Lautenwerck

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The lautenwerck (also lautenwerk), or lute-harpsichord, is a Baroque European keyboard instrument. It is similar to a harpsichord but uses gut or nylon strings instead of metal ones, giving a softer, mellower tone (except for the 4-foot strings on some models). J. S. Bach favored it and owned two at his death, but no eighteenth‑century examples survive today. It was revived in the twentieth century by makers Willard Martin, Keith Hill, and Steven Sorli. Prominent players include Gergely Sárközy, Wolfgang Rübsam, and Robert Hill, with Sárközy’s performances freely available online.