Boalch-Mould Online (BMO) is a research database named in honor of Donald H. Boalch and Charles M. Mould whose groundbreaking work Makers of the Harpsichord and Clavichord 1440-1840 was first published in a print edition of 1956 and updated by Oxford University Press in 1974 and 1995. The present project continues to refine, update, and expand their findings into the digital age. With biographies of known makers and an extensive catalog of surviving instruments, many with photos, BMO is a searchable database available on the Internet at no charge to researchers, owners, collectors, caretakers, and enthusiasts of historical harpsichords and clavichords. Charles Mould envisioned the online publication of his database, writing in the preface to the 1995 edition, “It is hoped that in due course [the database] will be available free of charge to all scholars via the internet.” Dr. Mould has given his strong endorsement to the current project.
The database includes harpsichords and clavichords of all sub-types made up to the year 1925. Instruments whose makers are unknown are now included in BMO. Instruments remain in the database whether or not their current owner and location are known, and in some cases, after they are known to have been destroyed.
Database editors continually work to maximize data accuracy, but due to the large number and geographical spread of the instruments, information must come from many sources. This sometimes results in information that is incomplete or lacking broadly accepted descriptive language. Users are strongly encouraged to to help refine the data by submitting corrections and additions. Boalch-Mould Online offers its content as-is and makes no representations or warranties of any kind concerning its accuracy.
BMO uses SQL-Server as the back-end database. The front-end user interface is created using C#, Knockout, ASP.NET Core (Ver 5-6).