Polytoni-Clavichordium

Polytoni-Clavichordium *piano-harpsichord invented by Johann Andreas Stein of Augsburg in 1769, believed to have been inspired by an instr. of Jean Marius that he saw in Paris. It consisted of a 2-manual harpsichord, separated from a lower piano by a central soundboard. The upper instr. had 3 sets of strings at 8′ pitch and 1 at 16′ pitch. The upper of its 2 keyboards plucked one 8′ only; the lower, all 4 strings. The lower instr. was a standard piano, with its own manual. The dampers were…