Hi Timothy: True there is not a lot of "eight course" music out there, Molinaro comes to mind. The reason it has become kind of a default instrument is by changing the tuning of the eighth course will allow you to play a good deal of music written for nine and ten course instruments. The eight course Lute is kind of a poor man's catch all of early music. Of course this is just my opinion and my choice, I play an eight course instrument just for that reason.
Vance Wood. ----- Original Message ----- From: "timothy motz" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, October 04, 2004 9:57 AM Subject: Re: 5c vs many more > >Ed, > When I built my present lute I took the plans for a 7-course and > spaced 6 courses out over the same bridge and nut width. I find it > more comfortable than the normal spacing. As a beginner, with the > normal spacing I found it very difficult to feel the courses as > courses and not as 11 evenly-spaced strings. But I'm middle-aged > with big hands and have used my fingers a lot for building things, so > the tips might be pretty battered by now. I'm in the middle of > building another lute which I want to be 7 courses, and I'll have to > decide whether I want the same spacing or should close things up a > bit. > > If there's not that much music written specifically for the 8-course > lute, how did it end up as the modern "default" lute anyway? For any > guitar player making the transition to lute, I would think that a > 6-course instrument would feel more natural. > > Tim > > > > > >---- Original Message ---- > >From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > >Subject: Re: 5c vs many more > >Date: Tue, 5 Oct 2004 00:17:04 +0900 > > > >>Stewart McCoy wrote: > >> > >>>Dear Ed, > >>> > >>>If you have seven courses spread over an 8-course lute, the strings > >>>would be slightly further apart than they would be with eight > >>>courses. Does this help explain why you have difficulty with that E > >>>flat chord? In other words, does the difficulty arise from wide > >>>string spacing rather than how wide the end of your fingers are? > >>>Just a thought. > >> > >>I think that explains part of it. However, my A lute is small and it > > > >>still isn't easy for me. The finger has to be placed very precisely > >>to cover all four strings over two courses. I am not keen on duff > >>notes. If I can't play it cleanly, getting both strings in both > >>courses to sound cleanly, I'd rather look for a different solution. > >>Of course my attitude might change if it were for a more rustic > >style > >>of music. It is also something I've never practiced, so it is within > > > >>the realm of possibility that I could develop the precision > >>necessary. I don't know. > >> > >>About my lute, I arrived at the bridge spacing after consultations > >>with Pat Obrien and Grant Tomlinson. I was just getting too many > >>rattles with the old spacing. I don't have enough self restraint to > >>not overplay, I guess. The bridge spacing is fine now, but I spaced > >>the 7 courses at the nut end evenly over the span that was for 8. > >>Paul Odette played my lute recently and I asked him what he thought > >>about the spacing. He thought the bridge was nice but the nut was a > >>bit wide. It's the same dilemma on lute as on guitar: narrow spacing > > > >>is great for single line work but chords benefit from wider spacing > >>so that the fingers don't touch adjacent strings. > >> > >>To answer Bill's query in a little more detail: I ordered an 8 > >>course, as so many of us do, for my main Renaissance lute because it > > > >>is kind of a standard. I think that is a kind of modern convention. > >>When you look at the literature, the percentage of music written > >>specifically for 8 course is much smaller than that for 7 course. In > > > >>my repertoire, it turns out that most instrumentals are for a 7th F > >>and most songs are for a 7th D. I just have to plan my sets so that > >I > >>group them by 7th course pitch. It doesn't take long to retune, but > >>it is best to retune, play a piece that only requires 6 courses and > >>then go for the 7 course piece in the new tuning. That gives it a > >few > >>minutes to settle and a quick readjustment is all that is needed. > >>However, I can't tell you how many times I've started performing a > >>piece and then realize that I've forgotten to retune just as I hit > >>that first 7th course note! That's the downside. It IS easier to > >just > >>worry about one 'extra' course outside of the 6 main courses though. > > > >>That's the upside. > >> > >>cheers, > >>-- > >>Ed Durbrow > >>Saitama, Japan > >>http://www9.plala.or.jp/edurbrow/ > >> > >> > >> > >>To get on or off this list see list information at > >>http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html > >> > > > >
