,italian ,harpsichord-,building in the #afth and #agth ,centuries by ,john ,d4 ,shortridge 7,,reprinted ,,with ,,changes--#aigj7 ,,contributions ,,from ,,the ,,museum ,,of ,,history ,,and ,,technology ,,united ,,states ,,national ,,museum ,,bulletin #bbe ,paper #ae1 ,pages #ic-ajg ,,smithsonian ,,institution ,,press ,,washington1 ,d4,c4 #aigj ,illustration3 ,figure #a4--,,outer ,,case ,,of ,,albana ,,harpsichord4 ,italian ,harpsichord-,building in the #afth and #agth ,centuries ,by ,john ,d4 ,shortridge ,the making of harpsichords flourished in ,italy throughout the #afth and #agth centuries4 ,the ,italian instruments were of simpler construction than those built by the ,north ,europeans1 and they lacked the familiar second manual and array of stops4 ,in this paper1 typical examples of ,italian harpsichords from the ,hugo ,worch ,collection in the ,united ,states ,national ,museum are described in detail and illustrated4 ,also1 the author offers an explanation for certain puzzling variations in keyboard ranges and vibrating lengths of strings of the ,italian harpsichords4 ,,the ,,author3 ,john ,d4 ,shortridge is associate curator of cultural history in the ,united ,states ,national ,museum1 ,smithsonian ,institution4 ,perhaps the modern tendency to idealize progress has been responsible for the neglect of ,italian harpsichords and virginals during the present day revival of interest in old musical instruments4 ,whatever laudable traits the ,italian builders may have had1 they cannot be considered to have been progressive4 ,their instruments of the mid-#afth century hardly can be distinguished from those made around #agjj4 ,during this #aej years the pioneering ,flemish makers added the four-foot register1 a second keyboard1 and lute and buff stops to their instruments4 ,however1 the very fact that the ,italian builders were unwilling to change their models suggests that their instruments were good enough to demand no further improvements4 ,anyone who has heard a properly restored ,italian harpsichord or an accurately made reproduction will agree that the tone of such instruments is of exceptional beauty4 ,this paper consists of a description of the structural features of two typical ,italian instruments and a general discussion of the stringing and tuning of ,italian harpsichords and virginals that is based on certain measurements of #cc instruments housed in various museums in the ,united ,states4 ,to the curators and other staff members of these institutions ,i express my sincere gratitude for making it possible for me to measure valuable instruments entrusted to their care or for supplying similar information by mail4 ,the first type of instrument described below usually has been designated in modern books about musical instruments and in catalogs of instrument collections as a spinet1 the term virginal being applied to the rectangular instruments having the keyboard along the long side4 ,since both of these types have basically the same arrangement of keyboard1 wrest plank1 hitch pins1 strings and jacks1 and since both types were known as virginals in #agth-century ,england1 it is logical to reserve the term spinet for another kind of instrument1 namely the one with the wrest plank and tuning pins in front over the keyboard1 and with the strings stretched diagonally4 ,such instruments were popular in ,england in the late #agth and early #ahth centuries and were known in ,english as spinets during the period of their popularity4 ,by using the term polygonal virginal we can distinguish1 when necessary1 the five-sided ,italian model from the rectangular instruments usually produced in northern ,europe4 ,some rectangular virginals were made in ,italy2 one ,flemish polygonal virginal1 made by the elder ,hans ,ruckers in #aeia1 survives4 ,long instruments1 resembling the grand piano in shape1 are called harpsichords4 ,of course it is understood that both types of virginals as well as the spinet and the harpsichord were keyed chordophones employing the plucking action of jacks and plectra4 ,illustration3 ,figure #b4--,,polygonal ,,virginal ,,in ,,outer ,,case4 ,throughout this paper the different octaves are indicated according to the following