The English Spinet with particular reference to The Schools of Keene and Hitchcock
Date
2009Author
Mole, Peter Geoffrey
Metadata
Abstract
Organological inspections of a representative sample of English spinets made during
the period 1680-1740 have been performed. The sample includes instruments made
by Stephen Keene and his co-workers, by the Hitchcock family firm, and by selected
other makers. Analysis of the Keene instruments allows them to be classified into
four groups reflecting their development in size and compass over time. In contrast,
little development is discernible in spinets from the Hitchcock workshop: rather, the
instruments can be seen to have existed as two basic models – a mitred tail model
and a serpentine tail one. Some variations and hybrids are recognisable in both
models.
The commonly held view that the spinet was merely a cheap and compact substitute
for the harpsichord, even during the late-Stuart and early-Georgian period, is refuted
by reference to archival and iconographic evidence of the status in society of those
who bought the instruments.