Its shape is similar to that of a Piano but having a much different sound Each string is plucked by a quill plectrum It is closely related to a Virginal or a Spinet and eventually lost popularity after the Fortepiano became popular around 1800
The precursor of the modern piano It differs from the piano in that the strings are plucked by quills instead of being struck by hammers It has a more delicate tone
A harp-shaped instrument of music set horizontally on legs, like the grand piano, with strings of wire, played by the fingers, by means of keys provided with quills, instead of hammers, for striking the strings
A harpsichord is an old-fashioned musical instrument rather like a small piano. When you press the keys, the strings are pulled, rather than being hit by hammers as in a piano. a musical instrument like a piano, used especially in the past (Italian arpicorda, from arpa + corda ). Keyboard instrument in which the strings are set in vibration by a plucking mechanism. The latter consists of plectra made of quill (or sometimes leather) mounted on vertical wooden jacks that are activated by the keys. A cloth damper touches the string when the player releases the key. It often has two parallel keyboards (or manuals) and generally has two or more sets of strings, each of which produces different tone qualities; these permit the simultaneous sounding of pitches an octave higher or lower than the note struck. The notes' loudness is not affected by the power with which the keys are struck, and there is no way to sustain a note after the key is released. Primitive harpsichords existed by the mid-15th century. In the 17th-18th centuries the harpsichord became a very important solo, accompanimental, and ensemble instrument. From 1750 the pianoforte, with its greater dynamic capacity, began to displace it, and by 1820 the harpsichord had largely vanished. It was revived in the late 19th century by scholars, performers, and instrument builders
A keyboard instrument, especially popular during the baroque era, in which the depressed key moves a quill to pluck the string It has the following stages of sound production: energy source: muscle (finger) vibrating element: string resonating chamber: the body of the harpsichord