system3 ,illustration3 ,music ,illustration3 ,figure #c4--,,polygonal ,,virginal ,,removed ,,from ,,outer ,,case4 ,the ,typical ,italian ,polygonal ,virginal ,to give a clear idea of the construction of the ,italian polygonal virginal1 a detailed description of one particular example is presented here4 ,this virginal is included in the ,hugo ,worch collection at the ,u4,s4 ,national ,museum4 ,the maker's name is not known1 but the instrument is believed to have been built around #afjj4 ,as is true of the great majority of ,italian virginals and harpsichords of the #afth and #agth centuries1 the instrument proper is removable from its outer case4 ,the outer case 7fig4 #b71 of sturdier construction than the virginal which it was designed to protect1 is made of wood about #a_/b thick and is decorated with paintings of female figures and garlands4 ,the original legs are missing4 ,our main interest is in the virginal proper 7fig4 #c71 the construction of which is comparable in some ways to that of the violin4 ,the very thin sides of the virginal are held together at the corners by blocks1 and the soundboard is supported by a lining4 ,the cross section drawing 7fig4 #d7 shows the #i_/af thick bottom and the sides which are #a_/h thick4 ,the lining1 #a_/b by #a-a_/c1 runs around four sides of the instrument1 the wrest plank replacing it on the fifth side4 ,the soundboard thickness1 measured inside the holes through which the jacks pass1 varies from #a_/af in the bass to #a_/h in the treble4 ,the manner in which variations in thickness are distributed over the entire soundboard has not been determined4 ,the cross section drawing also shows the beautifully executed mouldings that make the sides appear to be thicker than they really are4 ,the positions of the knee braces1 the shape of which can be seen in figure #d1 are shown along either side of the keyboard in figure #e4 ,these braces are #c_/d thick4 ,the positions of the blocks1 small pieces with the grain running perpendicular to the bottom1 and the wrest plank1 which is #a-a_/d thick1 are also shown4 ,the two ribs are attached to the underside of the soundboard in the positions indicated4 ,the jack guide1 built up of separate pieces held together by long strips down either side1 is glued to the underside of the soundboard and extends as far as the lining in the treble but stops a little short of it in the bass 7fig4 #e74 ,the jack guide is #ae_/af thick4 ,the layout of the soundboard in figure #f gives the relative positions of the bridges1 tuning pins1 hitch pins1 strings1 jacks1 and jack rail4 ,there is1 of course1 one jack and one string per key4 ,the jacks presently in this virginal1 not being original1 will not be described4 ,typical ,italian jacks will be described later4 ,the bridges are #e_/af wide and vary in height from #g_/af in the bass to #c_/h in the treble4 ,a cross section of one of the bridges appears in figure #d4 ,the jack rail1 also shown in figure #d1 extends over the jacks #a-a_/h above the soundboard4 ,it serves not only to prevent the jacks from flying out during play but also to terminate the downward fall of the fronts of the keys4 ,the keys do not drop far enough to touch the key frame1 but instead are stopped by the jacks striking the jack rail4 ,illustration3 ,figure #d4--;,,cross ,,section ,,of ,,polygonal ,,virginal4 ,a1 side2 ,b1 bottom2 ,c1 knee2 ,d1 liner2 ,e1 soundboard2 ,f1 rib2 ,g1 bridge2 ,h string2 ,i1 jack rail4 ,scale1 #a3b4 ,the keyboard has an apparent compass of four octaves and one note from ,e to f4 ,short octave tuning would have extended the compass down a major third to ,c in the bass1 with the ,e key sounding ,c1 the ,f key sounding ,d1 the ,g key sounding ,e1 and the remaining keys sounding their proper pitches4 ,these three keys will hereafter be referred to as ,c_/,e1 ,d_/,f and ,e_/,g4 ,the lowest eight keys have small wire eyes attached to their undersides near the front4 ,a corresponding slot is cut through the inner and outer cases1 allowing the eyes to be connected to a short pedal keyboard which has not survived4 ,the keys themselves vary in length from #aj in the bass to #ah-a_/b in the treble2 they are mounted on a trapezoidal key