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Harpsichords and Related Topics

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From:
Andrew Appel <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Harpsichords and Related Topics <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Mon, 4 Jan 2016 15:08:15 -0500
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Ive found voicing quill to allow for more pleasure than plastic.  Once in the mortice and cut to a good length, the voicing is a matter of scraping off hard material from the underside of the quill and with patience, can be done in a very exact and satisfying way.  There maybe better tools but using the back of my exacto knife blade, I can scrape large pieces or grains away from the underside of the quill.

I would like to add that voicing is kinda futile unless you have your dampers well set and the regularity of the dampers from one jack to another is exact.  I find that if an instrument is left alone through a seasonal change…more work needs to be done on this than on voicing or replacing quills.  There are several testing points for this…  how the damper touches but never hangs on a string, how the jack moves at the very instant you touch a key and not after…other things…but many issues are cleared up when you get jack heights and damper contact just so.


> On Jan 4, 2016, at 2:47 PM, Gregcrowell <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> 
> I've followed the discussion on quill vs. plastic with interest. I have instruments in quill and in Delrin, and my experience prompts me to chime in with two thoughts:
> 
> 
> 1. A number of builders claim to have achieved similar or comparable qualities to quill with their plastic and with their voicing techniques. I can think of at least two (one of them a contributor to this conversation) whom I respect very highly, and have no reason to doubt. I also know one European builder who has tried both materials in his harpsichord, and has found it impossible to distinguish the (crow) quill from the synthetic material, given the proper voicing methods for each. One of my instruments was believed to be in quill by a famous performer until I pointed out that it was actually Delrin. What I would like to see/hear is a proper blind test.
> 
> 
> 2. I am often frustrated that (unless I've missed something) most discussions of quill talk about how to treat it, how to trim it, or how to shape it, but there is precious little information about how to voice it. I even recall a recent article about quill from a major builder that contained not a single word about voicing! Certainly choosing the right feather for the range is important, but how should the quill, once it has been shaped and installed, be voiced for maximum musical result? (It surely involves more than rounding the corners.)
> 
> 
> Greg
> 
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Note:  opinions  expressed on HPSCHD-L are those of the  individual con-
tributors and not necessarily  those of the list owners  nor of the Uni-
versity of Iowa.  For a brief  summary of list  commands, send mail to
[log in to unmask]  saying  HELP .
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