It's very clear that we disagree. What's new then?
Bill Carter wrote: ' The author's theory may not convince all guitarists but he is, again, very respectful of the reader's intelligence and urges each to make his own choice.' What Bill Carter actually wrote is "My only reservation about the book concerns the penultimate chapter which is largely devoted to the unusual harmonies found in the work of Francesco Corbetta, the greatest of the 17th-century guitarists. Particularly in his last two books, Corbetta enjoyed a very free and often dissonant harmonic palette with many chords saturated with 4ths. These are the chords which worry Mr. Eisenhardt and he has evolved a rather tortured explanation of why these notes (engraved in their hundreds, very clearly, in the tablatures) are meant to be fingered but not played. While this can't be disproved, it requires significantly less effort to simply accept that Corbetta liked unusual harmonies and meant what he wrote. I would suggest that Corbetta himself alluded to the matter in the preface to his last work La Guitarre Royalle of 1674. This book is dedicated to Louis XIV and Corbetta writes 'I had wanted to conform to the manner [of composition] most pleasing to your Majesty: The most chromatic, the most delicate and the least encumbered [by rules, i.e. rule bound]'. If we take this at face value then not only are these interesting harmonies (also found in the work of his Italian contemporaries Valdambrini and Kapsperger) explained, but we can also enjoy the refreshing image of Louis XIV as a connoisseur of chromatic harmony". This is in line with what I have said in my article "The author's theory may not convince all guitarists but he is, again, very respectful of the reader's intelligence and urges each to make his own choice". Once the intelligent reader has read it all and made their own choice they are presumably entitled to express an opinion about what they have read especially if what they have read is inaccurate or misleading. Like they say in France: 'C'est le ton qui fait la musique'. It is a pity you do not follow your own advice more often. Monica P.S. In case anyone is wondering what this is all about I wrote this article in about 2005. Lex had an opportunity to read it and comment on it before it was included in Lute 2007. He appears to have read it again since then as he has copied and commented on some of the things which I said in it but has not had the courtesy to include it his bibliography. His "balenced picture" consists mainly of quoting passages and examples from Richard Pinnell's dissertation. I planned to include an improved version (I have re-done the musical examples) of the article in the study of Corbetta on my web page as a matter of course. After reading the relevant chapter in his book I added a section at the end about "Corbetta's dots" which seemed to me even more "tortured" than the rest of it. -----Oorspronkelijk bericht----- Van: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] Namens M Hall Verzonden: woensdag 20 januari 2016 12:44 Aan: 'Lex Eisenhardt' CC: Vihuela List Onderwerp: [VIHUELA] Re: Corbetta's dissonance I have read it and I am very disturbed by some of the foolish things you have said in it. In particular your comments on the Gallot ms. which are inaccurate and misleading and the "tortured" (Bill Carter's word not mine!) section on Corbetta's dots and the rest of his notation. I hope other people will read my article which does present a more balenced and properly researched and illustrated view of Corbetta's notation and dissonance. You have clearly read my original article and have commented on some of the issues I raised it in a disingenious way. Monica -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Lex Eisenhardt Sent: 20 January 2016 11:22 To: 'M Hall'; 'Vihuela List' Subject: [VIHUELA] Re: Corbetta's dissonance In Monica's article, my writings on the matter are discussed at length. For a more balanced picture, one should read my book.... Lex -----Oorspronkelijk bericht----- Van: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] Namens M Hall Verzonden: donderdag 14 januari 2016 12:16 Aan: Vihuela List Onderwerp: [VIHUELA] Corbetta's dissonance If anyone is interested I have now put a revised and slightly enlarged version of my article "Dissonance in the guitar music of Francesco Corbetta" which was included in Lute vol. 47 (2007) on my web page [1]www.monicahall.co.uk . It is Section IV on the page devoted to Corbetta. A happy and prosperous New Year to you all. Monica -- References 1. http://www.monicahall.co.uk/ To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