frame which is removable from the instrument4 ,the balance rail and balance rail pins are on a diagonal1 resulting in a gradual but noticeable change in the touch from one end of the keyboard to the other4 ,the rack1 #a_/b thick and #a-c_/d high1 is fastened along the back of the key frame and has one vertical saw cut for each key4 ,projecting from the back of each key is a small sliver of wood which rides in its proper saw cut and serves to guide the key4 ,the natural keys are veneered with boxwood and have arcaded boxwood fronts4 ,the sharps are small blocks of hardwood stained black4 ,the sides1 soundboard1 ribs1 jacks1 guide1 jackrail1 and mouldings are made of cypress1 the wrest plank and bridges are of walnut1 and the framework1 bottom1 keys1 and key frame are of pine4 ,the photographs 7figs4 #b1 #c7 show the decorative use of ivory studs4 ,on the soundboard appears the ,latin inscription ,vita brevis1 ars longa4 ,a laminated parchment rose1 #c-c_/af in diameter1 is placed in the soundboard in the position indicated in figure #f4 ,a typical example of this decorative device is shown in figure #ab4 ,the above-described virginal is typical of ,italian practice4 ,other examples studied generally have differed from it only in small details1 except in the case of compass and vibrating lengths of strings4 ,these factors will be discussed in detail in a following section4 ,illustration3 ,figure #e4--;,,interior ,,of ,,polygonal ,,virginal4 ,a1 lining2 ,b1 wrest plank2 ,c1 rib2 ,d1 jack guide2 ,e1 knee2 ,f1 rack4 ,broken lines indicate positions of corner blocks and brace under wrest plank4 ,scale1 #a3h4 ,illustration3 ,figure #f4--,,soundboard ,,layout ,,of ,,polygonal ,,virginal4 ,scale1 #a3h4 ,illustration3 ,figure #g4--,,ridolfi ,,harpsichord ,,removed ,,from ,,case4 ,illustration3 ,figure #h4--;,,cross ,,section ,,of ,,ridolfi ,,harpsichord4 ,a1 bottom2 ,b1 knee2 ,c1 lining2 ,d1 soundboard4 ,scale1 #a3b4 ,the ,typical ,italian ,harpsichord ,the instrument chosen to illustrate the stylistic features of the ,italian harpsichord is also in the collection of the ,u4,s4 ,national ,museum4 ,this harpsichord1 purchased for the ,museum in #ahib by ,dr4 ,g4 ,brown ,goode1 was made in #affe by ,giacomo ,ridolfi1 who claimed ,girolamo ,zenti as his teacher4 ,the inscription on the nameboard reads ,jacobus ,rodolphus ,hieronymi de ,zentis ,discipulus ,,mdclxv ,facieba4 ,like the virginal described above1 this harpsichord is separable from its outer case4 ,the outer case rests on a separate stand consisting of three gilt cupids and a floral garland4 ,since the painted decoration of this case is not original1 another outer case1 belonging to a harpsichord made by ,horatius ,albana in #afcc1 was selected for the illustration 7fig4 #a74 ,two unison strings per key and two registers of jacks are provided4 ,the apparent compass of the keyboard is from ,c_/,e to c4 ,the remains of pedal connections can be seen on the lowest eight keys4 ,the sides of the harpsichord are #e_/cb thick2 the bottom is #i_/af thick4 ,the sides and lining are supported by knees that do not extend clear across the bottom of the instrument as they do in the virginal4 ,the knees are small triangular pieces1 as shown in figure #h4 ,since the added tension of the second set of strings demands a somewhat more substantial framework than that employed in the virginal1 a series of braces are attached to the floor4 ,these are connected to the lining by several diagonal braces 7fig4 #i74 ,this produces a remarkably strong but very light structure4 ,the keys 7not shown7 are of more constant length than those of the virginal2 therefore1 the touch is much more uniform4 ,illustration3 ,figure #i4--;,,framework ,,of ,,harpsichord4 ,a1 wrest plank2 ,b1 belly rail2 ,c1 rib2 ,d1 bottom brace2 ,e1 diagonal brace2 ,f1 knee2 ,g1 lining4 ,scale1 #a3h4 ,illustration3 ,figure #aj4--,,layout ,,of ,,harpsichord ,,soundboard4 ,scale1 #a3h4 ,the wrest plank is supported by two end blocks1 against which the partition behind the action 7called the belly rail7 is also placed4 ,the soundboard is glued to the top of the belly rail4 ,the wrest plank is veneered with cypress1 giving the appearance that the soundboard