I understand your frustration. However, it remains that next to visiting the museum yourself, you're going to have to make your own judgments about museum drawings or any drawing from someone.
Museum drawings aren't that bad, they'll get you building. In fact, some of these are quite competent drawings, some not. Depending on who prepared them and for what purpose. Unfortunately, they are published on paper. And exact measurements then become approximate because paper just like 0ur beloved wood expands and contracts. How accurate do you need to be. That is the question all craftsmen must ask themselves. Without further knowledge we cling to measurements just as a beginning musicians might cling to the written score. So then, well not everyone can visit the museum. This is the problem. Perhaps, the museum in question, inevitably at some point, might deny your request to measure the instrument. I haven't heard of this happening, but the day may come. We have a wonderful resource, lets make the most of it. If I can every get a grasp with this computer stuff. Digitizing the information into a 3-d model would be most helpful for future reference. I thought I've heard of Leipzig, perhaps using an MRI scan. Even better! In short, Yes, these drawings are valuable, especially, if you can't afford to take the time and visit the instrument yourself. But you can't turn your mind off either. And when you do get a good drawing, You realize it's not the drawing that's bad but the instrument is hopeless! CNeal -----Original Message----- From: Ben [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Monday, April 06, 2009 11:19 AM To: Lute-builder list Subject: [LUTE-BUILDER] Technical drawings I'm going to quote Lundberg to illustrate a point, but it could be anybody... visit any webpage, read any modern book, and the same sort of language is there: "We know the width of the neck at the nut and body... because these are standard measures of the period." We do? They are? This information is where, exactly? I know in Lundberg's case it was in a black notebook that I wish someone would just publish... no cleanup, no editing, no promises, none of that is required, just the record itself. Microfiche the damn thing. If you build it, they will come. I've seen some offerings from museum collections. CIMCIM has a list of 44 lutes they have tech drawings of. In their (somewhat dated) price list they offer a collection of 39 drawings, and a later update adds a group of 14 "Lutes, Guitars and Cithers". The dates of these drawings (mostly from the 70s) makes me wonder: was the data interpreted in the fashion of the times (i.e. with reference to a more Hauser-like building) or is the data merely collected, with interpretation up to the observer? I haven't read this list consistently over the years, but the times I have been paying attention I've never heard anyone say they'd bought drawings from a collection like this; I have, however, heard people recommend that others do so. So I'm really wondering: does anyone on the list KNOW the value, to a modern maker of historically-accurate instruments, of the drawings such as those in this collection? Are there any other collections people could recommend from empirical knowledge? As far as books go, my collection is nigh on complete. Plans, a few. I haven't ventured into the realm of museum drawings, largely because of the price, but I find myself at a point where I desire more knowledge but don't know exactly how to get it. - Ben To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
