Eloy Cruz wrote: > > Doc Rossi is right, the catalog entry he copies is for an instrument with > Museum No.: 224-1882, but the note next to the instrument calls it a cittern > and has the Spanish virtuosi story. I saw the instrument in december 2002. I > think I remember that Monica went to the museum and asked the curator about > the instrument, but I don't remember if she actually did it... > Very interesting.
I was at the V&A a couple of weeks ago and I put up a web page of the instrument and the note that accompanies it here: http://www.tuningsinthirds.com/Spanishcittern/ I'm just about to borrow a copy of the V&A catalogue for 1968 from my local library. I forgot to note the instrument number as it is now (two weeks ago) but I think I've got the correct instrument and the accompanying note... including what you call 'the Spanish virtuoso story.' Do I detect a large dose of scepticism here? I'm both amused and a bit shocked. It's one thing (and understandable) for a museum to get some point of detail wrong but to offer a 'cock and bull' story (a complete fantasy) is of quite another order! Stuart > The only music for cittern in the Hispanic world that I know is the Codice > Saldivar 2 in Mexico City and another 18th century manuscript sold at > Sotheby's long ago, Monica told me about this ms. > > Back in 2003 I asked everyone about more music or more surviving Spanish > citterns or paintings and I could find nothing... There's of course Minguet. > There's a later notice (c. 1840) of someone playing a cittern (citara) in > Mexico City > > > Best wishes > > > Eloy Cruz > > > The V&A catalogue (1968) entry for this instrument says: > > 11/9 English guitar. English: late eighteenth century. Fig. 75. > No Label visible. > Very unusual waisted model in a vaguely Spanish guitar format. > Arched back of sycamore. Slightly arched belly of pine with > simulated purfling in black ink and an open soundhole. Ivory hitch > studs at base of body. Ebony fingerboard with twelve brass frets and > four capotasto holes. Pegbox with a pyramid-shaped rectangular > finial. Normal English guitar stringing, the last two courses overspun. > Dimensions: Length total 69; belly 30; Width of bouts 20, 18, 22. > Depth of sides 5.8. String length 32.5 (very short for an English > guitar, though of the same order as that of Perry's cither viol, 2/8). > > Doc > > Doc Rossi > Element Music > Le Grand Domaine > Boulevard des Dames 26 > 13002 Marseille > France > > > > To get on or off this list see list information at > http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html > >