extends over it4 ,the jack guides also rest on the end blocks in the space between the wrest plank and the belly rail4 ,figures #h and #aa clarify the arrangement of these structural features4 ,figure #aj shows the layout of ribs1 bridges1 and strings on the soundboard4 ,the soundboard is about #a_/h thick4 ,the bridge on the wrest plank tapers in height from #c_/h in the treble to #g_/af in the bass and in width from #e_/af to #g_/af4 ,the soundboard bridge measures about #c_/h by #a_/d and has virtually no taper4 ,the soundboard does not have a rose1 although that decorative device is fairly common on ,italian harpsichords4 ,the jack guides are built up of spacer blocks held together by thin strips along the sides4 ,there is now no provision for moving the guides1 although plugged-up holes visible in the right end of each guide suggest that they originally could be disengaged4 ,in ,italian harpsichords generally1 the jack guides were controlled by knobs projecting through the sides of the case4 ,sometimes these harpsichords had levers pivoted on the wrest plank and attached to the guides4 ,the ,ridolfi case has not been patched and there are no holes in the wrest plank where levers could have been attached2 so1 the guides probably were not intended to be movable4 ,the jacks are simple slips of walnut measuring about #c_/af by #g_/af by #c-a_/h4 ,the arrangement of the tongue1 spring1 plectrum1 and damper are shown in figure #aa4 ,the dampers are small pieces of buckskin held in slots at the tops of the jacks4 ,the plectra1 perhaps not original1 are of leather4 ,of course1 there are no adjusting screws or capstans of any variety4 ,the direction in which the plectra of each row of jacks should be pointing is not known4 ,two clavicytheria having two registers of strings and a single row of double tongue jacks have been examined by the author4 ,each of these jacks has two plectra1 one pointing to the right and one to the left4 ,turning these jacks around does not alter the order of direction4 ,the plectra nearest the keyboard points the same way whether the jack is upside down or not4 ,in the clavicytherium at the ,smithsonian ,institution the plectra nearest the keyboard points to the player's left4 ,in a clavicytherium at the ,boston ,museum of ,fine ,arts the opposite is true4 ,probably both arrangements were used in harpsichords also4 ,string ,lengths and ,pitch ,standards ,the vibrating lengths of the strings of the polygonal virginal and of the ,ridolfi harpsichord can be roughly determined from the drawings4 ,for purposes of comparison1 a tabulation of the vibrating lengths 7in inches7 of the ,c strings on both instruments follows3 ,polygonal ,harpsichord virginal c #f-e_/h #e-a_/af c 7pitch ,c7 #ab-ae_/af #aj c 7middle ,c7 #be-i_/af #bj-a_/b c #dc-e_/af #db-a_/af ,c_/,e #ej-e_/f #fa-a_/d ,the lengths shown for the harpsichord represent the shorter of the two strings with which each key is provided4 ,in order to produce a uniform tone color throughout the compass of a stringed instrument1 it is necessary1 among other things1 to have the tension of all the strings reasonably uniform4 ,in the treble this is accomplished by varying the string lengths4 ,since the length of a vibrating string is inversely proportional to its frequency1 each string is made about half as long as the string an octave below1 two thirds as long as the string a fifth below1 etc4 ,this principle cannot be carried all the way into the bass since the lowest strings would be inconveniently long1 so somewhere below middle ,c the strings are gradually shortened and the diameters of the wires are increased in compensation4 ,as the above comparison shows1 the string lengths are approximately doubled at each descending octave down to c on the virginal and c on the harpsichord4 ,the shape of the case allows the harpsichord to have longer bass strings than the virginal2 between c and c the string length is doubled in the harpsichord4 ,however1 in the virginal the c string is considerably less than twice as long as the string an octave above4 ,in fact1 the bass strings of the virginal are shortened to such an extent that the lowest string of the harpsichord is much longer