Tangentenflügel Spåth & Schmall
1780
The term Tangentenflügel refers to a type of piano that was very popular in the second half of the eighteenth century, which is based on the mechanism of the harpsichord. As in the harpsichord, the jack is raised and pushed towards the string but not to pluck it but to strike it. Jacob Spaeth, the most important builder of this type of instrument, gives the name of tangent to the percussive jack, hence the name Tangentenflügel. Defined by the historian Forkel as a hybrid between the harpsichord and the fortepiano, which summarizes in itself the timbre and dynamic characteristics of the two instruments, Spaeth’s Tangentenflügel was appreciated by Mozart.
style: grand
length.: cm. 226
width: cm. 1,01
heigth (floor to Keyboard): cm.70
compass: FF-f”’
octave size: cm. 16,1
strings: bichord FF-F brass F#-f”’ iron
wrest pins: crushed
action: tangenten without coverage
bridge: continuous
handstops: shift, dampers, moderator, harp (lost)
case: Jacaranda with 5 legs
