A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Clavicembalo
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CLAVICEMBALO. One of the Italian names for a harpsichord, and the most used. It is derived from clavis, a key, and cembalo, a dulcimer or psaltery. Other Italian names for this instrument are gravicembalo (a phonetic variation caused by the interchange of r with l) and harpicordo, from which comes our 'harpsichord.' [See Cembalo, and Harpsichord.]
[ A. J. H. ]