[LUTE] Re: This list is ending soon!
Thanks for your time, energy, attention to detail & patience over the years, Wayne. I hope you’re retiring to a pleasant & active new life. All the best! jeff > On Sep 30, 2020, at 5:18 AM, Wayne Cripps wrote: > > Hi Lute People - > > The Dartmouth lute list is ending in less than three hours. I certainly > have learned a lot from all of you and I thank you all for taking part in it. > > Wayne > > > > > To get on or off this list see list information at > http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] G
E B Sent from my iPhone To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] Re: New music
Iâve not played this but want to-- Rinuccini : for soprano, 2 violins, viola da gamba and theorbo, 1990-1991 / words: Ottavio Rinuccini, By the American ex-pat composer Ron Ford. Violins are baroque, by the way. A major piece (20-25â) with a very challenging vocal partâyou need a good soprano for this one. Ford, originally from Kansas City, has been in the Netherlands for quite a while. Excellent recording by the soprano Tone Wik on CD Dolcissimo Sospiro-- alongside music by Monteverdi and others. Happy holidays, jeff Sent from Mail for Windows 10 From: Ron Andrico Sent: Friday, December 22, 2017 3:26 PM To: David van Ooijen Cc: lutelist Net Subject: [LUTE] Re: New music Did you study with Toyohiko Satoh? He must be the exception that proves the rule. -- To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html --
[LUTE] Lute in university programs
Hi, folksâ Iâm looking for information on undergrad music programs in the US that feature or focus on Early Music and include the lute. I know, of course, of the usual suspects of Indiana, Peabody and Eastman but Iâm wondering about other less prestigious schools. Iâd be interested, too, in hearing about BA programs (as opposed to BMus programs) in Music History or Musicology that would allow/encourage lute study/performance. Iâm not looking for Classical Guitar programs that allow lute study or have instruments available for students to experiment with. Any thoughts? Thanks, jeff Sent from Mail for Windows 10 -- To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] Re: Bad lute music
Check out Mace. As I recall, in his later years, he âheardâ his lute by touching his teeth to the edge of the soundboard or edge of the bowl where it meets the soundboard. Late in the book, I think, and part of his complaints/observations about aging. Been a long time since Iâve looked at it, so I could be making this up. But I think not⦠See ya, jeff Sent from Mail for Windows 10 From: howard posner Sent: Friday, November 10, 2017 6:29 PM To: Lutelist Subject: [LUTE] Re: Bad lute music > On Nov 10, 2017, at 10:50 AM, G. C. wrote: > > According to Dan Brown in his newest book, "Origins", Beethoven was the > inventor of "bone conduction technology", who upon going deaf, > discovered that he could fix a metal rod to his piano, and bite down on > it as he played, enabling him to hear perfectly, through vibrations in > his jaw bone. Take this with a grain of salt, especially when you see things like this one on the Time Magazine website: Interest in Beethovenâs hearing loss has long captivated his fans, many of whom are fascinated by the tragic circumstances of a deaf composer and the ways Beethoven managed to keep working even after he completely lost his hearing by the time he was 45. As TIME once described it, âby clenching a stick in his teeth, holding it against the keyboard of his piano, he could discern faint sounds.â Iâve never seen any reference to any evidence for anything like this. Has anyone else? To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html --
[LUTE] Question
Hi, folks. I'm in Eugene Oregon for a conference. Having a lovely time. Just got asked (really last minute) to play BC on a concert tomorrow PM. I have a small G-lute with me but the piece really calls for a theorbo or archlute. Anyone in the Eugene area who might have a 10-cs lute, archlute or theorbo I could borrow or rent for 48 hours? Concert is Sat PM, I'd return the instrument after the concert or Sunday AM. Thanks much. See ya, jeff Sent from my iPhone so there will be typos. To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] A question
Hi, LList-- I'm wondering if anyone has done any work with the Bray lutebook at the Beineke. I've been asked to record "The Osborn Psalm" (Psalm 4, "O God yt art my ryghtuusnes") as a song, not a lute solo. The lute solo version on f.9 of the manuscript is a bit of a rhythmic mess in the early measures and I wonder if anyone has made edition he/she could share. I've made my own version from the ms. basing it on the tune & text I've been given. It works fine, I think, but there is always more than one way to skin a manuscript lute song and I'd be interested in learning if anyone has other solutions. Thoughts? Thanks! jeff -- To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] Re: move to steel strings in 20th c Re: tuning fork at 433Hz?
