Dear David,
----- Original Message -----
From: "David Tayler" <vidan...@sbcglobal.net>
To: "lute-cs.dartmouth.edu" <lute@cs.dartmouth.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, January 04, 2011 7:08 PM
Subject: [LUTE] Re: RV93 - which instrument?
You wrote:
You can always try to assign a particular type of instrument in an
ideal tuning, but the term "lute", in any language form, is a generic
term for a "family-context" of instruments.
<<ajn>>Most of us know that. But that doesn't mean that all "lute type"
instruments are interchangable in performance.
Unfortunately with Vivaldi, the fact that it may be difficult to play
or go "off the range" is absolutely not relevant, as is the case in
his other concertos.
<<ajn>>Not relevant? Maybe WE misunderstand his intentions. Surely Vivaldi
knew what he was doing, and rather than making excuses for Vivaldi, it might
be more
efficacious to try to understand what he meant by examining WHAT HE DID and
drawing conclusions WHY he did what he did. I'm amused when someone
(Francis Tovey?) once wrote, "Obviously Mozart forgot the correct lower
range of
the clarinet. . . . " Did Mozart ever forget anything? (Listen to Eric
Hoeprich's recent CD: Glossa 921107)
David writes:
Remember this is the guy [Vivaldi] who writes the
violin parts in bass clef sometimes, which you would
> need a reverse capo for.
<<ajn>>Guess he forgot.<g> The "guy" in Leipzig also wrote violin parts in
the bass clef. Sometimes. When the violins are the sole bass instrument,
usually in a Solo section, like those in RV 532 (2 mandolins), J. S. Bach,
like Vivaldi, uses
the same convention of violins in bass clef.
It is a signal to the continuo player (or more likely the copyist of the
parts) that the bass line continues (="basso continuo") in the violins. If
it were written in treble clef the continuo player would probably interpret
that to mean
"tasto solo," or perhaps the copyist might give the continuo line rests.
Basta! ajn
<<<snip>>
dt
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