Hi Herbert: I can only speak from personal experience. A friend and myself made a series of Lutes almost 30 years ago, I have two of them, one I am in the process of rebuilding and the other I am still playing. I have heard of an artist or two making recordings on "Ancient Lutes" and they still sounded good. I think if the instrument is properly cared for it will out live each of us. The possible exceptions are when the tension of the strings pulls the bridge loose, or the sound board loose from the shell, or bends the neck. I guess this is a not uncommon problem but they are repairable. I will be interested to review additional answers to your question.
Vance Wood. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Herbert Ward" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Thursday, October 23, 2003 6:48 PM Subject: How long can a lute last? > > > Excuse me if I'm raising an already-discussed subject. > > Are there any good-sounding old lutes? Or do lutes inevitably decay, like > fallen trees in ancient forests? > >
