Well I for one found that fascinating, Martyn. Thanks. Malcolm Prior has just told me that - after a discussion with Lynda Sayce - my theorbo (which he is making at this very moment) has grown to 85cms from 84. It will be tuned to A=440. As I will be using it primarily for accompaniment, that suits me fine. I can't afford multiple theorbos (Theorboes?) so this size seems ideal - big enough for Italian ensemble work, but not too big for some of the solo repertoire.
Something not mentioned in your message is pitch. I love French baroque at low pitch, A = 392. My guitar is tuned that way, and 11c also. I know not everyone agrees on 392, but I love it. Let's assume for the sake of discussion (not arguement) that Robert de Visee played at 392, what would that mean for the string length of the large French theorbo and also the theorbe de pieces? We believe, do we not, that the large French theorbo was smaller than its Italian counterpart, but not in the 70-80cms region? I'm wondering if I could tune my 85cms theorbo to 392, thinking in A with double re-entrant strings. I suppose that would be the same as tuning it to G (A 440). Rob -- To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
