D R A W I N G S. M ade by Grant O'Brien. Stringing the 'French' Ruckers aligned double-manual harpsichord Anyone making a harpsichord based on this drawing will.

Claviers Baroques used French Double harpsichord for sale Harpsichords Clavichords Spinets Virginals Forte-Pianos Toronto, Ontario, Canada SOLD! To the gentleman from Toronto, ON French Double Manual Harpsichord from Zuckermann Kit (used) This unsigned two-manual Franco-Flemish harpsichord was built from a Zuckermann Harpsichords International kit in 1997.

The FF to g'' compass (63 notes) will accommodate all of the late baroque literature including Forqueray (actually transcriptions of gamba music) which requires the low FF. Note: when transposed to A=440 the high g'' is lost. Disposition: 2 x 8', 4' and buff, transposing A = 415/440 (loses top g'' at 440). Zuckermann plastic jacks quilled in Celcon.

The most striking thing about this instrument, even more than its striking appearance, is the gorgeous sound. It is a true 'French' sound -- a lovely rolling bass and a clear, flutey treble. The silvery 'French' treble sound continues down into the midrange.

Balbastre just thunders on it, and those little Rameau bonbons like La Poule and Fanfarinette are so sweet you want to eat them with a silver spoon. It is presently lightly voiced for a large room in a home and has a fairly light touch. If you wanted to use it for performance you would probably want to have it revoiced for a heavier pluck and firmer touch.

In that 'professional mode' it would easily produce enough sound to fill a medium to large concert venue. Very French-looking!

Very Versailles paint scheme of pale green outside and with a lighter creamy green interior, gold bands and gilded mouldings; reverse keyboard in grenadilla or dyed pear naturals with pearwood arcades and bone-slipped sharps. The paint work is very fine. The original builder wasn't happy with his own work so he had it painted by a professional fine furniture restorer. It has the beautiful satin gloss with the hint of brush-stroke that is the hallmark of a fine paint finish. Excellent design, quality materials, great sound with a truly wonderful bass.

The original design was by William Hyman based loosely on a Blanchet Franco-Flemish, then adapted by David Way for kit production over 14 versions. We think this is a French Double XIV, the last version of this design produced under David Way's direction.

The builder, who had considerable experience with harpsichords, bought this kit in Stage 2, 'case assembled', so the cabinet work was done in the Zuckermann shop and is all first-class. The turned oak stand is separate and can be disassembled -- the stretchers unbolt from the front and back frames -- for transport. The bolts are concealed by solid brass bed-bolt covers, a proper 18th C French solution. This is a professional-quality harpsichord. Would suite a professional player, an advanced or serious intermediate student, or a dedicated amateur who appreciates playing a fine instrument. Would also be ideal for a conservatory or the music department of a university or college. With the addition of a maintenance plan, which is included in consumer or institutional lease financing, it would be an affordable and trouble-free instrument for an individual, school, opera company, etc.

Maintenance plans are also available separately. Change in family circumstance forces sale. This instrument is in Toronto and may be viewed/played by appointment. To set up a day and time. For those of you not in the Toronto area, we hope to have sound samples on line soon.

So, what's not to like? Well, there are some cosmetic problems. It looks fabulous from a distance and would be great on stage or in a studio. But there are a few odd things that could be jarring in a house instrument. Which is why this instrument is listed at $17,000 CAD / $12,400 USD instead of the $20,000 CAD / $15,000 USD you might expect. Gold leaf could be tidied up a bit.

• The lovely paint work has a few chips and dings revealing the white undercoat beneath, mostly on the spine side. They could be touched up, if they bother you, or the whole instrument repainted if you do not like the colour (the current owner does not, she had always intended to repaint it). • The very nice solid brass hinges supplied with the kit were not used. For some reason inexpensive steel hinges were substituted and then faux-gold plated, not entirely successfully. If this bothers you they can be replaced. Original-issue hinges for this instrument are available, a complete set would cost around $200 USD. For best results this would be combined with a repainting, chances are the holes will not coincide.

• The gold leafing on the mouldings is a little messy. • The inside of the harpsichord above the soundboard appears to have been primed but never painted. This is not noticeable from a distance and not even serious up close, but you should know.

Perhaps gold leaf was intended here? • The nut pins for the front 8' have been bent, 'trapping' the strings, presumably to adjust for a slight error in their location. This is not very noticeable in its current voicing, and it still sounds quite spectacular and very French, but if concert volume were required the pins should be removed, the holes filled and the pins replaced in their proper position. To the gentleman from Toronto, ON Price: asking $17,000 CAD / $12,400 USD / £6,995 GBP / € 10,400/ $141,500 MXN / ¥ 1,366,745 JPY plus shipping from Toronto and any applicable taxes.

We can arrange delivery or, of course, you can pick it up. Qualifies under NAFTA so no duty to the US, Canada or Mexico, and it also qualifies for our Interested? E-mail or give us a toll-free in North America at 1-888-597-0946. [back to page].

