On Fri, 12 Aug 2011 09:56:43 +0100, Monica Hall wrote > > A bit more than that, no? Exact transpositions of the same pieces, I'd > > say. > > Perhaps we won't be able to tell which was first (as in Lessing's Ring > > Parable), but it's pretty clear that one _was_ first and the others are > > adaptations. > > I have only been following this discussion in a desultary manner so > perhaps I have missed the point. However my 2 pennyworth for what > it is worth ...De Visee makes two observations in the introduction > to the 1682 guitar book which are slightly contradictory. First he > says > > "Since my friends have found the melody of my pieces to their liking, > they pressed me to include a section in staff notation for the > satisaction of those who wished to play them on the keyboard, violin > and other instruments. These will be found at the end of the book > written out for bass and treble." > > ..which suggests that they were originally not for keyboard, violin > or other instruments.
I don't think that can be concluded from this sentence. It only suggest that De Visee did not orgiginally intent to publish the music in score. What one can deduce form this is that it wasn't printed because it was meant to be played together with the guitar (or theorbo/lute) versions (the claim that started this thread). > However further on he says > > "I have been obliged to transpose the pieces of music because the > compass of the guitar extends only to high D la re > [at the tenth > fret]. Did De Visee write that part about the tenth fret? That would be strange since that would shurely be a 'd la sol' (note: no re here!). Otherwise high might refer to the guitar's lowest note, d (open forth course), but that wouldn't be "high D la re" but a "D sol re". Very strange ... > One should not forget to put an octave on the fourth course > because it is very necessary." > > which suggests that originally they were for an instrument with a > greater compass than the guitar. or a lower tessitura than the guitar. Cheers, Ralf Mattes -- R. Mattes - Hochschule fuer Musik Freiburg r...@inm.mh-freiburg.de To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
