> There have been discussions on the issue of barring (fan versus J- > barring) on this list, but I don't think there is any automatic > relation between swan-necks and fan-barring,
Well, there is. Provided that original swan-necked lutes are late, you may well expect fan-barring. Rebuilt instruments like e. g. Martin Hoffmann are exceptions to the rule. > and rider lutes with J- barring. No, rider lutes with fan-barring! As for reasoning, see above. > Hypothesis 1, mechanic: Stephen Gottlieb told me that fan-barring > developed simply to counteract the pulling force that additional > number of strings apply to the sound-board through the bridge. Stabilisation of the soundboard may be a side-effect but was by no means the purpose. J-bars and fan bars are intended to have an impact on the sound of the bass courses. > Hypothesis 2, musical, increased bass: both increasing the bass > courses and adopting fan barring were part of the same research into > the bass register (plumbing the depths) in late German Baroque music. What qualifies as late? Fan-barring shows up as early as around 1700. > Hypothesis 2 would suggest that it would be likely to find swan- > necked lutes with fan barring, as both tend to reinforce the bass > register. So why did you state the opposite above? > Hypothesis 1 might suggest that fan-barring would be likely on any > lute with a large number of courses, be they swannecked or rider, > depending on the tension at which the strings were kept. So why did you state the opposite above? -- Mathias To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
