Musical Myths and Facts, Volume 1 (of 2)Engel, Carl
History
Musical Myths and Facts, Volume 1 (of 2)
Engel, Carl
Music -- History and criticism
with their octaves, each tone having two strings tuned in an octave. The
archlute, or bass-theorbo, is the largest sized kind of the theorbo, or
lute with a double neck. An Italian archlute, inscribed: "Matheus
Bucchenberg, Roma, 1619." From Signor Mario's museum. Bucchenberg, or
Bueckenberg as he was more generally called, was one of the most
celebrated lute-makers in Italy, and a German by birth. The present
archlute has three ornamented sound-holes. It is provided with a
mechanism by means of which any one of the bass strings by the side of
the finger-board can be raised a semitone in pitch at the pleasure of
the performer. This ingenious contrivance, which renders the bass
strings more useful in compositions having modulations into distant
major or minor keys, occurs also on a French theorbo dating from about
the year 1700, which is in my collection. But on this French theorbo,
the mechanism acts upon all the strings beside the finger-board
simultaneously, while on the archlute just noticed it is contrived so
that any single string may be altered in pitch independently of others.
As the mechanism is evidently not a later addition, but was made with
the instrument in 1619, it is suggestive to musical antiquarians,
inasmuch as it reveals a higher degree of progress in the construction
of the lute than is generally supposed to have been attained about the
beginning of the seventeenth century. An Italian theorbino, or the
smallest kind of theorbo, seventeenth century; with sixteen strings, six
of which run beside the finger-board. A chitarrone, or large Roman
theorbo; Italian. Inscription: "Vitus de Angelis, Bonon, 1609." It is
about six feet long, and has twenty-one strings. The chitarrone was
formerly called Roman theorbo, because it was principally used at Rome.
There was a similar instrument popular at Padua, somewhat smaller in
size. The present specimen was made in Bologna. The chitarrone was used
in the orchestra, assisting at dramatic performances as well as in
church music. It was often strung with wire instead of catgut; the same
was the case with the common theorbo of Germany and England. A
chitarrone, with marquetry and three ornamented sound-holes; made by M.
Bueckenberg, in Rome, anno 1614. From Signor Mario's collection. An
Irish harp (clarseth), strung with wire; made by Egan, in Dublin, in the
beginning of the present century. An arpanetta (German, Spitzharfe),
English, seventeenth century; with one hundred steel wire-strings and
thirty-five brass wire-strings. A b˚che (German, Scheidholt), from Val
d'Ajol, in the Vosges mountains, in France; made in the beginning of the
present century. An English specimen of the _hummel_, probably made
during the eighteenth century; with twelve wire strings. It resembles
the b˚che, and may be regarded as an antiquated species of our present
horizontal cither. A bell-harp, made by John Simcock, in Bath, about the
year 1700: length, 20 in. It has sixteen tones. Each tone is produced by
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