New-York tribune., 1910-06-12
a HARpsIcHoRD BY HANS FUCKERS IN
THE MUSEUM OF THE PARIS CON-
SERVATOlRE.
(Orirfnally it had four octaEes')

,oo,, ooooe oeio,,aII,, in the music loving houses
&c cor,,on,- in the middle of the nineteenth
century.
Tho key was a simple lever, one end OF winch
received the pressure of the finger Whlie the
other. extending under the strings of the IN
strllnent was armed with bit of metal pi7ceu
,,,,iobt and at right angles with the string
Iy-l,l,, the Lnv was pressed down the blow dealt
l., this bit Of metal! called q tangent set Ihe
string to vibrating and at the same tlI1e lhef'0
,,,cd off the segment Of the string which had to
yibrate TO produce the desired tone. Inc tan
cfut acted as a bridge. and had to be held
against the string long as the tone was 10
c.ntirue on its release the tone was 1mInedl-
ateIv nufT!ed or damped, by strips OF cloth
v,hi,1, were intertwined with the wires at one
end
Down to the end of the sixteenth century,
though the strings were multiplied, the name
nlonochord was still used, and, though the range
of the instrument had reached tWenty-Iour
notes the strings still tuned in unison.
Gradually. however the strings for the acuter
tones were shortened by a bridge placed dag
ona1ly across the sound board, this contrivance
being borrowed, it is said, from another keyed
instrument called the clavicymbal, which was,
in effect, triangular system of strings to which
2 mechanical device had been applied which
rIucked or snapped the strings, somewhat in
imitation of a harp player.
1t is to instruments of this class that no"
address myself, for it was for them that the
earliest music was written which has survived
in the rcrertcTy of the pianist, and it was upon
them that the predecessors OF the great virtuosi
about whom I shall speak played But it would
he idle to attempt to explain all the differ
ences between them. They were a numerous
tribe and the members bore numerous names,
in
literature Of music, and which indeed, were
sPoken by grandparents slibly as we say
piano now. were spinet and harpsichord We
shall be spared Il lot of curious and vain brain
cudgeing if we look upon these names,
also cIavicytherium. clavicembalo. gravicembalo,
6pirotte ard virginia. as than designa-
tions in vogue at different times in different
countries or the most standing for
variations in shape structure OF the instru-
ment which filled the place before the nine
teenth century that the pianoforte does now.
In all the instruments of this class the strings
were picFcd with tiny points of quill generally,
though the material varied) held in bits of
wood called Jacks" which moved freely in slots
piercing the sound board and rested upon ore
end OF the key levers. The quill was a tiny
thing. not more than third of an inch in
length, thrust through a narrow tongue which
moved a pivot through slot in the upper
part Of the jack When at rest the quill point
lay trifc below the string and at an angle
with it. The key being pressed down. the jack
sprang upward, and the quill in passing
twanSed the string. When the key was re-
leased the jack dropped back to it's place and
the Gull! slipped under the string, ready for
repetition Of the movement. To enable it to do
this the mission of the little tongue in
which it was set. This was held in place flush