Dear Lex,
I agree with Chris: thumb-out does not inhibite playing through both
strings of a double course.
Neither need (or should) the thumb and finger ends meet using
thumb-out as you suppose: the thumb is slightly forward of the fingers.
Probably the best historic representation of this from around the time
(second half 17thC) is Charles Mouton's hand position (on a lute) in
the well known painting and engraving.
Martyn
--- On Sat, 3/12/11, Chris Despopoulos <despopoulos_chr...@yahoo.com>
wrote:
From: Chris Despopoulos <despopoulos_chr...@yahoo.com>
Subject: [VIHUELA] Re: Guitar bridges
To: "Lex Eisenhardt" <eisenha...@planet.nl>, "vl"
<vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu>, "Ed Durbrow" <edurb...@sea.plala.or.jp>
Date: Saturday, 3 December, 2011, 15:28
I have to take issue with the idea that thumb-out will tend toward
an
upward stroke (if I understand what you mean by thumb-out). Indeed,
I've always played thumb-out, coming to Baroque guitar from the
modern
guitar. One thing I have always trained my hand to do (thumb
included)
is to push down through the string. I find that I can do this on a
double course as well with decent results (well, one needs other
judges, doesn't one). I find that I have to modulate that a bit,
and
reduce the downward stroke. But the point is, with thumb-out I have
to
cultivate a tendency for an upward stroke, not try to overcome it.
Anecdotal, but that's my experience... Thumb-out puts me in the
opposite situation from what you describe.
cud
__________________________________________________________________
From: Lex Eisenhardt <[1]eisenha...@planet.nl>
To: vl <[2]vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu>; Ed Durbrow
<[3]edurb...@sea.plala.or.jp>
Sent: Friday, December 2, 2011 6:12 AM
Subject: [VIHUELA] Re: Guitar bridges
> Given that the bourdon in any case will
> be slightly higher the the treble string as it is thicker it is
not
> difficult to give it prominence where necessary. A plain gut
> bourdon on the
> fifth is so thick that it is hard to miss!
>
> Ed Durbrow
That may seem so, but making use of the thumb outside
technique--which
I suppose was always done by part of the population, also on the
lute--the fingers and the thumb sometimes will come very close to
each
other. In that situation it will be more difficult to avoid the
thumb
to strike in a somewhat upward direction (to avoid hitting the next
course), and mainly touch the high octave. To play a real bass,
which
needs a good control of how we balance the two strings of a course,
we
better make sure to catch the low octave string, and make it sound
loud
enough.
For the same reason it may be easier to play campanelas with thumb
out.
At least if you would like to single out the high octave strings.
Lex
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--
--
References
1. http://us.mc817.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=eisenha...@planet.nl
2. http://us.mc817.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=vihuela@cs.dartmouth.edu
3. http://us.mc817.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=edurb...@sea.plala.or.jp
4. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
