Hi all,
Well here we are at the end of this series on harpsichord building. We started on October 24th of last year and now, April 2, 2009, 29 posts and 451 photos later, the project is finished. A new found friend, Neal Carey, who has been following this series from Boston, has compiled the posts into book form. Neal builds some really beautiful ukuleles and other stringed instruments which can be seen on his web site. At last count his compilation was 311 pages long with 2 posts to go.
I must admit I had no idea what I was getting into when I agreed to post this series. Describing procedures that you’ve done for years without thinking too much about the process proved to be quite challenging. On the other hand, this has been a wonderful learning experience. Sometimes we do things almost by rote – without thinking of why we do these things the way we do. Having to describe these procedures in writing forced me to rethink, and, in some cases, change the way certain things are done.
The most important part of building an instrument is the one thing we haven’t talked about at all. How does it sound? This is a very subjective question whose answer depends on many factors. How does it sound compared to what? Comparing the sound to other harpsichords might be valid, but only if you’ve actually heard other harpsichords. Does harpsichord music turn you on or make you feel like banging your head against the wall? (Hey! Hey! – don’t answer that!) Thanks to Steve and Jim, it’s now possible to upload sound files to NCWW so I will. On June 7, John O’Brian, Professor of Keyboards at East Carolina University, will be giving a solo concert on this instrument. For a builder, this is as good as it gets. In my past life as a piano technician, I have tuned for concerts by many “name” performers. As exciting as it was to prepare pianos for these artists, it pales in comparison to the thrill of hearing my own instrument played by a world class player.
My next door neighbor is a recording engineer and will record this concert with some really amazing equipment. I’ll upload the sound file so you can hear it for yourself (wall not included).
Lastly, and on a personal note. It’s hard to believe that I’ve only been a member of NCWW for nine months. This site has become a daily ritual for me – one I look forward to. To all the too kind people who responded to my endless posts, thank you. To DaveO who ‘unstuck’ so many of these posts until we found a better way to link to them – thank you. And most of all, to all of you who made me feel so welcomed here from day one – thank you. It will probably be a while before I can do some work without reaching for my camera after every cut. I’m looking forward to sitting back and reading some other How-To’s by some of the talented folks on this site. Keep ‘em coming.
Till?
Ernie
Here’s some final photos of the finished instrument.
Well here we are at the end of this series on harpsichord building. We started on October 24th of last year and now, April 2, 2009, 29 posts and 451 photos later, the project is finished. A new found friend, Neal Carey, who has been following this series from Boston, has compiled the posts into book form. Neal builds some really beautiful ukuleles and other stringed instruments which can be seen on his web site. At last count his compilation was 311 pages long with 2 posts to go.
I must admit I had no idea what I was getting into when I agreed to post this series. Describing procedures that you’ve done for years without thinking too much about the process proved to be quite challenging. On the other hand, this has been a wonderful learning experience. Sometimes we do things almost by rote – without thinking of why we do these things the way we do. Having to describe these procedures in writing forced me to rethink, and, in some cases, change the way certain things are done.
The most important part of building an instrument is the one thing we haven’t talked about at all. How does it sound? This is a very subjective question whose answer depends on many factors. How does it sound compared to what? Comparing the sound to other harpsichords might be valid, but only if you’ve actually heard other harpsichords. Does harpsichord music turn you on or make you feel like banging your head against the wall? (Hey! Hey! – don’t answer that!) Thanks to Steve and Jim, it’s now possible to upload sound files to NCWW so I will. On June 7, John O’Brian, Professor of Keyboards at East Carolina University, will be giving a solo concert on this instrument. For a builder, this is as good as it gets. In my past life as a piano technician, I have tuned for concerts by many “name” performers. As exciting as it was to prepare pianos for these artists, it pales in comparison to the thrill of hearing my own instrument played by a world class player.
My next door neighbor is a recording engineer and will record this concert with some really amazing equipment. I’ll upload the sound file so you can hear it for yourself (wall not included).
Lastly, and on a personal note. It’s hard to believe that I’ve only been a member of NCWW for nine months. This site has become a daily ritual for me – one I look forward to. To all the too kind people who responded to my endless posts, thank you. To DaveO who ‘unstuck’ so many of these posts until we found a better way to link to them – thank you. And most of all, to all of you who made me feel so welcomed here from day one – thank you. It will probably be a while before I can do some work without reaching for my camera after every cut. I’m looking forward to sitting back and reading some other How-To’s by some of the talented folks on this site. Keep ‘em coming.
Till?
Ernie
Here’s some final photos of the finished instrument.