Harpsichords and Virginals We offer three harpsichord and virginal kits: • • • French Double-manual Kit We have chosen as the prototype for our French harpsichord kit an instrument made in Paris in 1769 by Pascal Taskin, possibly the most famous of all 18th century French makers. We made this choice because the mid-18th century French style harpsichord represents the most successful 'general' purpose instrument. The instrument is suitable to all of the harpsichord literature of the baroque.

The completed kit rewards the builder with a double-manual instrument of elegant proportion and detail having a range of five octaves, FF-f'' (61 notes). There are three ranks of jacks and three choirs of strings, 2 x 8', 1 x 4', with a buff stop which can be installed on either the back 8' choir or the upper-manual 8'.

An additional peau de buffle register with leather plectra can be added to the lower-manual 8' if the builder chooses. The transposing keyboards are replicas of Taskin's keyboards. Drivers For See2 Uv150 here. The steel wire normally supplied with our kits is of a lower tensile strength than modern music wire. Its tensile strength reproduces that of the wire used in the 18th century and its high flexibility produces a tone somewhat richer in the lower harmonics and clearer in overall impression than harder wire. Elektroinstallation Symbols Pdf Free. French kits include a trestle stand. However, continental harpsichords in the mid 18th century were often supported by a set of turned and fluted legs attached to a low rim or apron.

Later the legs were often attached directly to the bottom of the instrument. We offer the builder the option of purchasing in place of the trestle stand either a set of Louis XVI style legs, which can be screwed to the bottom of the harpsichord, or a Louis XVI apron, fully assembled with decorative moldings and screw-on legs. Other options are listed in our catalogue and price list. We now have a of this instrument available ($10.00 ppd.

Please - inquire via. Flemish Single-manual Kit For those builders whose musical requirements are considerable but whose resources are limited, our Flemish single-manual kit with its bold sound and unusually large range is ideal.

Designed as a small concert harpsichord with transposing keyboard and a compass capable of performing virtually the entire baroque literature, the resulting instrument amply rewards the player with substantial artistic demands. Compact and light, this harpsichord is practical for the professional on tour and for amateur ensembles that require frequent moves.

For home or institution, professional or student, we offer no better value. The kit is patterned on an instrument built in Antwerp in 1584 by Hans Moermans. We have followed the 18th century practice of ravalement and extended the range of the original from 55 to 58 notes (GG-e'' chromatic). We have also added a French 18th century scaling. It is disposed with two eight foot (8') stops and a buff stop. Like the French harpsichord kit, the Flemish Single-Manual Kit is available with a number of options, among them block printed papers (replicas of traditional Flemish designs) to decorate the interior of the instrument.

We now have a of this instrument available ($10.00 ppd. Please - inquire via. Flemish Single- & Double-Manual Virginal Kits: 'Mother & Child' Flemish virginals emerged in the 17th century as two distinct instruments depending on which side of the front of the instrument the keyboard was located. Those with the keyboard positioned to the right were known as muselars and produced a round, fluty sound of unusual power. The spinet whose keyboard lies to the left of the center produces a sound approaching that of the wing-shaped harpsichord of the period. The ottavino or 'Child' virginal lives in the body of the 'Mother' and is pitched one octave higher than either the spinet or the muselar virginals.

When played, it is pulled forward like a drawer in a bureau, or removed completely and placed on top of the eight-foot virginal cleverly forming a second keyboard at four-foot pitch. How the 'Mother & Child' work: In the large virginal a single set of strings runs the length of the virginal which is normally positioned in the room against a wall.

The key levers run underneath the soundboard from front to back increasing in length as they progress from bass to treble. This allows them to have about the same mechanical advantage in lifting the jacks throughout the compass of the instrument. The key levers are guided vertically at the back with a rack and overrail to limit the amount of key dip. The balance mortises are also made in the manner of the old makers by punching directly into the key lever. The keys lift the jacks which rise through a leather covered register set into the soundboard. The jacks face alternately toward and away from the player making it possible for the strings to fit into half the space they would normally occupy in a harpsichord.

The action and lay-out of the diminutive ottavino are similar to the large instrument. The salient feature of the ottavino is its extreme compactness. In order to couple the ottavino to the large virginal the jackrail of the large virginal is removed and the ottavino set in its place. When played from the lower keyboard, the jacks of the large virginal then perform double duty by both plucking the eight-foot strings and raising the ottavino keys through a slot cut in the bottom of the smaller instrument.

This provides the player with a 1 x 8', 1 x 4' disposition. One would be hard put to use a half-pint of paint on the ottavino. Its construction is as straightforward and simple as is possible for a harpsichord to be. We rank this as our easiest kit. Both spinet and muselar kits are designed with the ottavino in mind. Any Hubbard ottavino will fit any Hubbard muselar or spinet virginal. It is, of course, possible to build the large virginal first and add the ottavino later, or vice-versa.

The range is C-c'', 49 notes. Both spinet and muselar are disposed 1 x 8', the ottavino is disposed 1 x 4'. With our large virginal kits we include a trestle stand in oak with four turned legs. A 17th century oak joint stool kit is available that nicely complements the stand. We now have a of this instrument available ($10.00 ppd.

Please - inquire via.