than the lowest string of the virginal1 although in the treble the virginal has longer strings than the harpsichord4 ,if the length of one treble string of an instrument of this sort is known1 the lengths of all but the bass strings can be readily inferred2 we can approximately describe the lengths of two-thirds to three-fourths of the strings of either of the above instruments by giving the length of one string4 ,it has become customary to use c for this purpose1 and to refer to it in such cases as pitch ,c4 ,in examining a number of ,italian harpsichords and virginals dating from #aedj to #afid1 lengths for pitch ,c ranging from #h to #ac-c_/d have been found4 ,this seems to be a great discrepancy for instruments that are otherwise so standardized4 ,since a uniform standard of pitch did not yet exist in the #afth and #agth centuries1 we would expect the string lengths employed to be varied somewhat in order to accommodate the instruments to higher or lower tunings4 ,also1 a preference for the sound of thinner1 longer wires or shorter1 thicker ones may have caused some builders to increase or decrease the string lengths on their instruments in proportion to the string diameters chosen4 ,we have no precise evidence concerning the original wire gauges of the strings of ,italian harpsichords and virginals4 ,although the variety of pitch ,c lengths encountered on the instruments studied can partially be accounted for by these two factors1 a third and more important cause existed4 ,among the #cc instruments about which information has been secured1 a correlation is discernible between the apparent manual compass and the pitch ,c string lengths4 ,sixteen of the instruments ascend to f4 ,for these1 the length of the pitch ,c string varies from #aj-a_/d to #ac-c_/d4 ,the remaining instruments1 with either a or c as the highest notes1 have pitch ,c strings ranging from #h to #aa-c_/h in length4 ,if the average tension and wire diameter of the two groups are assumed to have been about equal1 the difference in string lengths would suggest a corresponding difference in pitch1 the instruments having the compass extended to f sounding somewhat lower than the others4 ,illustration3 ,figure #aa4--;,,action ,,of ,,harpsichord4 ,a1 bottom2 ,b1 belly rail2 ,c1 soundboard2 ,d1 wrest plank2 ,e1 key frame2 ,f1 rack2 ,g1 key2 ,h1 jack2 ,i1 jack rail4 ,scale1 #a3b4 ,there is some historical evidence that this actually was the case4 ,in his ,theatrum ,instrumentorum ,michael ,praetorius#a pictures a polygonal virginal1 which appears to be very much like the many ,italian examples that survive today1 and a rectangular virginal that seems to be ,flemish4 ,he specifies that both are so recht ,chor-,thon 7at regular choir pitch74 ,praetorius also shows a harpsichord#b that looks like a typical ,italian instrument except for the presence of a set of strings tuned an octave above unison pitch1 a rare feature on ,italian harpsichords4 ,this harpsichord is described as so eine ,quart tieffer alss ,chor-,thon 7a fourth lower than choir pitch71 clearly indicating that single manual keyboard instruments a fourth apart in pitch were in existence4 ,since no reason is given for the harpsichord being tuned a fourth lower than the two virginals1 we may assume that the author considered the matter commonplace enough as to demand no further elaboration and that instruments a fourth apart in pitch were not rare4 ,praetorius does not state that the harpsichord in his illustration was tuned to a low pitch standard1 which was actually used for certain purposes or in particular localities4 ,he discussed the numerous pitches in use before and during his time1 but the only one that he mentioned as being a fourth below choir pitch he considered obsolete and suitable only for plainsong4 ,if the harpsichord was not intended to be tuned to this standard and used for this purpose1 it must have been tuned to choir pitch and treated as a transposing instrument4 ,querinus van ,blankenburg1#c writing in #agci1 states3 ,at that time the beginning of the #agth century1 men had so little experience in transposition that in order to be able to transpose a piece a fourth downwards they made a special