Just as combining the registers of a harpsichord
produces a very different sound, so do double
strings on a theorbo. It is clear that this
quality sound was very much desired historically,
and in many ways is the opposite of modern practice in professional circles.
Well, there is a reason for that, which is if the
strings go out of tune in an opera performance it
is very hard to retune double strings "on the fly"
If ordering an instrument, you can have the
bridge drilled out for both single and double
(extra set of holes, some of which overlap--one
hole for both patterns). You will need pegs to go with those holes :)
Anecdotally, there are those who go for the
double strings, and after a while switch back,
but that is not an historical reason per se, and
in professional orchestral gigs you see mainly
(but not always!) overstrung "guitarbos"--there's
a reason for this, most baroque orchestras use
heavier strings, so it becomes necessary to
compete, alas, with some serious bass.
IMHO, 90cm is only good for semaphore, but many
play larger instruments and are very happy. For
continuo, I find that for both Bach and Handel,
equalizing rapid modulations through all the keys
(and in a Handel opera, you *will* hit all the
keys) string length 80-82 cm is very good, and I
have several of these with specially designed
necks with trapezoidal cross sections (based on
historical necks of the lighter, rather than
"Louisville Slugger" designs, both of which are
original) for all-day playing. Because that is
what I do, play the theorbo all day. I just
finished a Handel opera
performance/radio/recording where the first act
was two hours long. Tack an evening concert on
top (thanks to those who came, BTW!) If I was
using a heavy 90cm instrument, with double
strings, I personally would now be typing with a straw.
90cm--try before you buy, make sure you can play
all the chords comfortably for a reasonably long
time. It is a nice sound for Monteverdi,
especially--shorter pieces, simpler chords.
There exists a wide range of opinions on
theorbos, which is good, really, because
historically, there is a wide range of original instruments.
dt
At 12:27 AM 6/1/2011, you wrote:
Dear collected wisdom,
as the old italian theorbos seemed to be quite
huge and double stringed (for 1-6), I am not
aware of anyone to play such an instrument in my
neighborhood. I recently had the possibility to
test an instrument of about 90 cm, which was
amazing but single stringed. Does anybody know
such a double stringed instrument? Does it
really make sense for continuo? Are there other
experiences in terms of power, playability, slurs, comfort etc.?
Thank you very much,
Jörg
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