Thanks Stuart - I really wasn't complaining. Re yr message - I guess we'll just have to beg to differ.
But the only reason why this matter is so significant is, of course, because if one believes there's always (or generally) a need for a proper though bass line then it reinforces the requirement for bourdons but if, as I believe, much of this music is really melody punctuated and supported by harmony as chords then the need for bourdons is clearly much less. I also think the use of a skeletal bass line even supports this ie they are using the odd (often tonic) bass as short harmonic reminder - if you see what I mean. In short, not so very different from your 'English' guittar.... rgds Martyn --- On Tue, 8/2/11, Stuart Walsh <s.wa...@ntlworld.com> wrote: From: Stuart Walsh <s.wa...@ntlworld.com> Subject: [VIHUELA] Re: The stringing of the baroque guitar - again To: "Martyn Hodgson" <hodgsonmar...@yahoo.co.uk> Cc: "Vihuelalist" <vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu>, "Monica Hall" <mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk> Date: Tuesday, 8 February, 2011, 11:26 On 08/02/2011 10:53, Martyn Hodgson wrote: > Hello Stuart, > > Didn't you read me email quite through? - I specifically wrote about > Granata's Op 5! You'll see I take it as a good example of not > overbothering about a proper through bass line and thus an example of > melodic writing interspersed with chords rather than an example of two > part writing and this obliging us to provide a through bass on the > guitar. > > And yes, the 'viola' is what many Italian sources of this period call a > bass violin (ie not a violoncello). Only later did it come to refer > exclusively to the tenor of the violin family. > > rgds > > M Martyn I did read your email! I was just (politely, of course) disagreeing with your idea that: You'll see I take it as a good example of not overbothering about a proper through bass line and thus an example of melodic writing interspersed with chords rather than an example of two-part writing... I suppose the line between "melodic writing interspersed with chords" and (rudimentary) two part writing is a fine one. But just now looking over th Granata pieces (the ones with violin/'viola') - although there is the odd bar or two of melodic flow, I'd say 90% or so is basic two-part (i.e.utterly typical guitar) writing. Stuart > --- On Tue, 8/2/11, Stuart Walsh<[1]s.wa...@ntlworld.com> wrote: > > From: Stuart Walsh<[2]s.wa...@ntlworld.com> > Subject: [VIHUELA] Re: The stringing of the baroque guitar - again > To: "Martyn Hodgson"<[3]hodgsonmar...@yahoo.co.uk> > Cc: "Vihuelalist"<[4]vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu>, "Monica Hall" > <[5]mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk> > Date: Tuesday, 8 February, 2011, 10:47 > > On 08/02/2011 10:09, Martyn Hodgson wrote: > Dear Stuart, > You write > 'what do you mean by "elaborate treble dominated style"? Is it > this: a > predominantly melodic line interspersed with occasional chords? > Which > composers are you thinking of?' > I don't know what others are thinking of, but I mentioned that the > similarity between much (especially Italian) guitar writing and that > for unaccompanied violin by such as Schmelzer, Biber, Matteis had > struck me some years ago. Almost all guitar composer exhibit this in > pieces from time to time but some particular ones which I recall > being > examplars of the fashion were: Pellegrini(1650), Carbonchi(1640), > Pesori(1648), Coriandoli(1670), Valdambrini (1646/7), Bottazzari > (1663), Granata (various)....... A good example of the practice in > operation and a interesting perspective on this style is also shed > by > those few pieces which actually do have an independent bass line as > well as guitar tablature (eg Granata Op 5 of 1674 for violin, bass > violin and guitar) - the guitar 'bass' is often skeletal at best and > often non-existant whereas the guitar does double most of the > independent upper melodic line. > Well, looking at Granata's Novi Capricci Armonic Musicali: the > first > few pieces have a guitar part on the left hand side (in tab) and a > score for violin and a ('viola'=bass?) part on the right. If it's > assumed that the guitar is playing along with the bass line (and > violin), nevertheless the guitar parts stand as pieces in their own > right with basic, sketchy, two-part writing (plus chords here and > there). There are passages which are just the melodic line but > still > most of the writing is rudimentary two-part....but like much writing > for guitar before or since. > Stuart > Of course if anyone really wanted to push the matter and insist that > a > proper through bass was always present, I suppose it might be > possible > to construct a bass line (of sorts) from the lowest notes (depending > on > stringing!) of the strummed chords...... > Martyn > --- On Mon, 7/2/11, Stuart Walsh [1]<[1][6]s.wa...@ntlworld.com> wrote: > From: Stuart Walsh [2]<[2][7]s.wa...