Interesting, Stuart. I don't think we will ever find the origin of our beloved '18th-century wire-strung guittar', and I for one am quite happy about that. There is so much nationalist nonsense spouted in its name, which is why I don't call it the English Guitar. It's not even a guitar!
I was in Glasgow on Thursday recording some 'guittar' music and being interviewed by the BBC for a massive project to be aired next year. Radio Scotland will be broadcasting no less than 50 programmes on the history of music in Scotland, written and presented by Dr John Purser. It is a huge undertaking, and I was there to talk about the lute and guitar. I hadn't played the guittar in AGES, and I was reminded of how beautiful it is. Just to play the open strings, and hear that strong but subtle resonance. Utterly beguiling! Why isn't this beautiful instrument more popular? I'm sick of the arguements about its provenance. Let's enthuse more about how special it is, and lets get more people playing it. BTW, Radio Scotland is available online. I'll inform you when the series starts. Rob To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
