So, I'm glad that people who have 6 course lutes are thrilled with their instruments. What I don't fully understand is why the 6 course literature is "so much easier" to play on a 6 course lute. I have an 8 course that I love: great sound, fits my hands well, guitarists look at it and are freaked out by how many strings there are (until I bring out my 13 course!). My only difficulty in playing early 6 course music is some of the left hand stretches. But wouldn't the solution to that problem be a shorter string length rather than fewer courses? What are the other advantages people find from their 6 course lutes that is missing from their 8 course lutes (of equal quality)?
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