second keyboard in the harpsichord for this purpose4 ,this seems incredible1 but the very remarkable proof is the fact that the famous ,ruckers from the beginning of the last century for a period of more than thirty years made harpsichords only in this way4#d ,that the second manual of the two-manual harpsichord originated as a device for transposition is well known4 ,in an article titled ,transposing ,keyboards on ,extant ,flemish ,harpsichords1 ,sibyl ,marcuse#e discusses surviving examples that show how the second keyboard was arranged4 ,the upper keyboard was the principal one1 with the lower keyboard sounding a fourth below4 ,the strings acted upon by a c key on the upper manual were sounded by an f key on the lower2 so1 in changing from the upper manual to the lower1 the player would have to move his hands to the left the distance of a perfect fourth in order to strike the same keys1 thus producing the downward transposition4 ,the compass of the upper manual was ,e_/,c to c4 ,since the lower keyboard was shifted to the left1 space was provided for five additional keys at its treble end4 ,the apparent treble range of the lower keyboard was therefore extended to f1 although the lower f and upper c keys worked on the same strings and produced the same pitch4 ,room was also made for five extra bass keys at the lower end of the upper manual4 ,however1 since short octave tuning was employed and it was desirable to be able to use the same fingering in the bass on both manuals1 the tails of the ,c_/,e1 ,d_/,f and ,e_/,g keys of the upper manual had to be bent to the left in order to work on the strings played by the ,f1 ,g1 and ,a keys respectively of the lower manual4 ,the vacant space to the left of the upper manual ,c_/,e was filled by a block of wood4 ,hence the five extra bass strings not used by the upper manual were those played by the ,c_/,e1 ,d_/,f1 ,e_/,g1 ,b1 and c keys of the lower keyboard4 ,of the #af ,italian harpsichords and virginals studied that ascend in the treble to f1 #ac range to ,c_/,e in the bass1 thus having exactly the same compass as the lower 7transposing7 keyboard of the ,flemish two-manual instruments4 ,twelve of the #ad ,italian examples having c as the highest key stop on ,c_/,e in the bass and are identical in apparent compass to the ,ruckers upper manual4 ,the correlation of compass and string length of the ,italian instruments1 the statements of ,praetorius1 and the similarity of the ,italian keyboard ranges to those of the ,ruckers transposing harpsichords have been considered4 ,a plausible conclusion is that the ,italian instruments extending to f were transposing instruments sounding a perfect fourth lower than the prevailing pitch standard4 ,adopting the terminology used for orchestral wind instruments1 these could be referred to as harpsichords in ,g4 ,the evidence of the correlation between string length and compass becomes much more convincing if we assume that the ,italian builders abandoned the practice of making transposing harpsichords about the same time that the ,ruckers family stopped employing the transposing lower manual4 ,in the quotation previously given1 ,querinus van ,blankenburg tells us that the ,ruckers did not make transposing instruments later than the #afcj's4 ,of the #aj dated ,italian instruments with the keyboard extended to f1 only three were made after the third decade of the #agth century4 ,each of these has a shorter pitch ,c string than any of the seven earlier instruments4 ,these three harpsichords1 dated #afed1 #afeh1 and #afff1 are accordingly considered nontransposing instruments1 with the extra treble keys representing an actual extension of the upward range4 ,the six undated instruments with f in the treble are classified as transposing instruments because of their pitch ,c lengths and are accordingly believed to have been made before about #afce4 ,illustration3 ,figure #ab4--,,typical ,,decorative ,,device1 known as rose1 that appeared in soundboards of virginals and harpsichords4 ,the #cc instruments on which this study is based are classified in the list on page #ajg4 ,they are grouped according to whether the highest key is f or c1 with the exceptions of the three