> From: "Ron Banks" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Date: Mon, 4 Dec 2006 22:46:17 -0600 > To: <[email protected]> > Subject: [CITTERN] Re: arch-citterns [was: 12-c Saxon cittern] > > All, > > A few years back, I contacted Luca Pianca to ask him about his tunings and > the instrument that he played on "Bagpipes from Hell," and Il Giardino > Armonico." > > Here is the text from the Fax he sent me on October 1, 2002: > > "...(greeting omitted). My cetra was build in Corsica by Hugo Casalonga and > it's an instrument with 6 courses (1st triple) and, of course, I tuned it in > different ways. (No additional theorbo-basses). > > In the "Giardino Armonico" recordings" > > 1 d'd'd' > 2 a'a' > 3 e'e' > 4 c'C > 5 g'G > 6 d'D > Lute tuning in D (Bass Lute)" > > "It's different in "Bagpipes from Hell" with viola da gamba player Vittorio > Ghielmi (ed. Winkler and Winkler) CD 910 050-02. This is a "bordone > tuning," very useful on the cetra." > > 1 e'e'e' > 2 c'c' > 3 g'g' > 4 c'C > 5 g'G > 6 C'C > > > I hope this helps, > > Ron Banks > Ft. Worth, TX >
Thanks Ron, that is very helpful (on a couple fronts). seems the instrument in question may in fact be based on some kind of Corsican folk cetera revived in the 1970's, and then Luca (apparently) specified his custom requirements beyond that. i.e. from the page linked below, the maker seems to have cut his teeth doing replicas of the Corsican folk instrument, and we might assume(?) he then used those construction particulars as the basis for Luca's instrument? http://home.tiscali.be/imuvrini/anglais/paghjelAN.htm . . "The cetera This renewed interest for the polyphonic chants also made it possible to an almost vanished traditional Corsican instrument, the cetera, to come out of the attics. The cetera is a 16 cords instrument (8 metal double cords) of the family of the cither and zither. It is made out of a broad neck and a rather large, deep and round case. The instrument is of walnut , spruce, oak and box wood. It is in the Seventies that the cetera was rediscovered by some passionate. Less than twenty of them were remaining, practically nobody could play it anymore. A young violin maker, Hugo Casalonga successfully will relearn their manufacture. . " Luca himself calls it a "cetra". Could be the record label's translator dug up the term "ceterone" form somewhere. For anyone wanting to recreate "that sound" from Luca's recordings, the above tuning and stringing info is most helpful. Tuning #1 (Lute tuning in D, across 6 courses) is essentially Orpharion tuning. For Tuning #2 I wonder if Luca didn't in fact have in mind some kind of proto "English Guitar" (sometimes called cittern/cetra etc -- I read in one of Doc's articles). The lyra-viol pieces Vittorio has made arrangements of are likely from late 17th century English viol books and manuscripts, e.g. Thomas Mace's book (Musick's Monument, 1676) or the "Manchester Lyra-Viol Manuscript" (late 1600's). http://vdgsa.org/pgs/mlvms.html Vittorio later recorded another CD solely of lyra-viol pieces (taken mostly from those books) titled "Short tales for a viol" -- if anyone want's to hear or experiment with more of this style of late 17th cent English viol music (with possible wire-strung accompaniments in mind). http://www.cduniverse.com/search/xx/music/pid/6748356/a/Short+Tales+for+a+Vi ol+%2F+Vittorio+Ghielmi.htm The lyra-viol style (often chordal and with altered tunings) goes back to the early 1600's as well. So even Renaissance cittern could be mated with same (and was, no doubt). Thanks Roger To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
