Dear Lute Listers I should like to thank everyone who has so kindly offered suggestions about my broken string. I have a lot to think about now, and various strategies to try. For those who might be interested, the lute is a new, 8 course Renaissance lute, and was made by the Early Music Shop in the UK. I ordered it in June and it was finally arrived in early November, but was held up in Customs for a further week whilst I sorted out endless paperwork and a bill for GST. As far as lutes go, it was relatively cheap. For me, it was sensible not to spend a huge sum partly because I didn't have it and partly because I wanted to determine whether or not I would take to lute playing. I am personally very pleased with it, though of course it is not as fancy as many of the instruments one can see on the world wide web which also come with hefty price tags. The lute came strung with "Pyramid" strings and the lower courses are tuned in octaves, although I have read that many prefer a unison tuning. At this stage, that is the least of my worries. Fortunately, I ordered spare strings, so was able to replace the broken one straight away.
Today has been quite hot, 38 degrees here in Brisbane, and humid - so I won't be attempting to play the lute until later this evening. I think, under these weather conditions, that perspiration might be a problem if one were to play unclothed. The lute would probably slip around more than usual, so I shall keep my clothes on! Also, I realise that I must keep trying to play as I don't want my nose to fall off - no nose, no clothes ... the mind boggles. My mother offered me a stand for the lute as my Christmas present, however, she has since retracted the offer and is now insisting that I need a new pair of shoes. Best wishes, and thanks again. Kind regards Caroline Caroline Chamberlain BSc (Hons) Scientific Officer Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology School of Molecular and Microbial Sciences University of Queensland Brisbane QLD 4072 Tel: + 61 7 3365 4606 Fax: + 61 7 3365 4699 To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
