[AnAmericanMother]

I like early music as much as the next guy -- in fact I play a lot of it. I play the harpsichord and my husband plays the lute.

But there's a reason most of these instruments passed out of use . . . .

. . . they don't work very well. Most of them are difficult to play and take real dedication.

Some of them are interesting and make pretty noises. Some of them just sound . . . odd.

Here are some sackbuts in action - with a 'muffled drum' - if you ever wondered what that is.

Purcell's March - Funeral Sentences

(these are the ancestor of the trombone).

(the reconstruction of the Scarlatti G Major Sonata (NOT D minor - it's L. 388 and one I play myself) is played WAY too fast - some of Scarlatti's sonatas have the direction 'prestissimo' ('fastest') or even 'as fast as possible', but this isn't one of them). And the epigonion, whatever it is, sounds like a large harpsichord with bad dampers, more or less.

[decimon]

But there's a reason most of these instruments passed out of use . . . .

I've heard that classical music played with period instruments can be pretty bad. Maybe that's why people like Stradivarius were so valued. Maybe music of that period began sounding much better.

[NCjim]

I play the harpsichord

A fascinating instrument was E.Power Biggs' "Pedal Harpsichord" that was made for him by John Challis.

[GOPJ]

Logical and interesting.

[Roccus]

But there's a reason most of these instruments passed out of use . . . .

I'm a little late to the party, but oh well....
I like classical music. Don't know much about it, but I enjoy it. I once bought a tape of the Brandenburg Concerto played on original instruments and found the mechanical sounds (clicking, clacking etc) to be disturbing.

[afraidfortherepublic]

Is there anything you don’t do?

[colorado tanker]

Most of them are difficult to play and take real dedication.

Unlike my air guitar?