National Gallery Of Art | Audio

Christine Laloue, chief curator of harpsichords and fine arts, and Jean-Philippe Echard, curator of bowed string instruments, Musée de la musique, Cité de la musique-Philharmonie de Paris The harpsichord, standing at the center of baroque European culture, served not only as a musical instrument but also as a receptacle of painting. Collections in townhouses and mansions from Venice to London and Antwerp to Paris included, alongside traditional easel paintings, harpsichords bearing works by masters as renowned as Jan Brueghel, Annibale Carracci, Noël Coypel, Christophe Huet, or Sebastiano Ricci. The paintings on harpsichords’ soundboards featured flowers, birds, and insects, connecting these works to Flemish still-life paintings and the celebration of creation. Others presented allegorical, mythological, or vanitas scenes on their lids. In traditional paintings, the harpsichord functioned as a sign of the culture of the gentleman and life at the court, as well as a symbol of artistic inspiration. The harpsich