Weber harpsichord, 18th Century
Made in Dublin by Ferdinand Weber, a friend of Handel's. Handel had close associations with Dublin. "The Messiah" was first performed there. Weber's harpsichords are now rare. Two are in the National Museum in Dublin, one in the Brussels Conservatoire. (Rand Daily Mail, 6.3.65?)
1752, bought at Christie's,
beautiful hinges (Panorama, July 1958), Repaired by Michael Thomas
Information from
Boalch: 7 instruments listed:
a) harpsichord, 1746,
P.J. Watts, Maidenhead
b) harpsichord, 1751,
Brussels Museum
c) clavicytherium,
1764, National Museum of Ireland
d) harpsichord, 1768,
National Museum of Ireland
e) harpsichord, 1775,
Royal College of Music
f)
wing spinet, 1775, National
Museum of Ireland
g) clavicytherium,
privately owned in Ireland
I am preparing a catalogue of Weber's extant instruments and eed to ask you a few questions about your Weber harpsichord.
ReplyDeleteWhat do the hand stops do? 63 keys, yes? Where was the Christie's sale held? Can you provide a scan of the catalogue page? Can you also provide a close-up photo of the nameplate?
Thank you for your kind assistance.
George Bozarth
gcbozarth@gmail.com
I am now finishing my book on Ferdinand Weber, which will include a catalogue of Weber's extant instruments. I need to ask you a few questions about your Weber harpsichord:
ReplyDeleteWhat do the hand stops do?
The instrument has 63 keys, yes?
Where was the Christie's sale held? Can you provide a scan of the catalogue page?
Can you also provide a close-up photo of the name board? Does the name board read "FERDINAND[superscript:]S WEBER FECIT" or "FERDINAND[superscript:]S WEBER fecit"?
Thank you for your kind assistance.
George Bozarth
gcbozarth@gmail.com