Harpsichords are keyboard instruments that make sound by having the strings plucked with a plectrum. They are thought to have originated when a keyboard was attached to a psaltery. This makes them different from a clavichord where the strings are hit. The piano is therefore closer to a clavichord than a harpsichord.

These instruments commonly had three sets of strings, two unison sets at normal pitch (called eight-foot pitch because the low C at this pitch is produced by an organ pipe eight feet long) and a third set of shorter strings tuned an octave higher, or at four-foot pitch; this shorter set passed over its own bridge and …

The two keyboards, or “manuals”, control different sets of strings. In some designs, the second manual might control strings tuned a fourth (four notes) down from the main keyboard. This allows the harpsichordist to switch to a lower register when required, which frees up the higher registers for a vocal accompaniment.

The harpsichord is a keyboard instrument in which the strings are plucked, rather than hit with a hammer (which is the mechanism for the piano, a more recent development). The distinctive sound of the harpsichord creates an almost immediately association with the baroque era.

: a stringed instrument resembling a grand piano but usually having two keyboards and two or more strings for each note and producing tones by the plucking of strings with plectra.

Oval spinet

• Accordion. This instrument is held between your hands and consists of bellows, two sets of reeds, akeyboard for the melody and buttons for bass notes and chords.
• Carillon. A set of bells in a church or bell tower that are played using a keyboard.
• Celesta.
• Clavichord.
• Harmonium.
• Harpsichord.
• Organ.
• Piano.

Neanderthal flute