originally evolved from the monochord, a primitive instrument invented by Pythagoras. On the other hand, during the 18th century, the instrument gradually disappeared from the music scene with the development of the fortepiano. This write-up will examine the history behind the creation of the harpsichord, the construction and making of the harpsichord, the Usage of the Harpsichord in the Baroque Era, and famous composers during the baroque era.
The Construction and Make of the Harpsichord
Giovanni Maria Trabaci wrote in II second Libro de ricercate that the harpsichord is the lord of all other musical instruments globally. The knowledge behind the expertise of the harpsichord is that composers can inform scholars about the utility of the harpsichord and how specific instruments were performed and conceived. Besides, Italian harpsichords and Flemish instruments show a similar quality of tone and anesthetic as well as those from other nations. In contrast, contemporary instruments show their time's uniqueness and particular developments. The dynamic behind the construction and design of the harpsichord is necessary for understanding their history and purpose. Therefore, scholars must familiarize themselves with the structure and construction of the instrument to fully visualize its make.[Martin, D. (1996). Reviews:" The Harpsichord and its Repertoire--Proceedings of the International Harpsichord Symposium, Utrecht 1990," ed. by Pieter Dirksen. The Galpin Society Journal, 49, 260-61.]
The harpsichord often has two manual keyboards comprising a pair of levers that needs to be depressed to the anterior for the end to rise. Sound from the instrument is produced by plucking the strings using the plectrum attached to another piece that plucks the strings causing a vibration. The plectrum used to pluck the strings was initially cut by players from a bird quill, whereby in the contemporary world, it is made from plastic, metal, or leather and is held by the jack that rests on the end of the key bar. In this regard, when the harpsichord's key is pressed down, the jack is lifted, plucking the strings through the plectrum. On the other hand, when the key is released, a spring swivels the falling tongue to its resting position, which passes around the string.
A small piece of cloth at the top of the jack also rests on strings to dampen it. The jack rail limits the upward motion of the strings, while the harpsichord player can tune the instrument using the tuning pin near the player.
The harpsichord strings are attached around the tuning pin, and to tune the instrument, the player has to adjust the tension using a wrench. Once the instrument is tuned, the player confirms whether the chord is playing the correct tune. Also, the player makes sure the strings rest correctly in the bridge slots. Harpsichords have a wing shape structure similar to the contemporary grand piano. The instrument may have only one set of strings, two or more. An eight-foot set of strings is at the normal pitch with a sound ranging from 365-475 Hz.
On the other hand, a four-foot set of strings has a higher octave than the eight-foot one, while a sixteen-foot one sounds an octave lower. Each set of strings is plucked by a singular set of jacks and occasionally two, depending on the plucking points. Strings plucked towards the end sound more nasal or brighter than those plucked at the midpoints, sound flutier and louder. The instrument's bridge rests on the soundboard, whereby the strings' vibrations cause it to vibrate, producing sound.
The major structural components of harpsichords include the walls that entail the bentside, cheekpiece, spine, and tail. The base covers the belly of the instrument, the soundboard and a sound hole where a decorative rose is placed, and the wrest plank. Other structures include the galvanized inner structures underneath the soundboard, the interior bracings of the instrument's walls, and the name board. A register or stop comprises several jacks that turn off the instrument by the plectra missing the strings as they rise when the player moves the guide slightly to the left or right. When the register is off in many harpsichords, the cloth on top of the jack does not touch the strings to dampen them. The payer can move the guides by controlling the wrest plank levers by hand, knee, or pedals. The accidentals were absent in many ancient harpsichord instruments at one or both ends of their compasses. The compass and scaling of the keyboard depend on the harpsichord's dimension and shape and the strings' vibrating lengths. In this essence, the number of notes at the extremes of the keyboard determines the width of a harpsichord, while the length is determined by the expanse of the soundboard and the lowest string.[Tiensuu, J. (2001). Harpsichord—a mother of necessity?. Contemporary Music Review, 20(1), 3-15.]
