The oval spinet is a type of harpsichord invented in the late 17th century by Bartolomeo Cristofori, the Italian instrument maker who later achieved fame for inventing the piano. The oval spinet was unusual for its shape, the arrangement of its strings, and for its mechanism for changing registration.[1]
Facsimile of 1690 oval spinet by Tony Chinnery and Kerstin Schwarz
The two oval spinets built by Cristofori survive today. One, built in 1690, is kept in the Museo degli strumenti musicali, part of the Galleria del Accademia in Florence. The other, from 1693, is in the Museum für Musikinstrumente of the University of Leipzig.
^Except where indicated in the text, all material in this article is based on Rossi-Rognoni (2002), cited below.
The ovalspinet is a type of harpsichord invented in the late 17th century by Bartolomeo Cristofori, the Italian instrument maker who later achieved fame...
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Andromeda; above the western doors two paintings by Maratta, Woman Playing a Spinet and Jael Murdering Sisera; and above the eastern doors Agostino Scilla|'s...
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