Tyler & Sparks (2002) conclusively state that "the guitar and vihuela were considered as two distinct instruments in 16th-c. Spain." The evolution of vihuela in Spain and Viola in Italy is usually placed as a subset of proper lutes. The topic is still touchy and I believe the distinction blurred a bit as the proper vihuela fell from popularity at the end of the 16th c. and the guitar gained popularity.
At 03:50 AM 9/16/2004, bill kilpatrick wrote: >a little late in the discussion but: > >- wouldn't a definition of vihuela and guitar be >useful? > >- is definition possible? > >- weren't the terms synonymus as used in the 16th >cent.? > >what i understand so far is: > >- 5c. means vihuela and 6c. guitar. > >- the placement of sound hole, bout configuration and >proportion doesn't seem to matter much in making the >distinction. > >please correct me if i wrong. > >cheers - bill To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
