How's a sitar tuned? Alain Chad McAnally wrote:
>Hi Tony, >It's strange, I sent this to the list a few days ago and it suddenly popped >up. Maybe my server is acting up again. > >I'm not sure how old the idea of adding that extra gourd to the sitar neck is >but it probably came from much older Indian instruments such as the Rudra Vina >which has two resonators. My old Hemen sitar really did benefit from that >upper gourd, particularly in the Bass and in the overall "presence" of tone, >and it does make the instrument easier to balance. > >As to lutes and guitars, as Michael Thames put it earlier " I've always told >guitarist's that the neck can make or break an instrument." I would >definitely trust his experience on that matter. The barring is also critically >important, given that it not only contributes to the function of the >soundboard but greatly to it's stability. > > I've built both harps and guitars and it seems less important what the back > and sides are made of versus how they are made;( ....within reason....I > wouldn't make guitar sides of delrin or concrete!) >I.e. that they are of the right thickness to resonate and still be strong >enough to support to the soundboard seems the real key. > >Chad > >----- Original Message ----- > From: Tony Chalkley<mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: lute<mailto:[email protected]> > Sent: Saturday, June 25, 2005 4:51 PM > Subject: Re: Built-in action? Double frets > > > > So maybe as the fret and string have better purchase, the neck will > > send that energy to the body? I'm tempted to think that one end would > > cancel out the other but on the other hand, the bridge would vibrate up > > and down (relative to the bridge) while the neck would forward and back > > (relative to the bridge). > > Dear Sean and Chad, > > I didn't take in the original message well enough to reply - I was taught > (in other words, I have no personal opinion on the matter), that the > material and build of a guitar neck is far more important than those of the > back and ribs of the instrument, in terms of tone production. > > This would support what you are saying. > > As far as the upper gourd on a sitar is concerned, I have recently read that > it is a relatively recent affair and of little value - the upside of this is > that I have decided not to try and add one to mine - I couldn't sork out how > to do it easily. > > Yours, > > Tony > > > > > To get on or off this list see list information at > > http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html<http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html> > >-- > > >
