What's New

In April, we made the move to the "big 415." We were ready to make the move last year, but Doug was the big holdup trying to get enough time on his new traverso and treble recorder so that we could play them full time without risking a crack. So far the reaction has been mixed. Doug thinks his traverso is much happier at 415 (he is still struggling with intonation), and Brian has been coping with another whole new set of intonation challenges. After a couple of months, the harpsichord seems to have settled down, and the gamba seems happy as well.

The really exciting news for the year is the order of a travelling harpsichord. Mallie has ordered a "Cemballino" from Peter Tkach , for delivery sometime at the end of 2001 or early 2002. With this instrument we will be able to retire the Roland C20, or at least relegate it to outdoor performances.

The instrument is an adaptation of the kit offered by the Early Music Shop. The illustration here was taken from their catalog. ( I highly recommend securing a copy of the EMS catalog. It is well worth the $7.50). This is a compact single 8' harpsichord based on Italian virginal designs of the 16th century maker Dominicus Pisaurensis. The compass of the instrument is 45 notes from CC/EE-c" with a broken bottom octave. Italian harsichords were so lightly built that they required external cases to protect them during transporation. This instrument is no exception, coming equipped with a carrying case.