This is a Ruckers mother-and-child virginal—a 17th-century keyboard instrument with a second, smaller instrument built into it, tuned an octave higher. The “child” could be pulled out to play duets or set on top of the “mother” to add a jangly, buzzing color to the main sound—a Renaissance-era layering trick, centuries before mixing desks. Antwerp instrument makers were doing this in the 1600s.
@BrianRoemmele #globalmuseum #museums #musicalinstruments
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@globalmuseum A friend of mine in Germany builds instruments like that. In fact he crafts copies of those historical keyboards.
https://volkerplatte.de/instrumente-uebersicht/flaemische-instrumente/flandern-virginal-01/
@globalmuseum
Thank you for showing this.
@globalmuseum hth does the linkage between the two keyboards work?
@globalmuseum
What an impressive piece of engineering, apart from anything else.
I think a loose translation of the motto is:
As agreement in small things grows, disagreement in great things shrinks.
Of course, it's been around 50 years since my last Latin class.
@globalmuseum #Alt4You The performer opens what almost looks like a wooden crate, first opening the top, which is hinged along the top back, then allowing the front panel to drop open. A keyboard occupies a bit less than half the length of the left front side. The performer plays this keyboard, then at the 35-second mark begins to transform the instrument. First they remove a wooden bar from the top, revealing what seems to be a row of pegs. 1/?
@globalmuseum That is *wicked* cool 😮
@globalmuseum Amazing, and so beautiful! 🤩
@globalmuseum wow, that’s pretty great!
@globalmuseum
officially cool
Higher harmonics... 🎹 🎹
@globalmuseum Very cool and beautiful too. I just finished reading Isola, and they kept talking about their virginal. Book is based on true story in the mid 1500's.