Research I did a number of years ago points to WWI as a significant contributor to the early 20th-c switch from gut to steel. Within the context of the debate about gut vs. steel strings for American guitars from those years, at least one commentator noted the extreme shortage of good gut for instruments. Once a strong advocate for gut only, she eventually played her instrument with 2 top steel strings, citing the example of world-class concert violin soloists like Maud Powell, Jacques Thibaud, Fritz Kreisler, Efrem Zimbalist & Jascha Heifetz who had switched to a steel-E string during the war. (Powell may have switched over earlier to get more sound out of her instrument.) In some ways then, composers might have little or nothing to say about the switch to steel--a 4-string violin with some steel strings would have been far more useful to them than a gut-strung instrument lacking a string or two. Curious how history has a way of "interfering" with art, isn't it? Happy new year jeff - Original Message - From: "Christopher Wilke" To: ; ; ; "Anthony Hind" Cc: Sent: Sunday, January 08, 2012 7:17 AM Subject: [LUTE] Re: tuning fork at 433Hz? Anthony, I find the area of performance practice in the early 20th century to be extremely fascinating. There were a lot of changes that effected the quality of instrumental timbre, but they seem to have happened with little complaint or fanfare. You would think that composers like Schoenberg and his followers, concerned as they were with Klangfarbenmelodie, would have had something to say about gut versus metal strings or the difference in brilliance between low vs. high pitch, but I can't think of a single utterance. The Second Viennese school composers orchestrated in an extremely specific manner in regards to timbre, (see Webern's orchestration of Bach's ricercar from Bach's "Musikalische Opfer") but the change over from gut to metal seems not to have concerned them. I don't perceive a difference in how they orchestrated even though their works straddle the periods. Where is the pining for the "good, warm" tone of gut or the celebration at the "new brilliance" of metal? And who on earth had the chops to play those angular guitar parts (written in bass and treble clefs at sounding pitch) in Webern and Schoenberg? Chris Christopher Wilke Lutenist, Guitarist and Composer www.christopherwilke.com --- On Sat, 1/7/12, Anthony Hind wrote: From: Anthony Hind Subject: [LUTE] Re: tuning fork at 433Hz? To: t...@heartistrymusic.com, e...@gamutstrings.com, howardpos...@ca.rr.com Cc: lute@cs.dartmouth.edu Date: Saturday, January 7, 2012, 8:58 AM Thank you all for your responses, and your detailed explanations, Tom. I agree that "In fact, that's one reason pitch has risen over the past few hundred years - more string tension = higher volume and brighter sound. Even today some orchestras tune to 442 -444, to take advantage of this effect." and this search for brightness, also partly explains the change from gut strung instruments to metal strung ones (while of course the fragility of gut stringing might perhaps have kept pitch down to save string breakage). I recently heard a performance of Stravinsky's Pulcinella on "period brass instruments" and a gut strung bowed section by the "Musiciens du Louvre-Grenoble" (Mark Minkowski director); MM argued that even in 1905 gut stringing was fairly standard. He did not say at which pitch they were playing, however, I presume it may have been at 433 Hz. The performance was in no way unsatisfactory, as the modern "brightness" was replaced by more harmonic texturing, coming both from the gut strings, and from the warmer but also "rougher" sounding period brass instruments. While the threads of the music remained exceptionally clear, as no instrument type seemed to be covering the other. In relation to tuning over high, I seem to remember that in an article on tuning, Gordon Gregory suggested that relaxed people tend to tune too low, while tense people would tend to tune too high (I certainly read that somewhere, but not certain it was in Gordon's article). However, this coincides well with my own experience, as I always tend to tune too high, if I tune by ear (I would certainly not classify myself as relaxed). Relative brightness would be associated with increased emotional tension, which by some, might be felt as somehow a more exciting sound. Tuning too high, as Ed says, does result in out-of-tuneness, but it can also be considered as an over-bright tonal aberration. In relation to this (and the above), it is recorded in many hifi sites that a change from over bright distorting resistors and capacitors to better noise performance ones, initially results in the hifi enthusiasts feeling that the sound is less exciting (so
[LUTE] Looking for help finding articles
This email should have gone out under the correct Subject line. Sorry. Cutting and pasting always comes back to bite. jeff Good morning, lute list. I am in the early stages of a research/writing project and it keeps circling back around to Dowland's Lachrimae--the song as well as the dances. I'm pulling a bibliography together and want to get my hands on several items in The Lute Society (UK) Journal. Unfortunately, my local university library let its subscription/membership lag a few years ago and it does not hold these items. I'm pursuing Interlibrary Loan avenues, but figure it might take a while for me to get the articles--and I am under a bit of time crunch to get some writing started, if not done. So, while I am waiting for my ILL copies to arrive, I thought I might appeal for some assistance. Would it be possible for someone to share (digitally) a copy of David Pinto's 2 articles on Dowland's Lachrimae--"Dowland's True Tears," Vol. 42 (2002) and "Dowland's Tears," Vol. 37 (1997). I'm at the point of just ordering the volumes directly from the Society, but again, my immediate needs are pretty immediate--the sooner I get going on this the quicker I can get my paperwork started. Thanks in advance for any assistance offered. See ya, jeff To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] Re: String tensions?
