Musical Instruments of the Past

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 234, 2 October 1937, Page 8 (Supplement)

Musical Instruments of the Past

Clavichord Maker ffoos Youth From Swing Music

(By RUSSELL E. TROTMAN.)

NORTHFIELD, Mass.

CLERGYMEN from all sections of this country attending the Northfield General Conference and members of the International Youth Hostel Association touring New England have added a new "must" to their list of personalities to be visited at Northfield. It is Julius Wahl, house father at the Northfield Youth Hostel, headquarters for the American Youth Hostel Association.

Three months at the hostel have already established Mr. Wahl's reputation as entertainer and craftsman. He charms groups of hostelers during the evenings with selections on his two zithers. In addition, he has been known for a quarter-century as a master pianomaker and of late as a builder of harpsichords and clavichords, the "pianos" of 300 years ago.

Almost any evening he can be found, surrounded by a group of boys and girls, who, accustomed to modern jazz, find themselves absorbed in music 100 years old. Older persons, particularly the visiting clergy, watch with pleasure and approval as they notice that the music beloved by their parents still exerts its spell over a generation believed to be "swing mad."

100-year-old Zither. Mr. Wahl makes a fine character study as he sits bent over an. instrument on his knee, his whole attention absorbed in a plaintive folk song his familiar fingers are bringing from the instrument. His hands, stubby-fingered and strong can call forth from wood and steel, the best in music and can carve from wood the most intricate designs and beautiful cabinets. He plays carefully absorbed in the music, every now and then throwing his head back as if to listen still more intently to the clear notes and beautiful chords.

The zither he plays is close to 100 years old and when built wa* at the height of its popularity. He lays it down and picks up another, lower in tone. This one he made himself and he uses it to accompany the "sings" which usually close a day spent by the hostelers on the trail. Very few persona in this country can play the instrument. The number/ who have mastered its difficult technique is limited to a dozen.

At present Mr. Wtihl is working on a spinet and expect" to have it finished within a few weeks. When completed, the instrument, which is small enough to l>e carried around, will complete a personal collection which covers the entire history of the piano, rare even in mu-seums. Most museum pieces are not in condition to be played. Wahl's instruments are. Worked for Concert Pianists. During 40 years as a pianomaker with Chickering and Mason and Hamlin, Mr. Wahl earned a just reputation as a tuner and repairer of pianos. From 1920 to 19.10. he tuned the pianos for many world famous concert pianists, among them Erno Dohnanyi, Hungarian com-poser-pianist, Richard Strauss, when lie played with Boston Symphony, Mayer and Pattison the piano duo, Elli Ney and Alfred Mirovitsch, the Russian composer-piankt. Mr. Walil's productions are exact duplicates of the old-time instruments. The spinet was popular in the period 1500 to 1600. and was a small form of the harpsichord. The harpsichord which closely resembles the modern grand piano, was popular for the next two centuries. Both of these instru-

ments produce their tones by the plucking of strings with quills or leather points, set in jacks, which are operated from the keyboard. Each key may have, in the liarjisichord form, from one to four strings.- Mr. Wahl uses a goose quill ill the plucking mechanism. Clavichord Different. The clavichord was in common use ai the same time as the harpsichord, but w-ius constructed on an entirely different principle. Its horizontal strings are struck by small brass tangents operated by the keys, the point of contact, as in tlie modern guitar form, determining the length of the string and, therefore, its pitch. Demonstrating the principle on a small double-stringed model, and again on the full-sized instrument. Mr. Wahl produced a pulsation of the tone, similar to a violin vibrato, by varying the pressure on the keys.

Strings and stops for the instruments are the only parts bought by Mr. Wahl. He makes the rest by hand. A grand piano, built in his spare time at Boston six years ago. has a walnut case and so does the spinet. The clavichord is built of mahogany. The sounding-boards, as in all of the l>cst modern pianos, are made of spruce in the pinblocks of maple.—X.A.X.A.