David et al,
Its funny that you should mention the old
paintings to support a no-nails approach. I've often
looked at the (in reference to what I've been taught
today) seemingly awkward right hand positions of
lutenists in many old paintings and wondered how the
players could _not_ have been using nails.
I have recently begun playing my single-strung
theorbo with short nails in both solo and ensemble
music for the last few months. I began theorbo by not
playing with nails, but I'm amazed at the new tone I'm
able to achieve this way: clean _and_ warm - and loud
if I need it. Another benefit is the speed at which
I'm able to articulate notes. On the other hand (not
literally) I generally do not use the nail on my
thumb, giving more "thud" to the bass. Occasionally,
however, I do use the thumbnail for a more metallic
special effect which can be very useful in Italian
monody.
When I play lutes with courses I do not use nails,
though. Rodney Stuckey, who lives around these parts,
does play lute and baroque guitar with nails. Again,
he achieves such a warm tone that I've had to actually
look while he plays to confirm that those nails are
there.
I think much of it has to do with the individual
player. It is more difficult to achieve a
satisfactory tone with nails, but a refined performer
is going to spend a great deal of mental effort on
developing his or her tone whether they are using
nails or not.
Chris
--- David Rastall <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> Hello luters,
>
> Just out of curiosity: how many of you, if any,
> play the lute with
> nails? I've been looking online at the various old
> paintings of
> lutenists, and I can't see that any of them had long
> nails; but on
> the other hand, one occasionally hears of people
> that do play with
> nails. I've also heard it said that nail playing is
> appropriate when
> accompanying singers or other instrumentalists.
> What do you all
> think of nail playing on the lute? Another heresy
> perhaps?
>
> David Rastall
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> www.rastallmusic.com
>
>
>
>
>
> To get on or off this list see list information at
>
http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
>
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