Good morning, lute list. I am in the early stages of a research/writing project and it keeps circling back around to Dowland's Lachrimae--the song as well as the dances. I'm pulling a bibliography together and want to get my hands on several items in The Lute Society (UK) Journal. Unfortunately, my local university library let its subscription/membership lag a few years ago and it does not hold these items. I'm pursuing Interlibrary Loan avenues, but figure it might take a while for me to get the articles--and I am under a bit of time crunch to get some writing started, if not done. So, while I am waiting for my ILL copies to arrive, I thought I might appeal for some assistance. Would it be possible for someone to share (digitally) a copy of David Pinto's 2 articles on Dowland's Lachrimae--"Dowland's True Tears," Vol. 42 (2002) and "Dowland's Tears," Vol. 37 (1997). I'm at the point of just ordering the volumes directly from the Society, but again, my immediate needs are pretty immediate--the sooner I get going on this the quicker I can get my paperwork started. Thanks in advance for any assistance offered. See ya, jeff To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] Re: Lute humidifiers
A simple, home-made humidifier can be constructed from sponge and a plastic film case. Drill or punch holes (I use 3/16" or 1/4" bit) in the film case, in the upper 2/3s of the film case. Cut a piece of sponge to fit inside the film case and insert the sponge. Fill it with or soak it in water, shake out the excess and dry off the exterior. If you drill the holes in the upper part of the film case, excess water will be held in the case and not drip onto the instrument or its case. This sort of humidifier can be inserted and suspended between strings of most classical guitars or can sit upright in a lute or barqoue guitar case. I used a small Tupperware-style container (punching holes only in the lid) for my larger theorbo case. I assume that finding the plastic film cases may be a bit more challenging than it was a few years ago, but I know some folks do still have and use film in cameras. - Original Message - From: "Edward Mast" To: "Mayes, Joseph" Cc: "Suzanne Angevine" ; "Dan Smith" ; Sent: Monday, March 07, 2011 11:47 AM Subject: [LUTE] Re: Lute humidifiers Living in South Florida this seems a quaint idea, but when growing up in Connecticut our house had trays built into the tops of the radiator enclosures. Filling these with water every few days during the winter kept the air humidified. But I suppose today there are more efficient heating methods than radiators. On Mar 7, 2011, at 12:27 PM, Mayes, Joseph wrote: Sponge, Dampit, What hast thou? I find an equal amount of danger from dripping moisturizers as from dryness. I have a room humidifier running night and day between Oct. and May. Best, Joseph Mayes On 3/7/11 12:17 PM, "Edward Mast" wrote: Any music store will probably carry the type of humidifiers made to fit into the sound holes of cellos or violins (basically a perforated plastic tube with a sponge inside). I use one of these and simply place it in the peg box area of the case. I've also tried a kitchen sponge in a baggie, (with some holes cut in it), but mildew did build up in the sponge, so I prefer the violin humidifier. On Mar 6, 2011, at 9:51 PM, Suzanne Angevine wrote: Artist sponges made damp and enclosed loosely in a baggie, stuffed in the pegbox part of the case are what I've heard of. Suzanne On 3/6/2011 5:45 PM, Dan Smith wrote: Does anyone have any recommendations for a humidifier for lute. Would appreciate any advice - thanks. -- Dan Smith Raleigh, NC -- To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] Re: tracking down Airs de cour
Thanks to everyone who has responded to my inquiry and to Rainer and Jelma for there almost instantaneous and right on target assistance. VERY much appreciated. As usual, the members of this list went above and beyond expectations. Thanks to all! jeff - Original Message - From: "Jeffrey Noonan" To: "Lute List" Cc: Sent: Thursday, January 20, 2011 4:32 PM Subject: [LUTE] tracking down Airs de cour A vocal student here at the university just asked for help locating a couple airs de cour he wants to put on a recital. I'm swamped with performance and class preparation and my time for doing this sort of digging is limited right now. I can eventually get to it, but the sooner we find these the better. Would anyone on the list have either of the following songs in a format you would be willing to share with my student? Facsimle or modern edition would be fine. A PDF scan might be easiest way to send them. A cursory on-line search has not turned either of these up quickly in the usual lute music resources. Any help would be greatly appreciated. He is looking for: "Aux plaisirs, aux delices bergeres" by Guedron "Cesses, o divine beaute" by Boesset If you have either, you can email me or him directly--his email is [1]jdalexande...@semo.edu Thanks in advance for any help you can offer us. See ya jeff __ -- References 1. mailto:jdalexande...@semo.edu To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] custom cases
