Clavichord

A keyboard instrument in which metal tangents strike and remain in contact with strings. Its quiet tone and direct string contact allow subtle control of volume and pitch.

Tangent (clavichord): A small metal blade attached to a clavichord key that strikes a string and determines its sounding length. The tangent both initiates the note and remains against the string, enabling pitch inflection.
Keyboard instrument: A musical instrument played by pressing keys that trigger sound-producing mechanisms. The clavichord belongs to this broad family, though its tone comes from tangents striking strings.
Medieval music: The musical traditions of Europe from roughly the fifth through the fifteenth centuries. The clavichord emerged within the period when early European keyboard instruments developed.
Baroque music: European art music from approximately 1600 to 1750, marked by tonal harmony and elaborate ornamentation. The clavichord served as a domestic and practice instrument during this period.
Piano: A keyboard instrument whose hammers strike strings and rebound, allowing notes to vary in loudness with touch. The piano is louder and more suitable for public performance, but lacks the clavichord’s same direct tangent contact.
Bebung: A clavichord technique that varies a note’s pitch by gently rocking a depressed key. It exploits the tangent’s continuing contact with the string to create a vocal-like wavering effect.
Fretted clavichord: A clavichord in which a single string is shared by multiple keys that sound different pitches. Its shared strings distinguish one major construction type of clavichord.
Monochord: An ancient instrument with one string used to demonstrate musical intervals and tuning. Its movable bridges and measured string lengths anticipate principles used in early keyboard-string instruments.
Domestic music-making: Music performed in homes for personal enjoyment, social occasions, or private study. The clavichord’s low volume suited rooms where a louder instrument would be impractical.
Virginal: A small rectangular harpsichord with strings plucked by quills or plectra. The virginal produces a stronger, less touch-variable tone through plucking rather than tangents.

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Bartolomeo CristoforiRelated: It offered touch-sensitive dynamics, a quality Cristofori’s more powerful instrument also enabled.