[CAUT] FW: WiTTmayer Harpsichord

[Edward Sambell]

Having had to tussle with these beasts, Fred  expresses my view of them exactly. 
Wittmayer was one of several German makers who tried to 'improve' the 
harpsichord. Thankfully, some changed their ways later, while others went out of 
business. Zuckerman rightly excoriated them in 'The Modern Harpsichord' and may 
have been a factor in getting a few, like Sassman to change their ways. He 
praises fine American makers, such as Dowd, but treads softly where John 
Challis, who was much more radical, is concerned. Probably the worst  example 
was Sabbatil of Vancouver , Canada, but they did change eventually. I underwent 
some very unpleasant experiences with them. One time, the dean at the university 
where I worked had purchased a large Nuepert double, without checking with me. 
Nobody used it, and he fobbed off the job on me of trying to sell it to a high 
profile organist, who arrived from out of town with a friend, also an organist 
for a large cathedral. I knew him and also knew he owned a fine harpsichord. 
After seeing the instrument, it wasn't hard to tell their feelings. One asked 
me, " What is your opinion of the harpsichord"? with a look that plainly said 
they were sizing me up. I replied "It's a monstrosity, and I strongly recommend 
you do not purchase it". I would probably have been fired if the dean had found 
out. But I simply could not bring myself to have done otherwise.

Ted Sambell




________________________________
From: Fred Sturm <fssturm at unm.edu>
To: caut at ptg.org
Sent: Sat, December 18, 2010 12:11:04 PM
Subject: Re: [CAUT] FW:  WiTTmayer Harpsichord


On Dec 18, 2010, at 5:51 AM, Conrad Hoffsommer wrote:

#1 shows the jacks in place - it's a spinet, so strings run off at a good angle 
to the right.
>-wire hook below damper is to cradle the tongue return spring attached to the 
>register
>-metal damper bracket and attaching screw clearly visible
>-tongue rests on eccentric cam used for pluck adjustment
>#2 shows some details of the jack itself.  
>-leather plectrum
>-lead weight
I never cease to be amazed at the "ingenuity" Wittmayer put into redesigning the 
jack, something that historically had worked very efficiently and reliably for 
hundreds of years. Each one I have looked at (thankfully few) has had a 
different "feature" or two. I am grateful that none of my harpsichord clients 
has ever possessed one, knock on wood. They should all be burned <G>. (Too much 
trouble to retrofit with a simple jack)

Regards,
Fred Sturm
fssturm at unm.edu
"I am only interested in music that is better than it can be played." Schnabel 


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