I see. I try to design my own concerts so I have a say over my choices.
Personally, I see it as a life-long graduate course worth, no doubt in
the end, a whole of [SFX: Dylan wheeze into harmonica]. I guess we all
try to get something different out of our playing.
Of course I have to forego a lot of historical apparatus (the audience
has no clue how any of the original songs went and I'm not in a doublet
or can even afford a hat). But by focusing on the instrument --as far
as possible-- and the years in question we can go a long way on
re-enacting a possible performance and learning from the experience.
From what I've seen from hand-held video recording equipment, Roman has
learned and taught a lot of quite a bit about the kobsa over the years
by _not_ using a pan-instrument to approximate the sound and Mark
Wheeler shoots for a similar goal, fingernails (and RT's antipathy)
notwithstanding. Both, to whom I am grateful, btw.
By exploring the niches, we learn incrementally a little more about the
music, the instrument, technique and its purpose --and it's ongoing.
Learn and teach, rinse, lather, repeat. My only point, even if we
assume there isn't future-instrument creep, is that the pan-instruments
lead us away from enlightening niches and riches.
s
ps, only 9 strings on the little guitar. Tunes like butta.
On Aug 23, 2013, at 2:03 PM, howard posner wrote:
Two things to keep in mind:
1. I don't really think there's a future-instrument creep going on.
Many of us have been lutophiles long enough to remember when we didn't
know enough to raise most of the questions you bring up. Players are
certainly more conscious of the variety of historical instruments,
notwithstanding the occasional generalized remarks about the "Old Ones"
or whatever around here. But doing something about it is another
thing.
2. It's rare that a lute player has much of a choice about whether to
play a Diversi Autori Lutebook Concert. Most of the gigs are for
ensembles (as would have been the case three and four centuries ago),
and sure, I'm happy to do a solo between the trio sonata and the solo
cantata. I'll just put down the theorbo and play a Francesco recercar
on my six-course before picking up the archlute for the cantata. I'm
sure the audience won't mind waiting while I tune 31 strings.
On Aug 23, 2013, at 1:45 PM, Sean Smith <[1]lutesm...@mac.com> wrote:
Again, the practicality is understood. What I should also mention is
that it influences the concert choice of music:
"I have an 8c. To make best use of it I will play a concert that
spans a 100 years. ...because I can." vs "I have a 6c. I will play a
concert that might have happened out of the Diversi Autori lutebook.
...because I can." We are often influenced by our instruments more
than the music or the history.
or (or add the following statement to the above concert choice)
"I have an 8c and it would be pointless to add an 8ve'd 4th course
for all the music I play so I will play the pre-1560 dances w/out."
(valid, no?) Followed by: "There are things about that 4th course
that I don't need to know and the audience needn't learn about them
either." It took me a long time to appreciate that 4th course and to
get past that bothersome jangle but tho it took years I'm
appreciative that I stuck to it. Are players doing themselves and
their audience a disservice by being quickly dismissive of earlier
instruments in the pursuit of pan-appropriate lutes?
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