Greetings to all the assorted pluckers perusing this list. This is a promotional note, but I have no interest in this except the well-being of my luthier. My local luthier has repaired, rebuilt or set up every instrument I own, ranging from multiple lutes, 19th-century guitars, modern classical guitars, theorboes, and more. During the 10 years that I ran a classical guitar store here in St. Louis, he worked on everything from clunkers to hand-crafted masterpieces. Always spectacular work, always reasonably priced. Several months ago he built a case for the Lundberg lute owned by one of the university music departments for which I teach. Hand-crafted wooden hinges, dovetail joints throughout, hand-carved case handle--a work of art. When I asked if he would make cases for a couple of my mid-19th-century guitars that had no good cases, he agreed. Took him a week for each case. He apparently has a stash of very nice old pine from a 100-year-old convent that burned down some years ago. Anyway--he's willing to consider orders for these custom cases. Prices for a guitar case would probably be in the $250-300 price range plus shipping. A lute case will probably start around $400-450 plus shipping. These prices are only my estimates--Rich wold have to make final determination on costs. I can email pictures of the guitar cases if anyone is interested. I expect to see the lute student who has the lute case later this week--I'll try to remember to take pictures. I'm no longer in the business of selling instruments or cases and have no financial interest in my luthier's work or business. He just does great work and is willing to consider some special orders. Be in touch if you'd like to see picture. All the best, jeff -- To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] Re: Continuo
Re: getting your hands on the Bartlett edition--I had heard unhappy rumors about King's Music and recently came across this article. Looks like the music may still be available, but King's Music is no more. Very unfortunate. http://indianapublicmedia.org/harmonia/death-early-music-publishing-company/ Best to all, jeff - Original Message - From: "Bruno Correia" To: "List LUTELIST" Sent: Monday, October 26, 2009 8:23 AM Subject: [LUTE] Re: Continuo I'm using an edition by Novello. It might also give you a version that differs from the one that you will be performing. There are a some editorial choices/additions that are made in Dido; I didn't know there were numbers with guitars, nice to know. My decision to use a guitar is simply because it is the only baroque instrument I have! However I noticed that the opera has many nice places to use the guitar (chorus and dances). indeed, if I remember right, the numbers with "gittars," indicated in the 1689 Josiah Priest school libretto, are not in the surviving score, which dates from at least 50 years later, and have to be added (by repeating the music from vocal numbers or some other way). So proceed with caution if you're going to use some other version. That's what I am about to do... Safer to take the time to photocopy and cut up the part (after using the lower parts to figure the bass). -- To get on or off this list see list information at [1]http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html -- References 1. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] Re: Accompanying Ortiz's "Recercadas sobre un canto llano"
Sorry--didn't mean to imply just strumming changes! As David says, this is Renaissance music and the linear movement should dictate how to voice the chords. jeff - Original Message - From: "David Tayler" To: "lute-cs.dartmouth.edu" Sent: Monday, March 23, 2009 5:55 PM Subject: [LUTE] Re: Accompanying Ortiz's "Recercadas sobre un canto llano" This is entirely a matter of taste, but for mid renaissance music I prefer to have voices of some sort present, even if they are in block form. The phalese airs print from the same time has a very good mix of accompaniments ranging from very simple to those of a slightly northern flavor. If you are comfortable reading score, I would suggest Arcadelt's first book which was the standard throughout much of Europe in the 16th century--it was even reissued by Monteverdi! Arcadelt's "Voi ve" is a great model for adapting the new homophonic style that was so popular. Without the presence of voices the music takes on a slightly baroque flavor. Even Ortiz' simple accompaniments are reminiscent of Lassus' three part settings, or perhaps more similar to da Nola, as in