The scaling of the instrument is related to the string material and its intended pitch. According to contemporary convention, the length of the set of strings is the basic scale of the instrument. Some harpsichords were designed for bass, while others were designed for tenor, whereby, traditionally, the constructors of the instrument tuned their strings in the treble as long as the strings were resilient to breakage. On the other hand, alternative quilled keyboards include the spinet, the clavicytherium, and the virginal. Spinets resemble small harpsichords where strings are 65 degrees rotated clockwise. The clavicytherium represent a harpsichord turned upright, while in virginals, the keyboard is located at the extensive front side, has a polygon shape, and its set of strings runs from left to right.
History of Harpsichords
The harpsichord arose in the stone age of keyboard music. The harpsichord was invented by Herman Poll in Vienna, who was recorded as having invented the clavicembalum. The eschequier is the earliest harpsichord with a stringed keyboard representing some clavichord invented in England. The instrument came to light, for it was recorded in the 1360s in French documents. The 15th-century of harpsichords illustrate instruments that sounded a 4-feet tonality or louder. The invention of the harpsichord was highly regarded in Europe, whereby a manuscript by Henry Arnaut described the details of the clavicembalum. Henry stated that the instrument had a 35-note compass of B, which was an unusually low note. It was about 940 mm long, and the three-octave measure was about 530mm. The playing surface of the keyboard was very short. He further stated that dampers were absent for the instrument, and plucking was cumbersome. The plectrum of the harpsichord that Henry preferred was thin and narrow.[Watson, J. R. (2006). A History of the Harpsichord. Journal of the American Musical Instrument Society, 32, 167.]
The next stage of development is represented by a late 15th-century Clavicytherium invented in south Germany. Its jacks are nearly the same as quill plectra without dampers. The instrument had thin walls, and its compass was originally forty notes and was low-pitched in short octave positioning. Its measurements are similar to what Henry described, with short natural heads and a three-octave measure of 529mm. Its scaling suggests that the makers tuned the instrument above an 8-foot pitch. The 15th-century depiction illustrates that harpsichords were being made at 180 centimeters in length. The instrument's larger sizes resulted from making instruments at a lower pitch and due to the expansion of the compass downwards. Italians occasionally referred to the instrument as glavicembalo because the makers lowered the tonal location towards the bottom of the instrument.
During the renaissance period, the harpsichord had few upgrades and developments in mechanical and tonal pitches. In the age of Josquin des Prez, the instrument assumed its role at the highest artistic level of music making. Renaissance is the period between the 16th century and the first decade of the 17th century in Italy, extending to England in the mid-17th century and Spain in the 18th century. Most plucked 16th-century keyboards were made in Venice and Naples, Italy. The typical features of these keyboards include an outer case, slim walls with fine carving, jacks held by box guides, walls secured at the instrument's base, and scrolls at the cheekpiece and the front ends of the spine. They were designed for bass strings throughout the compass resulting in an elegant outline, and the instrument has a single manual. Neapolitan harpsichords were occasionally made from ebony or other exotic woods. The Neapolitan instruments were characterized by 33 degrees sharp tail angle, the jack guide perpendicular to the spine, an 8 or 4- foot pitch, a left-hand bridge wresting on a solid wrest plank, rectangular cases, and spruce soundboard and maple walls.
On the other hand, in Venice, the constructors made the instruments using red cedar walls and soundboards. Compared to the Neapolitan, the tail angles were about forty to sixty degrees, a three-octave measure of about 505 mm, and the guides were angled towards the bass and away from the player. The instrument's scaling was very long, approximately 340 to 400 mm. Venetian harpsichords were designed for brass strings tuned at the fifth or fourth lower and iron strings tuned to an 8-foot pitch. In this essence, virginals were Venetian forms of 8-foot pitch-quilled keyboards. Their pitch is louder than the Neapolitan instruments, with the plucking further from the left-hand bridge.
In 1537, Hans Muller made the earliest harpsichord in Europe that superficially resembles the Italian model, but its construction and design are different. Its base is attached to the bottom of the walls and set apart guides holding the jacks. The early German harpsichords were characterized by the extension of the soundboard towards the name board and the presence of a nasal register. Until the 17th century, the instrument had a single manual with two eight–foot strings. The plectrum plucked three registers at the normal points for two registers and the nasal point for one. Until the beginning of the 17th century, virginals were constructed using slim walls, but the classic Flemish style was fully developed by constructors later. Ruckers harpsichords were developed in the mid-17th ce...