The Belding banner-news. (Belding, Mich.) 1918-1973, 1918-06-12
HOW THE PIANO DIFFERS FROM
IT'S FORERUNNERS

THE following by an English ex-
pert appeared il the London Musical
Courier and shows very clearly the
points of difference between the piano
and the clavichord, the spinet and the
harpsichord, instruments about which
the student reads much in musical
history.-Editor's Note.)
In dealing with any modern subject
it is the fashion nowadays to trace
back its origin to the most remote
past, and il Is easy to carry our sub
ject Of this evening back to Daniel,
Apollo and Jubal, but we will content
ourselves with beginning with the
clavichord, and concern ourselves
firstly with the immediate predeces-
sors of the piano.
So interesting are the keyed in
struments of the 18th century that
we can on the present occasion pass
over the harp, dulcimer, keyed violin,
either, ETC., and go to the instru-
ment which 500 years ago, at least,
was the Joy of musicians. and held
its own, with little variation, down
to the end of the 18th century.
l refer to the clavichord. Queen
Elizabeth was an expert performer
the term virginia. is rather loosely ap-
piled, she probably used also a quill
ed instrument---the spinet. Bach
preferred the clavichord for his own
private use on account of the variety
of effects to be obtained from it and
on this account, in spite of its feeble
tone, it held its own not only against
the harpsichord, but for long time
10 - fnt~fn
The clavichord consists of SER
les of wire strings stretched hori-
zontally in an oblong box provided
with a sounding board and keyboard.
The addition of a keyboard to a
stringed instrument is a very old
idea, indeed. The hurdy-gurdy, an
lent as it is, and still surviving In
France in some country districts, is
the descendant of formidable ma
chine used by the Anglo-Saxons, but
it was nevertheless a stroke of gen.
ius on the part of some long-forgot-
ten enthusiast to adapt a row OF
keys to the either.
The mechanism of the clavichord is
quite peculiar and SO suggestive OF
the pianoforte in its simplest form
that it is curious that the latter
should have been so long delayed and
the field so largely held by the harpsi-
chord and spinet, which are not per-
cussion instruments, as are the clavi-
chord and piano, but have strings
which are plucked with quill plectra.
The key of the clavichord, which is
balanced exactly as is that of the
piano, upon a fulcrum, is provided
with a. brass tangent which strikes
the string, producing a sharp and
feeble note, the pitch of which is de-
termined by the length of string
which the tangent causes to sound.
The greater the length of vibrating
string of given diameter and tension
the lower the pitch of the note pro-
duced and the early makers of clavi-
chords availed themselves Of this
fact to produce several notes from
the same string, just as in the violin,
mandolin and all such fingerboard in
struments.
1t did not for long time occur to
anyone to provide :. separate string
for each note, SO the early instru-
ments were constructed like the old
Italian one oftimes seen, with so few
strings, or rather, pairs of strings,
that some of them serve for as many
as five notes.
AS only one note at time can be
produced from each string, it is evil
dent that the scope is\ considerably
limited, and that the composer was
often obliged to avoid chords which
would seem the most natural to use.
The early keyboard music indeed
seems curious to our ears. reliance
being placed for effect upon rapid
runs and curious turns and graces
rather than upon the chords and
harmonies to which we are accustom-
ed.
When later the clavichord was pro-
vided with string to every note its
were, of course, very diff
ferent, and Bach, was able to write
his preludes and fugues as if he had
had pianoforte to deal with.
The study of the evolution of the
pianoforte is by no means a simple
one. Invention has developed it up
on anything but direct lines and all
kinds of results have been arrived at,
off in many directions from
the parent idea, to which return has
always been inevitable.
We cannot now touch upon these
side MISUNDERSTANDING as
they are 20 the student--but Will con-
fine our attention to the quilted in
strument which never altogether dis
placed the clavichord, but neverthe-
less helped to keep the piano cut of
the field for long time.
The spinet was, on the continent,
usually oblong in shape, but in Eng
land peculiar type, Of beautiful
wing shape in plain, was produced
and was very popular in early Jacob
can times.
Handel also used an exactly similar
spinet, many Of which were made,
though few survive today.
The mechanism of the spinet never
varied. The type was fixed at once
at a very early date and, simple as
it is. was never improved upon. Mo-
thing could indeed be better and
more ingeniously fitted for its pur-
pose.
The key s like that of the clavi-
chord, but instead Of a striker we
find an upright piece Of wood, called
jack, which carries quill plec-
trum and engaging with the string,
xubop tho Iov io dopracuod aud mass