Lemont, PA 16851
(814) 883-7799
damaple@comcast.net
I produce a limited number of instruments each year, working by myself. Building generally proceeds one instrument at a time. Careful consideration is given to the best methods of construction and also to the wood used in the instruments. Choice of species, dryness, and grain orientation are all controlled to produce instruments that are stable and long-lived.
My workshop is located in central Pennsylvania, a region that is still heavily forested with a mixture of conifer and hardwood trees. As much as possible, I use local wood to construct my instruments, choosing species that match or resemble those found in the antiques in terms of density and structural properties. Often, these boards are found at small, local sawyers, and I also like to visit estate auctions where barns or sheds can be found with numerous stacks of wood. In many cases, these stashes of lumber have been air dried for decades, which is ideal for producing stress-free, stable boards. For certain other case and soundboard woods that do not grow locally or imported woods such as ebony and boxwood, I will purchase these from a variety of sources. Stocks of woods are acquired well ahead of time so that they will be fully dried and ready to use when needed.
From the sonic standpoint, it is vital to start with an outstanding design. Modern makers are fortunate to have many instruments by the old makers available for study, which span a range of roughly 300 years. Replication of many of the antiques will usually result in a decent or even good instrument, but experience teaches us that a select number have superior traits. I try to find these noteworthy instruments and to reproduce their excellence. I am also especially interested in making players aware of the many fine instruments that are taken from traditions of building other than the 18th-century French style, which has so dominated harpsichord making in the U.S.
My basic philosophy is to work closely in the tradition of the old masters, but my instruments are not slavish copies. I believe that blindly copying an instrument gives no guarantee that the result will be entirely successful. For example, string tension over several hundred years sometimes reveals structural flaws in what is otherwise an excellent design. I see no point in copying details that will only give the owner problems, so with such a design I would introduce small changes that help stabilize the case without affecting the sound.
Having worked on many modern reproduction instruments by other makers, I have developed a strong dislike for plastic jacks. Although they simplify the labor of a maker and help to keep instrument prices down (at least initially), plastic jacks are not nearly as trouble-free as they are claimed to be. The plastic becomes increasingly brittle with age, and after only 10-15 years breakage starts to occur. The thin plastic tongue springs—whether molded into the tongue or the jack body—are the first to break, and the thin walls of the tongues around the mortises for the plectra also frequently crack as the plastic gets older. This wouldn't be so bad if replacement tongues were easily available, but many makers have used proprietary jacks made especially for them, and there often are no replacements available once they have closed their workshop. Eventually the plastic also starts to crumble around adjustment screws in the jack body, if present, which leads to loose screws and problems with maintaining the regulation. Eventually, the whole set of jacks must be replaced, which usually involves the considerable expense of replacing the registers as well, since the new jacks will be of different dimensions than the originals.
For these reasons, and because I make a variety of styles of harpsichords that require different sizes of jacks, I prefer to use only wooden jacks that I make myself. Contrary to what many people think, wooden jacks will last for a very long time as long as they are properly made and not abused. It is true that wooden jack tongues will sometimes split if the plectrum is forced in to compensate for being cut too short, but the same problem occurs with plastic tongues as they age. I always include a number of spare jack tongues and jack bodies in case any should be damaged and need replacement. In order to aid the owner in keeping the plucking stagger in top condition, I prefer to incorporate small metal endscrews into the jacks, but I will make historical style jacks without end screws if this is requested. In my view, top adjustment screws are not a good idea since they often promote sloppy work and incorrect voicing when a plectrum needs replacement, and I do not use them.
Traditionally, jacks from instruments in the northern parts of Europe used boar bristles to serve as the tongue springs. While historical examples of bristle springs can be found that seem to still function well after centuries of use, bristles are not all uniform in stiffness, and they are not very adjustable once in place. I therefore prefer to use thin steel wire for the tongue springs, which is somewhat analogous to the use of brass leaf springs in antique Italian jacks. These wire springs essentially function like bristle springs, but they can be manipulated to regulate their strength once in place. They also seem to retain their regulation very well.
Whenever possible, I prefer to use instruments that I have measured in person as the basis for my designs. Many of these prototypes are found in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, but I have also studied instruments in other museums in North America and Europe. Each model shown on these pages has been selected because I feel that it is an outstanding example of its type. Additionally, I list certain other instruments that I think are worthy of reproduction, either due to the excellence of the antiques or through successful reproductions by other makers. Preferences vary, however, so I am always happy to consider requests for other models.