This brings me to a further > speculation that they were structurally and acoustically very similar.
I would agree. They would be similar, but have varied in size. One could speculate that - like the lute - the vihuela originally had four, then five, then six courses. The 4-course instrument may have survived because it was simpler, easier to play? And because it was a four course instrument tuned in the same way as the guitarra/mandora/mandola began to be called "guitarra". Incidentally In 1487 Johannes Tinctoris says Furthermore there is the instrument invented by the Catalans, which some call the ghiterra, and others the ghiterne..(ghiterra: ab alius ghiterna vocatur).It is obviously derived from the lyra (i.e. the lute) since it is tortoise-shaped (though much smaller) and has the same stringing and method of playing. so the idea that Bermudo's "guitarra" is actually a mandora is not so unlikely. The instrument in the Royal College of Music was made by Belchior Dias in Lisbon, so whatever it is, Dias would probably have called it a viola! Monica > > Alexander > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Monica Hall" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Cc: "vihuela" <vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu> > Sent: Tuesday, March 08, 2005 8:45 PM > Subject: Re: An 1816 vihuela > > > > > In particular I think it possible that the instrument Bermudo calls a > > "guitarra", which he implies is a different instrument from the vihuela, > > may > > actually have been a mandora, mandola (or vandola) not a guitar at all. > > > > The precise meaning the terms guitarra, chitarra is often uncertain. It > is > > simply a translation of the Latin/Greek "cithara" which means a stringed > > instrument. > > > > The relationship between the 6-course vihuela and the 4-course vihuela > which > > Fuenllana says was called "guitarra" may have been similar to that between > > the lute and mandora i.e. the mandora was a smaller, treble kind of lute > > with 4 courses; the guitar was a small, treble kind of vihuela with 4 > > courses. > > > > Some of the sources thought previously to have been for 4-course guitar > are > > actually for the mandora - amongst them the pieces for a 4-course > instrument > > in Barberiis' "Opera intitulata contino" of 1549, and in "Conserto vago di > > balletti" printed in 1645 which includes music for lute, theorbo and > > "chitarrino a quarto corde alla napolitana". > > > > And just for the record, I think that the pieces in Italian tablature in > the > > second part of "Calvi"'s "Intavolatura di chitarra e chitarriglia" are > > probably for a 5-course mandora, not five-course guitar too. As the > > anonymous compiler says - The following sonatas can be played on the > > "chitarriglia", but they are more suitable for the "chitarra". Certainly > > they are completely different in style from any other music for 5-course > > guitar, and very old fashioned in style. > > > > Cheers > > > > Monica > > > > To get on or off this list see list information at > http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html > >
