On Dec 1, 2009, at 10:52 AM, Israel Stein wrote: > Sorry, Fred, it isn't quite that simple. You are right, Israel, it isn't that simple. For instance, one overly simple assumption is that the archlute is playing entirely in ET. This is probably true of the frets, but not necessarily of the long strings, which are commonly played as open strings for low, fundamental harmonic tones (on archlute and on theorbo). Hence the fretting isn't an issue, and they can be tuned to accommodate as needed - they can be tuned, if needed, to the corresponding notes on the harpsichord. Yes, this compromise puts the instrument somewhat out of tune with itself, but it solves a particular problem which is probably the most glaring one, if the archlute is serving a continuo function. For some contemporary writings about the relationship between fretted instruments and the harpsichord, I'd recommend reading Mark Lindley's Lutes, Viols and Temperaments. There are some very interesting comments from 16th and 17th century authors, most of which acknowledge the impossibility of the lute playing in tune with the harpsichord. Personally, I would interpret them as meaning that the harpsichord was not tuned to meet the lute. That is certainly Lindley's opinion. (Not to say that it was _never_ done, but that it would be rare). Regards, Fred Sturm University of New Mexico fssturm at unm.edu -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/caut.php/attachments/20091201/fdbaf806/attachment.htm>
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