What gives a harpsichord that tinny sound?
The harpsichord, a keyboard instrument similar to a piano in many ways, has such a distinctive sound because its strings are not struck by hammers but plucked with quills. But the harpsichord is somewhat limited. It has virtually no range of expressive dynamics – not even the equivalent of the organ’s swell box – and it cannot, therefore, follow an orchestra’s volume fluctuations like the harp or piano.