his setting of "chi la galliarda." Proper lute parts, even in block form, generally follow the rules of counterpoint, even though the voices disappear from time to time. dt At 03:42 PM 3/23/2009, you wrote: I recently recorded one of Ortiz's pieces for a podcast--violone soloist, virginal and bass lute accompany (not theorbo, as the intro says.) Simple chords, occasional filler--let the soloist shine; in most of these pieces, he/she has so much going on, you really do not want to add too much more to the mix. I've also played some of his more complex divisions on contrapuntal vocal works on a G lute. That can be tricky since the lute needs to cover the 3-4 voices of the song while the soloist noodles above and below. Anyway, podcast of one Ortiz piece at arsantiguapresents.com I think it is last month's podcast. jeff - Original Message - From: "Lambert, SC (Simon)" To: Sent: Monday, March 23, 2009 11:04 AM Subject: [LUTE] Accompanying Ortiz's "Recercadas sobre un canto llano" I have a question for our continuo experts on the list. I'm going to accompany some of Ortiz's "Recercadas sobre un canto llano" on the lute. For those who don't know the pieces, they consist of a simple bass line in long notes of equal value (the canto llano), above which a melody instrument (often a viola da gamba is used) has a more elaborate line, but not as flashy as the "bastarda" style, more soulful. The accompanying chords are very elementary, in fact most are just major or minor triads. And there is one chord per measure all the way through: D minor - A minor - G minor etc. My question is: how would you realise this accompaniment on the lute? Just playing the obvious chord at the beginning of each bar is not going to be very interesting, and because the music doesn't seem to need to go fast the sound would quickly die away before the next bar. I must admit I am tempted to try folk guitar style arpeggio patterns, anachronistic though it may be! Thanks, Simon Lambert -- Scanned by iCritical. To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
[LUTE] Re: Accompanying Ortiz's "Recercadas sobre un canto llano"
I recently recorded one of Ortiz's pieces for a podcast--violone soloist, virginal and bass lute accompany (not theorbo, as the intro says.) Simple chords, occasional filler--let the soloist shine; in most of these pieces, he/she has so much going on, you really do not want to add too much more to the mix. I've also played some of his more complex divisions on contrapuntal vocal works on a G lute. That can be tricky since the lute needs to cover the 3-4 voices of the song while the soloist noodles above and below. Anyway, podcast of one Ortiz piece at arsantiguapresents.com I think it is last month's podcast. jeff - Original Message - From: "Lambert, SC (Simon)" To: Sent: Monday, March 23, 2009 11:04 AM Subject: [LUTE] Accompanying Ortiz's "Recercadas sobre un canto llano" I have a question for our continuo experts on the list. I'm going to accompany some of Ortiz's "Recercadas sobre un canto llano" on the lute. For those who don't know the pieces, they consist of a simple bass line in long notes of equal value (the canto llano), above which a melody instrument (often a viola da gamba is used) has a more elaborate line, but not as flashy as the "bastarda" style, more soulful. The accompanying chords are very elementary, in fact most are just major or minor triads. And there is one chord per measure all the way through: D minor - A minor - G minor etc. My question is: how would you realise this accompaniment on the lute? Just playing the obvious chord at the beginning of each bar is not going to be very interesting, and because the music doesn't seem to need to go fast the sound would quickly die away before the next bar. I must admit I am tempted to try folk guitar style arpeggio patterns, anachronistic though it may be! Thanks, Simon Lambert -- Scanned by iCritical. To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
Thanks for help
Dear Lutenists, Thanks in trying to help me with getting ahold of a volume of "Le Secret = des Muses" published by the Societe Francaise de Luth. Even though it is = not available through the Dutch Lute Society (as suggested), I did = receive kind assistance in my behalf. Thanks again to all, Jeff George --
French lute society
Dear Lute list, I'm interested in ordering a volume of the French Lute Society's = publication "Le Secret des Muses".=20 They have a web site with e-mail contact information for "ordering". I = have tried e-mailing a few times, but have received no response. I'm = afraid to call their number because Je ne parle pas fran=E7ais (that's = all I know).=20 Does anyone here know if they are still up and running or how I might be = able to place an order for that publication.=20 Thanks to all in advance, Jeff G. --