Christian Zell

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Christian Zell (or Zelle) (c.1683[1] - 13 April 1763) was a German harpsichord maker.

He was probably a pupil of harpsichord maker Michael Mietke. The first mention of him is in 1722 in the register of citizens of Hamburg, the city where he was to spend the rest of his life. In that year, he took over the workshop of instrument maker Carl Conrad Fleischer after marrying his widow; they had three children.

There are three of his harpsichords surviving: a 1728 instrument in the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg; a 1737 instrument in the Museu de la música, Barcelona; and a 1741 instrument in the Steinhaus Museum of the Norddeutsche Orgelakademie in Bunde, Lower Saxony. They are noted for the richness of their decoration, with lacquered chinoiserie typical of Hamburg harpsichords, and most significantly, their 'matchless tone'.

The harpsichord played by American singer-songwriter Tori Amos on her 1996 album Boys For Pele and the subsequent Dew Drop Inn Tour is a replica of the 1728 Christian Zell harpsichord although without the elaborate paintings. It was made by Robert Goble & Son.

See also: Hieronymus Albrecht Hass and Johann Adolph Hass

[edit] Notes and sources

  1. ^ An entry in the register of deaths and burials at the Jacobikirche in Hamburg states he was 79½ when he died, though there is no record of his exact birth date.
Persondata
NAME Zell, Christian
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Zelle, Christian
SHORT DESCRIPTION Harpsichord maker
DATE OF BIRTH 1683
PLACE OF BIRTH Hamburg, Germany
DATE OF DEATH 1763-04-13
PLACE OF DEATH Hamburg, Germany
Languages