The Clavichord (photo) (audio)

The clavichord is the simplest of the stringed keyboard instruments. It is thought to be a precursor and heavily influential to the making of the piano. The clavichord produces a particularly direct and pure sound. The

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mechanism by which sound is produced in a clavichord is through a metal striking at a string. By varying the pressure on the keys which in turn varies the pressure on the string, pitch can be altered. This cannot be done with a conventional piano. By varying the intensity through the finger, a vibrato can be produced. By striking the key with varying degrees of force, dynamic levels can be obtained – from piano to forte or soft to loud. The greater the force, the louder the sound will be.

The origin of this oblong instrument is not known. The very first reference of the clavichord was in writing in the fifteenth century. It has been speculated that the instrument existed in a primitive form two centuries prior to that mentioning. Since the nineteenth century, clavichord have been passed out of

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use, although in the twentieth century there occurred a minor revival. All clavichords in existence today do not date prior to the sixteenth century.

The height of production of clavichords was in Germany. The Silbermann family produced the finest of clavichords. In the sixteenth and seventeenth century, the clavichord encompassed three and a half octaves (i.e. – repeats in tone but higher in pitch). By the eighteenth century, however the clavichord could play up to five octaves.