harpsichords mentioned in the preceding paragraph and three instruments that go only to a4 ,that the three instruments ending on a belong with the nontransposing group is indicated by their string lengths4 ,the listing gives additional information about each example4 ,string lengths of instruments having two registers are for the shorter of the two pitch ,c strings4 ,information has been secured on two ,italian virginals which were not included in the tabulation4 ,their measurements are completely at variance with the pattern consistently set by the other #cc examples studied4 ,one1 made by ,giovanni ,domenico in #aeef1 is in the ,skinner collection2 it has a pitch ,c string #ad-a_/af in length and an apparent compass of ,c_/,e to c4 ,the other1 with the same apparent compass and a #g-a_/b pitch ,c string1 is at ,yale ,university4 ,whether these instruments are exceptional in terms of the pitch to which they were tuned1 the tension which was applied to the strings1 or the thickness and weight of the strings themselves1 has not been determined4 ,the average of the pitch ,c lengths of the transposing instruments in the list is #ab4gh2 that of the nontransposing group is #aj4de4 ,this suggests a separation between the two groups of about a major third since the first average is roughly #e_/d of the second4 ,however1 the fact that the separation of the two averages is not great enough to positively indicate a perfect fourth--the first average would have to be #d_/c of the second to do so--does not disprove the theory of transposition by a fourth4 ,in the first place1 a considerable variety of pitches is no doubt represented in both groups since a universal pitch standard did not exist in the #afth and #agth centuries4 ,also1 a margin of error of only a semitone is as good as could be expected considering the small number of examples on which the averages are based4 ,a further possible justification for the relationship of the two averages is found in ,praetorius' discussion of the pitch standards with which he was familiar4#f ,he states that choir pitch was a major second lower than chamber pitch and that tertiam minorem was a minor third lower than chamber pitch4 ,praetorius says of tertiam minorem3#g ,but in ,italy and in various ,catholic choirs in ,germany1 the said lower pitch is much in use4 ,for some ,italians1 not unjustly1 take no pleasure in high singing1 and maintain it is not beautiful1 and the words cannot be properly understood1 and it sounds like crowing1 yelling1 singing at the top of one's voice4444 ,possibly some of the nontransposing instruments were tuned to choir pitch and others to tertiam minorem1 while the transposing instruments were set a fourth lower than choir pitch4 ,three of the instruments listed are ottavinas1 small instruments tuned an octave higher than usual4 ,ottavinas correspond to a four-foot register4 ,mersenne#h mentions that they existed in two sizes1 one a fifth above the usual pitch and the other an octave above4 ,the three ottavinas included in the table are considered to be of the size sounding an octave above the usual pitch because they have ,c_/,e to c ranges and pitch ,c string lengths about half the average length of the other instruments in the nontransposing group4 ,although no examples were found for inclusion in this study1 it is probable that some ottavinas a fifth above the usual pitch--and therefore an octave higher than the transposing instruments in our listing--survive4 ,such instruments would be expected to have apparent ranges of ,c_/,e to f and pitch ,c strings between #e-c_/d and #f-c_/d in length4 ,,data ,,on ,,the #cc ,,instruments ,,studied ,,key3 ,a43 ,date ,b43 ,pitch ,c length 7in inches7 ,c43 ,apparent compass ,d43 ,type ,e43 ,registers ,f43 ,maker ,g43 ,present location ,a4 ,b4 ,c4 ,d4 ,e4 ,f4 ,g4 ,,transposing ,,instruments #aedj #aa-aa_/af ,c_/,e-f ,polygonal #h ,vi 444 ies ,metropolitan virginal ,museum of ,art #aefi #ac-a_/d ,c_/,e-f ,polygonal #h ,annibale ,juilliard virginal ,rossi ,school of ,music #afjb #ac-a_/d ,c_/,e-f ,rectangular #h ,ioannes ,smithsonian virginal ,baptista ,institution ,bononien #afaj #ac-a_/b ,c_/,e-f ,polygonal #h ,pasquino ,harding virginal ,querci ,museum1 ,chicago #afac #aa-a_/b ,c_/,e-f ,harpsichord #hh ,pasquino ,smithsonian ,querci ,institution #afag #ac-c_/d ,c_/,e-f ,polygonal #h ,giovanni ,yale virginal ,battista ,university1 ,boni ,new ,haven1 ,conn4 #afbj #ac-i_/af ,c_/,e-f ,polygonal #h ,francesco ,rhode ,island virginal ,poggio ,school of ,design1 ,providence #aa-ae_/af ,c_/,e-f ,polygonal #h ,anonymous ,skinner virginal ,collection1 ,holyoke1 ,mass4 #ab-ae_/af ,c_/,e-f ,polygonal #h ,anonymous ,smithsonian virginal ,institution #ac ,c_/,e-f ,polygonal #h ,anonymous ,boston ,museum virginal of ,fine ,arts #aa-a_/b ,c-f ,polygonal #h ,anonymous ,folger virginal ,library1 ,washington1 ,d4,c4 #ab-c_/d ,c_/,e-f ,polygonal #h ,anonymous ,cincinnati virginal ,art ,museum #ac-e_/h ,c_/,e-f ,polygonal #h ,anonymous ,smithsonian virginal ,institution ,,nontransposing ,,instruments #aedh #aa ,c_/,e-c ,polygonal #h ,domenicus ,metropolitan virginal ,pesaurensis ,museum of ,art #aeed a#aj-a_/b ,c_/,e-c ,harpsichord #hh ,padre ,vassar ,stoppacio ,college1 ,poughkeepsie1 ,new ,york #aehe b#aa-a_/b ,c_/,e-a ,ottavina #d ,franciscus ,metropolitan ,bonafinis ,museum of ,art #afjb #aj-a_/b ,c_/,e-c ,harpsichord ,christoforus ,stearns ,rigunini ,collection1 ,ann ,arbor1 ,mich4 #afae b#i-c_/d ,c_/,e-a ,ottavina #d ,pasquino ,metropolitan ,querci ,museum of ,art #afbe #aj-a_/h ,c_/,e-c ,harpsichord #h ,valerius ,skinner ,peres ,collection1 ,holyoke1 ,mass4 #afcc #aa-c_/h ,c_/,e-c ,harpsichord #hh ,horatius ,smithsonian ,albana ,institution #afde #aa ,c_/,e-c ,harpsichord #hh ,horatius ,vizcaya1 ,albana ,miami1 ,fla4 #afed #aj-a_/d ,c_/,e-f ,harpsichord #hh ,anonymous ,smithsonian ,institution #afeh #aa-a_/h ,c-f ,harpsichord #hh ,hieronymus ,metropolitan de ,zentis ,museum of ,art #affe #aj ,c_/,e-c ,harpsichord #hh ,giacomo ,smithsonian ,ridolfi ,institution #afff #aj-ae_/af ,a#a-;f ,harpsichord #hh ,hieronymus ,metropolitan de ,zentis ,museum of ,art #afhb #aj-g_/h ,c_/,e-c ,harpsichord #hh ,giacomo ,rhode ,island ,ridolfi ,school of ,design1 ,providence #afhc #h ,c_/,e-c ,polygonal #h ,b4 ,obici ,harding virginal ,museum1 ,chicago #afij #aj-ac_/af ,c_/,e-c ,harpsichord #h ,giovanni ,smithsonian ,andrea ,institution ,menegoni #afic #aj-e_/af ,g#a-;c ,harpsichord #hh ,anonymous ,smithsonian ,institution #afid #i-g_/h ,c-c ,harpsichord #hhd ,nicolaus ,smithsonian 7minus ,c7 de ,quoco ,institution #i-c_/d ,c_/,e-a ,clavicytherium #hh ,anonymous ,smithsonian ,institution b#aj-c_/h ,c_/,e-c ,clavicytherium #d ,anonymous ,boston ,museum 7,ottavina7 of ,fine ,arts #aa ,c_/,e-c ,polygonal #h ,anonymous ,smithsonian virginal ,institution a ,this length is approximate4 ,it is double the length of the shortest string on the instrument4 b ,in order to arrive at a meaningful average value for the string lengths of the nontransposing group1 it was necessary to double the measured lengths of the pitch ,c strings of the three instruments tuned an octave higher4 -------------------------- ,figure ,negative ,catalog ,number ,number -------------------------- #a #efcbb #cbf1ije #b #dfgib #cjc1edd #c #dicee;,a #cjc1edd #d #dicee;,b #cjc1edd #e #dicef;,a #cjc1edd #f #dicef #cjc1edd #g #dicef;,d #ccb1agc #h #dicef;,d #ccb1agc #i #diceg;,a #ccb1agc #aj #diceg #ccb1agc #aa #dicee;,c #ccb1agc #ab #dfgie #cjc1ede -------------------------- ,,gpo3 #aigj ,o--#chj-bbh ,for sale by the ,superintendent of ,documents1 ,u4,s4 ,government ,printing ,office1 ,washington #be1 ,d4,c4 ,price #be cents4 ,,footnotes3 #a ,michael ,praetorius1 ,theatrum ,instrumentorum1 ,wolfenbttel1 #afbj1 pl4 #ad4 #b ,ibid41 pl4 #f4 #c ,querinus van ,blankenburg1 ,elementa ,musica1 ,the ,hague1 #agci4 #d ,translation by ,arthur ,mendel in ,devices for ,transposition in the ,organ before #afjj1 ,acta ,musicologica1 #aidi1 p4 #cc4 #e ,sibyl ,marcuse1 ,transposing ,keyboards on ,extant ,flemish ,harpsichords1 ,musical ,quarterly1 ,july #aieb4 #f ,michael ,praetorius1 ,syntagma ,musicum1 ,wolfenbttel1 #afad-afbj1 vol4 #b 7,organographia71 chapter #b4 #g ,translation by ,arthur ,mendel in ,pitch in the #afth and early #agth ,centuries1 ,part ,,ii1 ,musical ,quarterly1 ,april #aidh4 #h ,marin ,mersenne1 ,harmonie ,universelle1 ,paris1 #afcf1 p4 #aja4