The Clavinet is an electric clavichord invented by Ernst Zacharias and manufactured by the Hohner company of Trossingen, West Germany, from 1964 to 1982. The instrument produces sounds with rubber pads, each matching one of the keys and responding to a keystroke by striking a given point on a tensioned string, and was designed to resemble the Renaissance-era clavichord.

Although originally intended for home use, the Clavinet became popular on stage, and could be used to create electric guitar sounds on a keyboard. It is strongly associated with the musician Stevie Wonder, who used the instrument extensively, particularly on his 1972 hit "Superstition", and was regularly featured in rock, funk and reggae music throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Modern digital keyboards can emulate the Clavinet sound, but there is also a grass-roots industry of repairers who continue to maintain the instrument.

Description

thumb|left|300px|Parts of a Clavinet. 1. Tuning 2. Damper 3. Tangent 4. Anvil 5. Key 6. String 7. Pickup 8. Tailpiece

thumb|right|A Hohner Clavinet played through effects units and an amplifier

The Clavinet is an electromechanical instrument that is usually used in conjunction with a keyboard amplifier. Most models have 60 keys ranging from F1 to E6.

The sound is produced by a harp of 60 tensioned steel strings placed diagonally below the key surface. Each key pivots on a fulcrum point at the rear, with a spring to return it. Beneath each key, a metal holder grips a small rubber pad. Pressing a key forces the pad to fret the string like a hammer on on a guitar. An electro-magnetic pickup turns the string vibration into an electric current. The feel of a clavinet comes from the impact of the pad striking its anvil point against the string. This makes the keyboard weighted which allows a different volume for each note like a piano and clavichord, along with aftertouch as the string is stretched.

The end of each string farthest from the pick-ups passes through a weave of yarn, which damps the vibrating string after a key is released. Each string is tuned by a machine-head positioned along the front of the harp. This harp mechanism is different from the other Hohner keyboard instruments, the Cembalet and Pianet, which have pads plucking metal reeds. Most clavinets have two sets of pickups encased in epoxy in a plastic case, positioned above and below the strings. These are conceptually similar to a neck and bridge pickup on a guitar. The Clavinet has pickup selector switches, and a solid state preamplifier that allows a line level output to be fed to an amplifier. The volume of the preamplifier can be set by a control to the left of the keyboard.

Background

The Clavinet was designed by German engineer Ernst Zacharias. He grew up listening to Bach harpsichord music, which led him to design a comparable modern instrument. He joined Hohner in 1954, at a time when it was struggling with manufacturing after the company factories had been seized by the Nazis during World War II.

Zacharias revitalised the company's product range, introducing the Cembalet and Pianet. He was particularly interested in producing an electric clavichord, and discovered that striking a hammer tip across a string mounted on an anvil allowed the player to hit the keys more forcefully and gain greater volume. He was interested in using metal keypads and plastic keys as an alternative to wooden frames and action that had been used on electric pianos such as the Wurlitzer. The first prototype model, the Claviphon, was manufactured in 1961. It used the string harp found on later production models, with a Pianet keyboard.

Models

Seven different models of the Clavinet were produced from 1964 to 1982. Originally, Hohner intended the instrument for home use and for late Medieval, Baroque and early classical music. The changes reflected Hohner's transition from marketing it as a home instrument to one that was practical to play on stage. Around 38,000 units were manufactured in total.

Effects

The Castle Bar is an aftermarket device invented by Buddy Castle in the mid-1970s that connects the strings to a rotating bridge, which is fixed to a rod on top of the instrument. This makes it possible to bend the pitch, in a similar manner to a tremolo arm on a guitar, by pressing the rod. In 1999, Clavinet enthusiast Aaron Kipness established the website clavinet.com, and started manufacturing replacement hammer tips with his stepfather. The website quickly became popular with worldwide orders for replacement parts. Subsequently, Hohner asked Kipness if he would be interested in buying all remaining stock. The website encouraged other people to begin to manufacture spares, and there is now a cottage industry around keeping the Clavinet in playing condition. In 2018, a Clavinet in pristine condition could sell for about $2,000. Ticky Clav 2 is a software emulation of the instrument, providing all the features found on the original boards.

