Chapter 2

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 manual. In the quotation previously given, Querinus van Blankenburg tells us that the Ruckers did not make transposing instruments later than the 1630's. Of the 10 dated Italian instruments with the keyboard extended to _f'''_, only three were made after the third decade of the 17th century. Each of these has a shorter pitch _C_ string than any of the seven earlier instruments. These three harpsichords, dated 1654, 1658, and 1666, are accordingly considered nontransposing instruments, with the extra treble keys representing an actual extension of the upward range. 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 1635.

The 33 instruments on which this study is based are classified in the list on page 107. They are grouped according to whether the highest key is _f'''_ or _c'''_, with the exceptions of the three harpsichords mentioned in the preceding paragraph and three instruments that go only to _a''_. That the three instruments ending on _a''_ belong with the nontransposing group is indicated by their string lengths.

The listing gives additional information about each example. String lengths of instruments having two registers are for the shorter of the two pitch _C_ strings.

Information has been secured on two Italian virginals which were not included in the tabulation. Their measurements are completely at variance with the pattern consistently set by the other 33 examples studied. One, made by Giovanni Domenico in 1556, is in the Skinner collection; it has a pitch _C_ string 14-1/16" in length and an apparent compass of _C/E_ to _c'''_. The other, with the same apparent compass and a 7-1/2" pitch _C_ string, is at Yale University. Whether these instruments are exceptional in terms of the pitch to which they were tuned, the tension which was applied to the strings, or the thickness and weight of the strings themselves, has not been determined.

The average of the pitch _C_ lengths of the transposing instruments in the list is 12.78"; that of the nontransposing group is 10.45". This suggests a separation between the two groups of about a major third since the first average is roughly 5/4 of the second. However, 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 4/3 of the second to do so--does not disprove the theory of transposition by a fourth. In the first place, a considerable variety of pitches is no doubt represented in both groups since a universal pitch standard did not exist in the 16th and 17th centuries. Also, 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 based.

A further possible justification for the relationship of the two averages is found in Praetorius' discussion of the pitch standards with which he was familiar.[6] He states that choir pitch was a major second lower than chamber pitch and that _tertiam minorem_ was a minor third lower than chamber pitch. Praetorius says of _tertiam minorem_:[7]

But in Italy and in various Catholic choirs in Germany, the said lower pitch is much in use. For some Italians, not unjustly, take no pleasure in high singing, and maintain it is not beautiful, and the words cannot be properly understood, and it sounds like crowing, yelling, singing at the top of one's voice....

Possibly some of the nontransposing instruments were tuned to choir pitch and others to _tertiam minorem_, while the transposing instruments were set a fourth lower than choir pitch.

Three of the instruments listed are ottavinas, small instruments tuned an octave higher than usual. Ottavinas correspond to a four-foot register. Mersenne[8] mentions that they existed in two sizes, one a fifth above the usual pitch and the other an octave above. 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 group. Although no examples were found for inclusion in this study, it is probable that some ottavinas a fifth above the usual pitch--and therefore an octave higher than the transposing instruments in our listing--survive. Such instruments would be expected to have apparent ranges of _C/E_ to _f'''_ and pitch _C_ strings between 5-3/4" and 6-3/4" in length.

DATA ON THE 33 INSTRUMENTS STUDIED

KEY:

A.: _Date_ B.: _Pitch C length_ (_in inches_) C.: _Apparent compass_ D.: _Type_ E.: _Registers_ F.: _Maker_ G.: _Present location_

A. B. C. D. E. F. G.

TRANSPOSING INSTRUMENTS

1540 11-11/16 C/E-f''' Polygonal 8' Vi ... ies Metropolitan virginal Museum of Art 1569 13-1/4 C/E-f''' Polygonal 8' Annibale Juilliard virginal Rossi School of Music 1602 13-1/4 C/E-f''' Rectangular 8' Ioannes Smithsonian virginal Baptista Institution Bononien 1610 13-1/2 C/E-f'''' Polygonal 8' Pasquino Harding virginal Querci Museum, Chicago 1613 11-1/2 C/E-f''' Harpsichord 8'8' Pasquino Smithsonian Querci Institution 1617 13-3/4 C/E-f''' Polygonal 8' Giovanni Yale virginal Battista University, Boni New Haven, Conn. 1620 13-9/16 C/E-f''' Polygonal 8' Francesco Rhode Island virginal Poggio School of Design, Providence 11-15/16 C/E-f''' Polygonal 8' Anonymous Skinner virginal Collection, Holyoke, Mass. 12-15/16 C/E-f''' Polygonal 8' Anonymous Smithsonian virginal Institution 13" C/E-f''' Polygonal 8' Anonymous Boston Museum virginal of Fine Arts 11-1/2 C-f''' Polygonal 8' Anonymous Folger virginal Library, Washington, D.C. 12-3/4 C/E-f''' Polygonal 8' Anonymous Cincinnati virginal Art Museum 13-5/8 C/E-f''' Polygonal 8' Anonymous Smithsonian virginal Institution

