Begemann wrote
>From my experience of playing bc -- which is of course "finite",
>so quite limited --
>I would say that the slash is not very common
>but it is in fact the most common symbol for the tr.irr.
>JSB prefers (as I pointed out) the figures 7/4/2, 5/4/2 etc.
I'm amazed that the tr.-irreg. has escaped my attention up to now. I
consider my ability and experience at figure realization to be at a
professional level. I have never read any of the treatises that have been
mentioned, but I don't feel disadvantaged because of that. My training has
been almost entirely "on the job" with a strong background in harmony and
from instruction at workshops. I've seen countless cases where figures were
missing, but can't remember ever finding a symbol I couldn't interpret, and
until this recent thread I would not have know what to make of a circle,
smile, or wiggle.
Who are the composers who actually used this construction? Right off hand,
facsimiles and manuscripts I can recall reading include more French
composers than any other: F. Couperin, Boismortier, De La Barre, Hotteterre,
Marais, Forqueray, Rebel. Italians include Pasquini, Locatelli, Castrucci,
Vivaldi, Barsanti. Others include Handel, Dieupart, Roman, Telemann.
Admittedly not many Germans. (Of course I've played Bach, but always modern
editions).
Is it possible that modern editors have in some or many cases eliminated the
tr.-irreg. in favor of more conventional figuring?
--Don Simons
