I agree with Paolo, Arthur's messages are always good to read even if I may not fully agree all of the time. They are not condescending, arrogant or pretentious, and for the most part make you think instead of make you mad.
Vance Wood. ----- Original Message ----- From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "arthurjness" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: "lute" <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, July 23, 2005 2:58 PM Subject: Re: Byrd > Dear Arthur, > > for me has ever been a pleasure to read yours truly informative e-mails, on every subject and in all occasions. > I hope that you will continue to spend part of your time wrinting on this list. > > Best wishes > > Paolo Declich > > > > > > In the present discussion it is important to understand > > the essential difference between an ARRANGEMENT and a > > TRANSCRIPTION. Thames misses the point completely when > > he equates the two (see below). The terms are not > > interchangeable, when used according to their proper > > meaning. > > > > When I studied privately with Julius Gold in Hollywood > > as a teenager, I recall one of his watch words: "Fit > > the music to the instrument." Likewise an arrangement > > takes a pre-existent work, say one by Giulio da Modena, > > Byrd or Couperin, and adapts and re-works it into an > > idiomatic piece for another instrument. You "fit" the > > music from one > > instrument to another, especially when dealing with a > > complex instrument like the lute or guitar. Master > > lutenists such as Melchior Newsidler, Holborne, Cutting, > > Dowland, de Visée, da Crema, Francesco, Gauthier, and > > the like, often made such works. The new work for lute > > is > > created from, say, a keyboard or vocal composition, or > > even instrumental ensemble partituras (e.g., ricercars > > and > > fantasias by Giulio da Modena done up by da Crema and > > others). > > > > If done well, these are as valid as are works originally > > conceived for lute. And it is wrong to accord them > > second class status, as Thames > > does. Several lutenists on this List have already > > testified to the beauty and effectiveness of such music. > > > > (Denys, "O bone Jesu" is by Antonio de Ribiera (not > > Compère), a Spanish musician in the papal chapel during > > the time of Francesco's tenure as chamber musician. It > > does have > > that sultry mood of Spain. A manuscript in > > Tarazona calls it "il più bel motetto del mondo." It > > surely represents another effective work arranged for > > lute. You should publish your arrangement for voice and > > lute in the Lute News. Alla Wm Birde.<g>) > > > > In contrast a TRANSCRIPTION is simply a re-writing from > > one system of notation to another. In the FWVB, Byrd > > made transcriptions, NOT arrangements. In this > > instance, lute music is not "fitted" > > or adapted to the keyboard instrument. It is just simply > > transferred directly from one notational system > > (tablature) to another (grand staff). Byrd's labor was > > no different than that of a modern transcriber/editor of > > lute music. > > > > Byrd's transcrptions made available lute music on the > > grand staff for keyboard players who could not read lute > > tablature, and for those lutenists who preferred to play > > from pitch notation. > > > > Thames's assumption that notation on > > the grand staff miraculously changes lute music into > > keyboard music is just as invalid as his notion that > > lutenists cannot read pitch notation. There are > > examples of lute music in pitch notation back to the > > 15th century, and of course modern > > editions of lute music have for a century used the grand > > staff, with usually a nominal G tuning. The standard > > way of notating lute music. > > > > Judging from the inclusion of elementary instructions in > > many early lute tablature books, tablature was > > originally intended > > for novice players. But it was easy to print, and > > survived because of the many scordatura lute tunings in > > the 17th century. > > Somone counted 28 of them. Pitch notation would make > > that jumble of tunings a real mess for even the most > > skilled player. Tablature was a practical solution. > > > > Oh yes, there's a lot more lute music by Byrd than I > > indicated before. There are a whopping 182 works with > > lute in the Paston Books alone, albeit many adapted for > > lute from vocal music (as I said when I first mentioned > > the Byrd works). Over the years Paul O'Dette and Julian > > Bream have explored some of this repertory, so it is > > hardly uncharted territory. Stewart McCoy has published > > some editions of the songs with lute. Of course, no one > > has yet studied the dance pieces to determine whether > > they were > > done up first as lute or as keyboard music. Byrd studied > > with Ferabosco, after all. > > > > **Of course much lute music was conceived in pitch > > notation, most likely on the grand staff or in > > partitura. See Jessie Owens excellent study, _Composers > > at Work: The Craft of Musical Composition 1450-1600_ > > (OUP). There are very few surviving examples of lute > > music sketched in tablature. I can list them (page byu > > page) on one > > hand. Composition with all the correction was first > > done on erasable tablets of various sizes, so the > > evidence disappeared. > > > > ajn > > P.S. I have not read any further remarks from > > Thames on this and other matters. For the first time > > in all the years on the List, I have had to place a > > a person on a"kill list." I will have no use for an > > individual who is abusive in his public and private > > communications. > > ==================================== > > Michael Thames wrote > > Auther, > > Transcriptions of original keyboard compositions to > > the lute, are NOT > > original lute pieces, and transcriptions of original > > lute pieces to the > > keyboard, are not keyboard pieces, they are what we > > "village idiots" refer > > to as ARRANGEMENTS, or transcriptions, or neither, just > > popular tunes of the > > time, played on what ever instrument was hanging around. > > <<snip>> > > > > > > > > To get on or off this list see list information at > > http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html > > > > > > ____________________________________________________________ > 6X velocizzare la tua navigazione a 56k? 6X Web Accelerator di Libero! > Scaricalo su INTERNET GRATIS 6X http://www.libero.it > > > > >