NONTRANSPOSING INSTRUMENTS

1548 11 C/E-c''' Polygonal 8' Domenicus Metropolitan virginal Pesaurensis Museum of Art 1554 [a]10-1/2 C/E-c''' Harpsichord 8'8' Padre Vassar Stoppacio College, Poughkeepsie, New York 1585 [b]11-1/2 C/E-a'' Ottavina 4' Franciscus Metropolitan Bonafinis Museum of Art 1602 10-1/2 C/E-c''' Harpsichord Christoforus Stearns Rigunini Collection, Ann Arbor, Mich. 1615 [b]9-3/4 C/E-a'' Ottavina 4' Pasquino Metropolitan Querci Museum of Art 1625 10-1/8 C/E-c''' Harpsichord 8' Valerius Skinner Peres Collection, Holyoke, Mass. 1633 11-3/8 C/E-c''' Harpsichord 8'8' Horatius Smithsonian Albana Institution 1645 11 C/E-c''' Harpsichord 8'8' Horatius Vizcaya, Albana Miami, Fla. 1654 10-1/4 C/E-f''' Harpsichord 8'8' Anonymous Smithsonian Institution 1658 11-1/8 C-f''' Harpsichord 8'8' Hieronymus Metropolitan de Zentis Museum of Art 1665 10 C/E-c''' Harpsichord 8'8' Giacomo Smithsonian Ridolfi Institution 1666 10-15/16 A_{1}-f''' Harpsichord 8'8' Hieronymus Metropolitan de Zentis Museum of Art 1682 10-7/8 C/E-c''' Harpsichord 8'8' Giacomo Rhode Island Ridolfi School of Design, Providence 1683 8 C/E-c''' Polygonal 8' B. Obici Harding virginal Museum, Chicago 1690 10-13/16 C/E-c''' Harpsichord 8' Giovanni Smithsonian Andrea Institution Menegoni 1693 10-5/16 G_{1}-c''' Harpsichord 8'8' Anonymous Smithsonian Institution 1694 9-7/8 C-c''' Harpsichord 8'8'4' Nicolaus Smithsonian (minus C#) de Quoco Institution 9-3/4 C/E-a'' Clavicytherium 8'8' Anonymous Smithsonian Institution [b]10-3/8 C/E-c''' Clavicytherium 4' Anonymous Boston Museum (Ottavina) of Fine Arts 11 C/E-c''' Polygonal 8' Anonymous Smithsonian virginal Institution

[a] This length is approximate. It is double the length of the shortest string on the instrument.

[b] In order to arrive at a meaningful average value for the string lengths of the nontransposing group, it was necessary to double the measured lengths of the pitch _C_ strings of the three instruments tuned an octave higher.

+----------+--------- Figure | Negative | Catalog | Number | Number -------+----------+--------- 1 | 56322 | 326,905 2 | 46792 | 303,544 3 | 49355A | 303,544 4 | 49355B | 303,544 5 | 49356A | 303,544 6 | 49356 | 303,544 7 | 49356D | 332,173 8 | 49356D | 332,173 9 | 49357A | 332,173 10 | 49357 | 332,173 11 | 49355C | 332,173 12 | 46795 | 303,545 -------+----------+---------

GPO: 1970 O--380-228

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington 25, D.C. Price 25 cents.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Michael Praetorius, _Theatrum Instrumentorum_, Wolfenbuettel, 1620, pl. 14.

[2] _Ibid._, pl. 6.

[3] Querinus van Blankenburg, _Elementa Musica_, The Hague, 1739.

[4] Translation by Arthur Mendel in "Devices for Transposition in the Organ before 1600," _Acta Musicologica_, 1949, p. 33.

[5] Sibyl Marcuse, "Transposing Keyboards on Extant Flemish Harpsichords," _Musical Quarterly_, July 1952.

[6] Michael Praetorius, _Syntagma Musicum_, Wolfenbuettel, 1614-1620, vol. 2 (Organographia), chapter 2.

[7] Translation by Arthur Mendel in "Pitch in the 16th and early 17th Centuries, Part II," _Musical Quarterly_, April 1948.

[8] Marin Mersenne, _Harmonie Universelle_, Paris, 1636, p. 101.