@ntlworld.com> > Subject: [VIHUELA] Re: The stringing of the baroque guitar - again > To: "Monica Hall" [3]<[3][8]mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk> > Cc: "Vihuelalist" [4]<[4][9]vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu> > Date: Monday, 7 February, 2011, 22:22 > On 07/02/2011 17:21, Monica Hall wrote: > > This was my summary. It caused outrage in some quarters but I > still > stand by most of it. > > > > 1. Both the conventional and re-entrant tunings were > considered > appropriate for strummed music and choice of one or the other was a > matter of practical convenience. > > 2. The development of an elaborate treble dominated style > after > 1640 led to a preference for re-entrant stringing. > Monica, what do you mean by "elaborate treble dominated style"? Is > it > this: a predominantly melodic line interspersed with occasional > chords? > Which composers are you thinking of? > The small amount of fancier music for the English guitar/guittar in > the > 18th century actually, literally looks like this - melodic lines - > single melodic lines and then occasional chords. But five-course > guitar > music doesn't look like this at all. It looks like there's some kind > of > bass and treble - it looks like, at least, two part music. > If the guitar is playing in this "elaborate treble dominated style" > (as > I am interpreting you as claiming) it would have to be in a > re-entrant > stringing, wouldn't it? It couldn't lead to a preference for it? > > 3. Perhaps as early as the 1650s Corbetta used bourdon on the > fourth course. > > 4. This became the preferred method of stringing in France, > England and the Low Countries and possibly also in Italy and Spain > during the last quarter of the seventeenth and first quarter of the > eighteenth centuries. > > 5. Developments in the way strings were made lead to regular > use > of octaves on both fourth and fifth courses and eventually to a > 6-course instrument. > But you say in 1. (above) - the 'conventional' tuning? So, by that, > you > don't mean octaves on fourth and fifth? You mean AA and DD? > Stuart > > 6. Different methods of stringing were probably used for solo > music and realizing a bass line. > > 7. The evidence for octave stringing on the third course is > ambiguous. Such a method of stringing would only be suitable for > strummed music. > > > > Do I hear howls of rage in the distance? > > > > Monica > > > > > > To get on or off this list see list information at > > [5][5][10]http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html > > > -- > References > 1. mailto:[6][11]s.wa...@ntlworld.com > 2. mailto:[7][12]s.wa...@ntlworld.com > 3. mailto:[8][13]mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk > 4. mailto:[9][14]vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu > 5. [10][15]http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/%7Ewbc/lute-admin/index.html > > -- > > References > > 1. [16]http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com > 2. [17]http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com > 3. [18]http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk > 4. [19]http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=vihuela@cs.dartmouth.e du > 5. [20]http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html > 6. [21]http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com > 7. [22]http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com > 8. [23]http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk > 9. [24]http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=vihuela@cs.dartmouth.e du > 10. [25]http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html > > -- References 1. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com 2. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com 3. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=hodgsonmar...@yahoo.co.uk 4. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu 5. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk 6. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com 7. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com 8. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk 9. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu 10. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html 11. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com 12. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com 13. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk 14. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu 15. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html 16. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com 17. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com 18. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk 19. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu 20. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html 21. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com 22. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=s.wa...@ntlworld.com 23. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=mjlh...@tiscali.co.uk 24. http://uk.mc263.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu 25. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html