But there have always been these odd instruments - like the "two guitars in
one" which Stephen Barber actually made and I had a go on. He was also
threatening to make a "diphone".
If you go round museums you will see all manner of oddities but they usually
have a short shelf life because they really serve no useful purpose.
You can't really argue on that basis that most players were disatisfied with
the 5-course guitar to the extent that they wanted an instrument with
extended bass strings. If they were - as I have already said - the
sensible cost effective option was to put on a 6th or even a 7th course -
like the lute. Or they could have taken up the theorbo or whatever.
Monica
----- Original Message -----
From: "Lex Eisenhardt" <eisenha...@planet.nl>
To: "Vihuelalist" <vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu>
Sent: Monday, July 20, 2009 3:28 PM
Subject: [VIHUELA] Re: Chitarra atiorbata/Guitarre theorbee
Depends on who were the Old Ones.
Adding strings to the guitar to make it more complete was done in all
ages. Carulli used a decacorde, nowadays there is a Brahms-guitar.
Probably a matter of compensation.
The tessitura of he fingerboard plucked strings could range to a low
bourdon A.
Lex
----- Original Message -----
From: "Martyn Hodgson" <hodgsonmar...@yahoo.co.uk>
To: "Vihuelalist" <vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu>; "Lex Eisenhardt"
<eisenha...@planet.nl>
Sent: Monday, July 20, 2009 4:02 PM
Subject: [VIHUELA] Re: Chitarra atiorbata/Guitarre theorbee
I said 'ordinary 5 course' guitar (see below) in affirmation of another
communication from David Van O on the subject of guitar volume
generally.
As far as I'm aware, like you, I believe the theorboed guitar was only
ever plucked and probably mostly used for just exotic solo music. Low
tension plain gut at the higher octave balance very well with
fingerboard plucked strings (more so than heavy thud low octave basses)
and with the general tessitura of the instrument.
As said before, since the evidence is not absolutely clear, nothing is
certain but I do think the greatest danger is assuming the Old Ones
were seeking for a 'complete' instrument - a sort of continuo theorbo-
guitar manque which would give a full range of bass notes to allow BC.
Surely the theorbo proper is better for this with the guitar providing
its own idiomatic (ie mostly strummed) continuo acc.
M.
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