clavichord
Clavichord (noun) means a quiet early keyboard instrument in which small metal blades strike the strings when the keys are pressed. Example: “The clavichord was too soft for a large concert hall, so composers played it for themselves at home.”
How to use clavichord
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA small, quiet keyboard instrument that came before the piano.
It is a specialist musical term, mostly used when discussing early or historical keyboard instruments.
Remember the tangent, the small blade that strikes the string, is what gives the clavichord its soft and expressive sound.
Trace the full origin ↓Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
The _____ was too soft for a large concert hall, so composers played it for themselves at home.
Etymology
Clavichord entered English from the German word Klavichord. That word goes back to Renaissance Latin clavichordium, itself built from clavis, meaning key, and chorda, meaning cord or string.
