Italian harpsichords

Instruments from the Italian peninsula are marvels of engineering. Very thin cases of cypress (or sometimes maple or other woods), usually 4 to 5 mm (3/16 inch) thick, are buttressed by a series of triangular "knees" that transmit the stress to the bottom. The upper and lower edges of the case are decorated with elegant moldings. The system is exceptionally strong, and very stable, but amazingly light. Small four-octave instruments often weigh around 20 Kg (40 lbs). The relatively delicate instruments were kept in a separate outer case, which was usually painted. Keyboards normally featured boxwood naturals, with black-stained accidentals, but instruments made for wealthy customers sometimes used ivory, ebony and other exotic materials. Soundboards were left undecorated except for a Gothic-style rose fashioned out of parchment and veneer, located in the soundhole.

Towards the end of the 17th century an alternate style of construction came into being, which used a thicker case of poplar or other similar wood, but still with a veneer of cypress around the rim above the soundboard to give the impression of inner and outer cases. Finally, in the 18th century, some instruments did away entirely with any illusion of an inner case.

Today most Italian harpsichords are disposed with two 8' choirs, and strung with brass wire, which was the norm in the late 17th and 18th centuries. Before about 1630, however, the most frequent disposition featured one 8' and one 4', and some instruments were designed for iron wire. Instruments with only a single 8' choir also existed. These early instruments were almost always altered to have two 8' choirs later in their lives, frequently with changes to the pitch level and keyboard compass.

Double-manual Italian instruments are extremely rare, and even the normal single-manual instruments seem to have been used with only one basic unison sound. Many examples in fact have no means of turning the registers on or off other than by reaching under the jack rail.

Italian harpsichords are often thought of as being continuo instruments -- a role they serve very well -- but anyone who has heard one in a stirring performance of a Frescobaldi toccata will attest that they are legitimate solo instruments in their own right. They are usually described as having a rather pronounced pluck followed by a rapid decay, but the rate of decay varies a lot, depending on the style of soundboard ribbing. Some examples actually sustain rather nicely. Generally speaking, the sound is very clear, and the different parts of the compass balance one another well, allowing inner voices to be heard. The strong-plucking sound of these instruments makes them ideal for music of a rhythmic nature, stretching from the dances of the Renaissance to the outbursts of Domenico Scarlatti. They are definitely not restricted to playing only Italian music; we know that they were exported to and used in many regions of Europe over a period of several centuries.