Fra: "Antonio Corona" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> A rough definition of the vihuela could run in these terms: a "guitar-shaped" (a polemic description, I'm aware, but also a practical one) instrument used in 15th- and 16th century Spain and areas of Spanish influence, strung with 5 or 6 courses of strings, played by plucking with the fingers (in the same fashion as the lute)
>I recall hearing of 7 course instruments as well. The Barbarino (40032) ms. >has many pieces for an allegedly 7 course vihuela in the Spanish Naples >dominion around the 1580s. G�ran To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
