So GBS was either independently original, or shamelessly nicked
Pascal's quote. Here are two versions from the web:
I have made this letter longer than usual, because I lack the time to
make it short.
Blaise Pascal
The present letter is a very long one, simply because I had no leisure
to make it shorter.
Blaise Pascal
Bill
From: Ron Andrico <praelu...@hotmail.com>
To: willsam...@yahoo.co.uk; robmackil...@gmail.com; Monica Hall
<mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk>
Cc: lute@cs.dartmouth.edu
Sent: Friday, 4 November 2011, 21:58
Subject: [LUTE] Re: diatessaron/diapente
Not Pascal but good old George Bernard Shaw, who also reviewed concerts
with a c
ertain measure of wit.
RA
> Date: Fri, 4 Nov 2011 21:29:40 +0000
> To: [1]robmackil...@gmail.com; [2]mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk
> CC: [3]lute@cs.dartmouth.edu
> From: [4]willsam...@yahoo.co.uk
> Subject: [LUTE] Re: diatessaron/diapente
>
> Ah! The gift of brevity! Wasn't it Pascal who wrote "Sorry this
letter
> is so long - I didn't have time to make it shorter".
> Bill
> From: Rob MacKillop <[5]robmackil...@gmail.com>
> To: Monica Hall <[6]mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk>
> Cc: Lutelist <[7]lute@cs.dartmouth.edu>
> Sent: Friday, 4 November 2011, 19:50
> Subject: [LUTE] Re: diatessaron/diapente
> So he put it in D because he thinks it sounds better.
> Rob
> www.robmackillop.net
> On 4 Nov 2011, at 19:14, "Monica Hall"
<[1][8]mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk>
> wrote:
> > Subject: RE: [LUTE] Re: diatessaron/diapente
> >
> > To those of you who were discussing this - I had the following
reply
> from Wilfred which I think clarifies pretty well what he means in
the
> context of the Bach piece..........
> >
> >
> > The use of diatessaron and diapente in this context relates to
the
> > structure of the works. The position of the diapente (perfect
fifth)
> > within the octave has connotations for the development and
> disposition
> > of music on the fingerboard.
> >
> > By way of example, 'Twinkle, twinkle little star' outlines a
perfect
> > fifth melodically with the upper note elaborated using what some
> might
> > call an upper auxiliary note, whereas other might use the
terminology
> of
> > Heinrich Schenker and call it a complete neighbour note pattern.
In
> > essence, the opening perfect fifth creates implications for the
voice
> > leading which are fulfilled at the conclusion of the work. In
most
> > tonal music, the position of the diapente within the musical
> structure
> > dictates a good deal of the range of the upper voice, and the
> associated
> > harmonic progressions.
> >
> > Taking examples I am sure are known to you, Dowland's 'Awake
sweet
> love'
> > has the diatessaron above the diapente, which means that the work
> > requires an upper octave in the vocal part (i.e. note 8, unlike
note
> 5
> > in the Twinkle example). Campion's 'Never weather beaten sail',
by
> > contrast may begin on note 3, but its apex is akin to that of
> Twinkle.
> > In the Campion example the diapente is above the diatessaron. For
> both
> > examples the tonic note is the same.
> >
> > If you consider the opening bars of the Prelude BWV 1006, the
note
8
> is
> > clearly present and, in my view, requires a resonance which is
> greater
> > than that available on fret n of the first course. If you
consider
> the
> > well-known passacaglia in D by Weiss, note 8 is very resonant in
D
> Major
> > and, since BWV 1006a sits well on the 13 course lute in D major,
it
> made
> > sense to me to use that key rather than the more common F major.
> Philip
> > MacLeod Coupe wrote to me and provided his version of the minuets
> from
> > BWV 1006 which he had transposed to D major. I have a
recollection
> that
> > someone in the SLF had done the same.
> >
> > The disposition of the diapente and diatessaron also governed
modal
> > categories; if the diapente is at the bottom, the mode is
authentic,
> if
> > it is at the top, the mode is plagal.
> >
> > There is a fair amount of material on the net about Schenkerian
> theory,
> > but this is mainly related to the Austro-Germanic musical
culture.
> > Felix Salzer (Schenker's pupil and nephew to Wittgenstein) had
> broader
> > horizons and even analyzed 'What if I never speed' in his
Structural
> > Hearing: Tonal Coherence in Music (New York Dover Edition, 1962).
> This
> > kind of analysis is not for everyone (a certain well-known German
> > Chancellor was none too impressed with Mr Schenker) but it
represents
> > the way I think about music.
> >
> > I used the terms diapente and diatessaron as I felt they would be
> more
> > recognizable to the lute world than terms like
> Kopfton...................
> >
> > Monica
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >> Dear friends,
> >> In the Supplement to LUTE NEWS 99 there is a second part of Bach
> >> Suite bwv1006a intabulated by Wilfred Foxe. It is presented here
> > in
> >> a key of D major, quite unusually. In the Critical Commentary
> >> Wilfred Foxe explains:
> >> "The tonality of the original suite is E major, and this has
been
> >> transposed by a major second to D major. The Weiss Sonata 18 in
D
> >> Major provides a useful structural example since the work makes
> > use
> >> of the diatessaron above the diapente for a work with a high
> >> tessitura. In other of Weiss's sonatas with a high tessitura,
> such
> >> as Le fameaux corsaire -- Sonata 22 in F Major, the diatessaron
> is
> >> not employed. The fact that the same exists in BWV 1006a is the
> >> principal reason for adopting D major in preference to F major."
> >> I understand what means "diatessaron" and "diapente" in Greek,
as
> >> applied to historical music theory, but still I understand
> nothing
> >> from Wilfred's explanation. Can someone enlighten me on this?
> >> Jurek
> >> ---
> >> To get on or off this list see list information at
> >> [2][2][9]http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
> >>
> >> --
> >>
> >> References
> >>
> >> 1. mailto:[3][10]jurek...@gmail.com
> >> 2. [4][11]http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
> >>
> >
> >
> >
>
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> >
>
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> >
>
> --
>
> References
>
> 1. mailto:[13]mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk
> 2. [14]http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
> 3. mailto:[15]jurek...@gmail.com
> 4. [16]http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
> 5. [17]http://www.messagelabs.com/email
>
--
--
References
1. mailto:robmackil...@gmail.com
2. mailto:mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk
3. mailto:lute@cs.dartmouth.edu
4. mailto:willsam...@yahoo.co.uk
5. mailto:robmackil...@gmail.com
6. mailto:mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk
7. mailto:lute@cs.dartmouth.edu
8. mailto:mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk
9. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
10. mailto:jurek...@gmail.com
11. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
12. http://www.messagelabs.com/email
13. mailto:mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk
14. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
15. mailto:jurek...@gmail.com
16. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
17. http://www.messagelabs.com/email
