Greetings. A maverick or heretic? Perhaps more of a visionary. Please, allow me for one second to push heresy a couple of notches further.
Why should historical instruments be built historically? Will the use of historical methods, instrumentation and tooling actually result in a superior instrument? I do not think so. Tradition is extremely important, inasmuch as it illustrates a way, a path to follow; it affords us methods that have worked well for decades, or even centuries. It offers a boundless source of knowledge. It is, nevertheless, ever changing, evolving. What is done effectively and efficiently today will surely become tomorrow's tradition. However, when tradition ceases to evolve, it dies, and thus, falls under the realm of archeology. And most certainly, we are not archeologists; we are people who intend to build lutes, who are seeking for efficient ways to achieve that end. I am of the opinion that Tielke, for instance, would have never, ever regarded his instruments as historical or traditional, but rather as contemporary, since they were instruments he built for lutenists of his own day. If he were around today, he would probably draw his plans with AutoCad, use molds made out of fiberglass or ABS, carve his rosettes with laser, and fit his lutes with Savarez strings, planetary pegs and Dunlop straplocks (that is, provided that he were building lutes, and not--let's say--electric guitars). Anyone would be able to find him readily at [1][email protected]. We should all think about that, I believe, when building a lute in the dawn of the 21st century. Best regards and season's greetings to all, S. Ramos-Collado --- El jue 18-dic-08, Rob Dorsey <[email protected]> escribiA^3: De: Rob Dorsey <[email protected]> Asunto: [LUTE-BUILDER] Re: What to build. A: "'Timothy Motz'" <[email protected]>, [email protected] Cc: [email protected] Fecha: jueves, 18 diciembre, 2008, 11:44 am Let me preface this post by saying that I consider Robert Lundberg the greatest American Lute maker, living or dead. He was a true master producing master works. I learned my building from Bob Lundberg in his shop during the 1980s. I was somewhat surprised by some of the offerings in the book as the processes were not all exactly as I had learned. Experience has made me alter my building procedures even more from that initial tuition to suit my own vision of the instrument. I found that Bob's fealty to exact historical precedent, while not slavish or dogmatic, carried an importance that I thought unnecessary to modern playing. He was, however, just what the HIP advocate ordered. I, therefore, have assumed a comfortable position of maverick or outright heretic in my building techniques and uses of modern available woods. I depart from Bob's teaching in adhesive choices and uses, hardwood applications and string tensions. My barring has matured with time and my top thicknessing scheme has evolved as well. Bob would be interested in some of those innovations, aghast at others. But, he might be gratified that I toast him often and keep a worn copy of his book right beside my own building notes on the shelf in the shop. "From each according to his gifts." Read the book, it has much to offer if not everything. Rob Dorsey http://LuteCraft.com -----Original Message----- From: Timothy Motz [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Wednesday, December 17, 2008 9:05 PM To: [email protected] Cc: [email protected] Subject: [LUTE-BUILDER] Re: What to build. Someone once told me that I needed to read the book, but that no one would really build lutes that way. Having read the book, I would agree. I'm glad he wrote the book and I refer to it a lot, but I wouldn't build a lute that way. Tim Motz To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html __________________________________________________________________ A!Todo sobre Amor y Sexo! La guAa completa para tu vida en Mujer de Hoy: http://mujerdehoy.telemundo.yahoo.com/ -- References 1. http://[email protected]/
