In a message dated 4/11/04 4:04:38 PM Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
> i had always assumed that double frets were a no-no. what's the > advantage of having them? Bill: On the contrary, and as Sean has pointed out, there are many examples in art iconography already starting in the 14th C. One of the last examples I know of is the 1649 depiction of a theorbo player by Laurent de la Hyre in the Metropolitan Museum of Art: http://www.metmuseum.org/collections/view1zoom.asp?dep=11&zoom=0&full=1&mark=1&item=50%2E189 (this image is too small to reproduce the double frets, but I have studied the painting many times during visits to the museum). Double frets are also described in several instruction books. Double frets give a sort of flatter "platform" upon which to depress the strings. Not only do they feel very secure for the left hand fingering, they also last quite long. I had a set of double frets on one of my most-used lutes for over a decade before they needed replacing! Kenneth Be Cleveland, Ohio --
