In Essays in Honor of Christopher Hogwood: The Maestro's Direction, Thomas Donahue has collected several essays from authors who have been motivated and inspired by the distinguished keyboard player, music editor, writer, and conductor, Christopher Hogwood, in honor of his 70th birthday in 2011. As is clearly shown in the assembled articles, Hogwood has had considerable influence in the latter half of the 20th century in advocating the historically informed performance of early music. Contributions from such scholars as Yo Tomita, Richard Troeger, Sabine K. Klaus, Bridget Cunningham, and Annette Richards pay tribute to this major musician of the 20th century, one of the strongest advocates for the performance of early music. The volume begins with a foreword by Bernard Brauchli, followed by a chronology of Hogwood's education and career, including his publications and awards. The succeeding essays cover a variety of subjects associated with Hogwood's approach to early music, including the interpretation of composers' notations, discussions of musical instrument construction and use, elucidation of performance traditions and conventions of the past, and analysis of the music itself. The essays provide insights on the music of Handel, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, and J.S. and C.P.E. Bach and consider various keyboard instruments such as the clavichord, square piano, spinet, and claviorgan. An afterword by Hogwood himself completes this well rounded collection.

For around 300 years, the harpsichord was the leading domestic musical instrument and often a highly fashionable piece of furniture as well. Usurped by the piano at the beginning of the nineteenth century, it was taken up again with the first revival of early music at the beginning of the twentieth century. Over the past 40 years, makers have been getting closer to reproducing examples from the historical past. Now, " The Art of Making a Harpsichord" gives its readers the chance to discover this challenging and rewarding pursuit in a way that is rarely possible without working with an established builder. Beginning with an overview of the instrument, its schools and workshop traditions, the author--himself an experienced maker and researcher--explores the various models and types before leading the reader through the manufacture of an Italian-style instrument, while describing historically-based working methods which are applicable to all traditions. Just as in the seventeenth or eighteenth century, there is no need to rely on large power-tools. This book has been designed to provide assistance to all harpsichord makers, whatever model they choose to make. It is lavishly illustrated with line drawings and photographs, the latter taken--wherever possible--from antique examples that give the reader as full an understanding as possible of the quality of these beautiful instruments.