Dulcitone

A dulcitone is a keyboard instrument in which sound is produced by a range of tuning forks, which vibrate when struck by felt-covered hammers activated by the keyboard. The instrument was designed by Thomas Machell of Glasgow in the 1860s, at the same time as Victor Mustel's organologically synonymous typophone,^[1] and manufactured by the firm of Thomas Machell & Sons during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Most of the early models are tuned to sharp pitch, or the diapason normal of A435.^{[clarification needed]} Some of the late models use an action suspended on a system of leaf springs, which is considerably quieter than that illustrated.

Description

The dulcitone is a transposing instrument of the idiophone class; it speaks an octave higher than the standard (eight foot pitch) written pitch. It has a five octave written range from AA to a3 (sounding range from A to a4).

A significant feature of the dulcitone was its portability, a product of its lightweight and compact construction and the fact that the tuning forks (unlike, for instance, the strings of a piano) were not prone to going out of tune. However, the volume produced is extremely limited, and the dulcitone's part is frequently substituted by a glockenspiel.^[2]

Two pieces scored for the dulcitone are Vincent d'Indy's Song of the Bells (1888) and Percy Grainger's "The Power of Rome and the Christian Heart" (1943).

In 1911 there were 3 versions listed: Style B, with 3½ octaves in solid mahogany (polished Chippendale) or in solid oak (fumed) complete with folding stand, for £12; Style R - in mahogany or oak with 4 octaves for £15; Style F - in mahogany or oak with 5 octaves, for £18.

Surviving examples exist as far afield as New Zealand, where one is preserved in the Whittaker's Musical Museum.

See also

• Rhodes piano, another keyboard instrument which produces sound via hammers striking pronged forks - unlike the purely acoustic dulcitone, the Rhodes is an electric instrument and is intended to be amplified making it essentially an 'Electric Dulcitone'.
• Celesta, another keyboard-operated metallophone.

Gallery

• 
  Overall view of Dulcitone
• 
  View of Dulcitone keyboard
• 
  Name decal on inside of lid
• 
  Front cover of users manual
• 
  Page 2 & 3 of users manual

References

External links

• Whittaker's Musical Museum: Dulcitone