NEWSLETTER AUGUST 2003

www.harpsichord.org.uk

Welcome to the second e-newsletter of the British Harpsichord Society.

Since the last newsletter, the membership has more than doubled to nearly 160 members. The website has continued to grow and many more links have been added. If you haven't seen it recently, click on the "keys" above and have a look. We now attract about 20 visits per day.

We are starting to attract good search engine ratings which will bring us to more people's attention. If you have a website and can link to us this will help us grow.

Your about this newsletter will help to improve future issues. Please send any you would like publicised: performances, publications, recordings etc.

Contents

Congratulations to David Wright on winning the 2003 Broadwood Harpsichord Competition. Join us at Fenton House, Hampstead, London on August 21st to hear his Prizewinner's recital.

Several recitals coming up which we will be attending:
14th August 2003, Oxford, Kah-Ming Ng Solo Recital
21st August 2003, Fenton House, London. David Wright, Broadwood Harpsichord Prize Recital.
If you are going to either and we can arrange to meet up.

William Mitchell, a long established British maker, has very kindly offered to host a musical afternoon for the Society at his home near Bournemouth on Sunday 5th October 2003.

Instruments available will be a Franco-Flemish double, based on the 1636/1763 Ruckers-Hemsch, (now part of the Cobbe Collection at Hatchlands, a National Trust property near Guildford, Surrey) as well as a rare treat, the Claviorganum. This extraordinary instrument combines a double manual harpsichord with a single manual chamber organ, which achieves a remarkable sound.

There is no formal programme. The idea is for members to come and play and listen and share their enjoyment of harpsichords. All standards are welcome or you can come and listen. We hope that many people will be prepared to play something.

Please support this occasion which is the first that has been organised specifically for the Society. Offers to host other events are also very welcome. is essential as space is limited.

Featured Book and CDs

We are working on a number of developments for the future. One of which is a project, suggested by a member, to begin listing the baroque keyboard repertoire by composer as extensively as possible.

This is a huge task but spread between the membership it begins to look feasible to make some impact on it. Let us know if you would like to

A good source of information is the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians which is available in many public reference libraries. If anybody has access to the online version this could make research very much easier.

Have a look at the Repertoire page to see how far we have got.

Restoration of a 17th Century Italian Harpsichord