I agree with Martyn. I played it without octave stringing on the 5th
course - because that is the way my guitar is and it seemed fine to me. And
I wouldn't use anything other than plain gut on my instrument.
And I wholeheartedly agree with Martyn about it being like violin music. I
used to play the violin and the music is like unaccompanied violin music -
with a little bit more.
Part of the problem is that most people who play the baroque guitarists are
or were classical guitarists. They learn a lot of these pieces in
arrangements for classical guitar and can't get used to the idea that they
sound different when played on the baroque guitar.
Perhaps this will change when the rising generation of ukelele players take
up the guitar...
Monica
----- Original Message -----
From: "Martyn Hodgson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "Stuart Walsh" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; "Vihuela Net"
<[email protected]>; "Early Guitar NET"
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Friday, October 26, 2007 10:59 AM
Subject: [VIHUELA] Re: A strange 'Baleto' in de Gallot
My feeling of the speed is that it needs a certain lightness and rythmic
pulse to be a dance form rather than sounding, as you suggest, like a sort
of anthem.
Regarding stringing: I really would suggest that you to persist with
octaves on the 4th and certainly try high unison on the 5th which will, at
a stroke, solve your problem of octave intrusion on the 5th as well as
making more sense of the common passage work involving the open 3rd and
open 5th. Also use gut on the 4th rather than a powerful modern
overwound string: this may seem counter-intuitive, but the thicker, more
protruding, bourdon may make it easier for you to strike the lower of the
pair as well as the upper. Rather like a violin, much depends on the
attack; here of the thumb rather than the bow - playing well through the
course and somewhat down into the belly should strengthen the bass of the
pair. Indeed, I think much baroque guitar music is often closer to that
of the violin than the lute: solo note passages interspersed with chords
and emphasise on up and down bows(strums). There's good exceptions to this
of course: in particular some of Sanz's pieces
and
Guerau
Interestingly, the piece you mention does not, of course, conform to this
more common pattern which is why, having failed to spot anything in Sanz
or Guerau, I suspected a transcription: either from lute or other
instrumental source. There are, as you'll have noted, other pieces from
the Gallot collection in the same style ie largely treble and bass with no
strumming and no campanella play (eg including Pavanne 71v, the long
Gaillarde and suite 69v-70v, two courantes 68v-69) - maybe others can find
concordances for these which may also be a clue to the source of this
Baleto.
Martyn
Stuart Walsh <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
I'm pleased someone else plays music from this wonderful MS which must
contain the logest piece ever written for baroque guitar (if, of course,
it was ever expected to be played in one sitting).
Regarding the particular piece: the harmonies and structure are
reminiscent of Gianoncelli's 'IL LIUTO' (Venice 1650) with its passing
dissonances (intentional I think) and variation form. However, whilst
there is indeed a 'Baletto' with 5 variations (pgs 6,7) it isn't this
one.
It may seem a strange thing: to transcribe from the 14 course arciliuto
to the 5 course guitar, but much of this music is only two part and the
low basses are either used for effect or to free the left hand in higher
positions (much as the extra basses on the Dm lute) so putting them up an
octave or even two on a re-entrant tuned guitar may bring unexpected
inversions - but to good effect here. Incidentally, I don't think this
music it requires a bourdon on the fifth course altho' I do use one on
the fourth. Perhaps it could go a little faster as well - but nicely
played.
rgds
M.
Thanks for your reply. Yes, it drags at the end at the speed I'm playing
it. But it felt wrong to play it faster at the beginning of the piece.
Seems more like a sort of anthem at the beginning.
I've finally made a decision about playing the Baroque guitar: I just
cannot anymore stand the sound of the intrusive high d on the fourth
course. To me it ruins everything. Maybe a pair of gut strings an octave
apart could sound pleasantly ambiguous but with modern strings (my
current ones are from a reputable maker) all I hear is the high string
- so often managing to wreck the melodic line or the harmony. Full
re-entrant tuning on the guitar is just a complete and utter mystery to
me. There's no issue with re-entrant tuning on the Renaissance cittern -
you are bobbing about on different strings but the notes are in the same
octave. And the same with the archlute or theorbo (can't remember
which) with the top courses an octave lower. I've read that that is
fully accounted for in the tab - there's no octave hopping.
So I've resolved to 'do' something: - in some circumstances to split the
courses and, as far as possible, to play the lower octave when that
makes musical sense and the higher octave in campanella passages. Or, as
in my attempt to play this Baleto, to play the fourth course (sometimes
even the fifth) with the fingers.
I wish I'd resolved to do this years ago. It's like getting an image
suddenly in focus. For me (this is obviously a personal thing) it puts
the Baroque guitar back in line with every other plucked instrument -
rather than (in my opinion) an unsatisfactory anomaly.
I used to play the Baroque lute and often the thumb is miles away from
the fingerboard. I'm not exactly sure but I think it was a lesson as at
a summer school with Nigel North who suggested I should sometimes use
fingers to play both the low and high notes on the fingerboard rather
than have the thumb continually moving form the low bas strings to the
fingerboard. In effect, one is playing the fingerboard thumblessly.
Stuart
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