Dear Martin,
I think you're quite right:
With lute bridges (ie with low compared to modern guitar string
take-off height) there really is no difficulty in placing the little
finger on the belly (Kapsberger - not exactly a novice - placed his
third finger on the belly too!). If we aim to recapture the sound the
Old Ones made then it is surely right to adopt the same technique they
used. After all they were not unaware of not resting the little finger
on the belly but clearly choose to do so.
With regard to the hand position: as you say, most historical evidence
is that a close to bridge plucking position was generally favoured.
Moreover, iconography etc also clearly shows that the lute (and theorbo
etc) were played in a higher (ie up the stomach) position than the
modern guitar which, after Tarrega, is commonly nowadays rested low
down in the lap. If such a modern guitar posture is adopted it does, of
course, make it harder to play with the historically accurate hand
position and with the little finger close to the bridge.
Incidentally, I use the little finger down with all my lutes including
my largest theorbo which, with a stopped string length of 98cm, is not
exactly small, and I find no difficulty in doing so - in short there's
no reason not to use the historically correct hand position on the
larger lutes too. It is, of course, necessary to hold the instrument
reasonably high up - I rest it on my right thigh (not in the lap!) and
employ a strap.
Martyn
__________________________________________________________________
From: Martin Shepherd <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Sent: Sunday, 3 August 2014, 18:51
Subject: [LUTE] Re: Bare spot on soundboard.
Dear Louis and All,
Thanks Louis for this analysis of hand/arm position, which I think is
correct.
I have (of course) two points of dissent!
First, if the height of the bridge is as low as it is on most
historical
lutes, putting the little finger down somewhere is easy to do and is a
reassurance (and a hangover from earlier technique) which it seems was
common.
Second, you say you're playing next to the rose - why not next to the
bridge? The old guys did this, and also (and I can understand why)
tended to rest the little finger on or behind the bridge - if behind
the
bridge, you avoid some of the problems of RH stretch in dealing with
13/14 course instruments. I suspect the reason most modern lutenists
don't play close to the bridge is they use a string tension which is
way
too high, which is a thought I will leave in the air, as it were...
Best wishes,
Martin
On 03/08/2014 18:51, Louis Aull wrote:
> Tony,
>
>
> It really depends on the angle your arm enters the soundboard and
the
> length of your pinky relative to the index finger. If your arm
enters
> the lute top well behind the bridge, the pinky naturally falls on
the
> sound board. So it makes a good anchor point for finding the
strings as
> well as keeping the lute in position.
>
>
> As the baroque necks got longer and peg boxes got heavier, the
weight
> of the neck could be eased by raising the neck toward your head.
> Unfortunately that changes the angle your forearm comfortably
makes
> with the bridge. Watch some of the hot shots and you will see what
> compromise they have reached between the two. Also watch the pinky
lift
> on the big chords that involve both the very top and bottom
strings.
>
>
> As my lutes got bigger I found my pinky raising more and more
often,
> and eventually I stopped putting it down. One learns how to place
the
> thumb for each chord without putting down a pinky by the relative
> position to the other fingers. My arm now enters the lute
soundboard
> from a position directly above the bridge and I pluck the strings
just
> below the rosette. The lute rests between my legs with a 45 degree
neck
> angle to my body. I have to warm up a bit for my right hand to
> correctly find the basses, but after that I just recognize the
chord
> and the thumb finds the note. A big benefit of this position is I
sit
> upright in the chair and both arms find a comfortable position,
> allowing me to play longer, without shoulder or wrist discomfort.
With
> the pinky up you can tolerate a taller bridge and closer spaced
> strings.
>
>
> My swan neck I play now has an beautiful englemann spruce top with
no
> finish, touching it for any reason leaves a mark.
>
>
> Louis Aull
>
>
> --
>
>
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References
1. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