<!--thumb|right|200px|A performer playing the Hohner Clavinet E7 at the 2012 Salem Jazz and Soul Festival (the clavinet is on top of a Hammond organ).-->

Notable users

Stevie Wonder

thumb|[[Stevie Wonder playing a Clavinet D6 in 2006]]

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The Clavinet is strongly associated with Stevie Wonder, particularly his 1972 number-one hit "Superstition", where it provides the main riff and accompaniment to the song. The track features multiple Clavinet C overdubs, and requires Wonder and another keyboardist to play on two Clavinets simultaneously to recreate the arrangement in live performances. Wonder began to use Clavinets in the late 1960s, when he was looking for a keyboard that could play guitar-like sounds. He first used it on "Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Da-Day" (1968). As well as "Superstition", other tracks such as "Higher Ground" are led by the Clavinet played through a Mu-Tron III filter pedal, and the album Talking Book makes prominent use of the instrument. The track "Sweet Little Girl" (on 1972's Music of My Mind) features the line "You know your baby loves you, more than I love my Clavinet".

By the 1970s, Hohner began to use photos of Wonder in their advertising. He has continued to record and tour with the Clavinet into the 21st century, and has several models. His main stage instrument is a customised D6 with modified preamps and high-quality film capacitors. The D6 is powered by a 9V battery instead of mains power, as it avoids ground loops and associated noise.

Others

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In 1975, keyboardist Dave MacRae played the clavinet on Bill Oddie's song "The Funky Gibbon" performed by The Goodies. Oddie recalled that MacRae's playing had a "very Stevie Wonder-type feel to it ... And then I literally started whacking the top of the grand piano. So the actual rhythm-track of 'The Funky Gibbon' has only got me and Dave on it."

The Clavinet was used in funk music, often played through a wah-wah pedal. It can be heard on Bill Withers' "Use Me" and Funkadelic's "A Joyful Process". Billy Preston used a Clavinet on several songs, such as his own "Outa-Space" (1972) and the Rolling Stones' "Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)" (1973). Herbie Hancock featured the Clavinet prominently on the albums Head Hunters (1973) and Man-Child (1975), and both he and Chick Corea regularly played the instrument.

The first reggae recording to feature the Clavinet was the Termites' "Attractive Girl" (1967).

The Band's Garth Hudson played a Clavinet fed through a wah-wah pedal on "Up on Cripple Creek" (1969). Keith Emerson played the instrument on Emerson, Lake & Palmer's cover of "Nut Rocker", heard on 1971's Pictures at an Exhibition. George Duke regularly used a Clavinet when playing with Frank Zappa and solo, using the Castle Bar modification. Peter Hammill used the Clavinet as his main keyboard instrument on Van der Graaf Generator's Godbluff (1975). Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones played a Clavinet on "Trampled Under Foot", as did Daryl Dragon on Captain & Tennille's "Love Will Keep Us Together"(both 1975). Late seventies hit singles to feature a Clavinet include Steely Dan's "Kid Charlemagne" and Fleetwood Mac's "You Make Loving Fun".

Lachy Doley uses the Clavinet (with the Castle Bar modification, similar to a guitar's whammy bar) as one of his main instruments. His YouTube videos showing him use the mod's tremolo arm have gone viral. He bought his first Clavinet second-hand aged 17 for $150; the modification had already been made at the time he bought this. The signal from the Clavinet is fed into a Dunlop Cry Baby wah-wah pedal, then into a Fender Deville amplifier.

References

Citations

Sources

  • The Hohner Clavinet Resource Homepage
  • A Look Inside Lachy Doley's WHAMMY CLAV (Clavinet)
  • Hohner Clavinet videos, soundsamples & schematics
  • Manufacturers replacement parts for Clavinets
  • The Clavinet Clone - Virtual Instrument