A few years later, the very first lute publications were printed by Ottaviano Petrucci.
#INSTRUMENTS LIKE A LUTE FULL#
The addition of a low sixth course (double string) also increased the gamut of the instrument, allowing for full bass lines. The hand position itself remained largely the same, but the instrument could now play solo material of remarkable complexity. A group of German lutenists discovered that by using the fingers to pluck instead of a plectrum, they could play entire polyphonic works. The end of the 15th century marked an amazing change for the lute, one that helped make it the most popular instrument for more than 200 years. Depending on the size of the instrument, the thumb of the fretting hand could hang over the neck and even fret notes when needed, or if the instrument was too large, the thumb remained relaxed behind the neck. The fretting hand seems to have been very similar to modern technique. This allows for very fast and accurate diminutions. The pinky of the plucking hand rests on the body of the instrument and acts as an anchor and a reference point for the rest of the hand. Through paintings and other iconographic sources, we have been able to reconstruct much of this early picking technique and determine that it is remarkably similar to modern mandolin and even electric guitar playing. Like oud players, the new European lute players continued to play the instrument with a plectrum or a bird quill. This simple addition of frets marked the change from oud to lute.ĭespite the obvious harmonic implications that frets allow, the lute remained largely a melodic instrument until the beginning of the 16th century. Because Western European music was harmonically-driven and used precise tuning systems to harmonize multiple notes at the same time, the oud needed the addition of frets to comfortably play in tune with other musicians. In order to better integrate the instrument into Western European music, a few changes were made adding frets was the first of these changes. The oud is a fretless melodic instrument, double-strung in courses, that is perfectly suited to the subtle tunings, systems and scales of the Middle East. While the Spanish would seem a likely conduit for the instrument to enter the rest of Europe, they generally rejected the instrument, and the oud instead traveled with merchants through Sicily and up into Italy. The lute is a descendent of the oud, which was most likely brought to Western Europe by the Moors in the 9th century, when they occupied Spain. Read on to learn a brief overview of the history of the lute, and some comparisons between the lute and its more famous cousin, the guitar. If I have the time, though, I really do love to give a more complete answer. People will often ask me, “What is a lute?” In truth, the history of the lute is a long one and I often simply explain that it’s like a guitar with more strings. When I made the transition to playing the lute, however, this changed significantly, due in no small part to the odd-looking case that I have to carry the instrument around in. Even non-musicians are generally familiar with the guitar and the many forms and shapes it takes.
#INSTRUMENTS LIKE A LUTE HOW TO#
And how to make a new kora.Īccording to tradition, the 21 chords of the Kora represent the life of a child:Īccording to another tradition, seven of strings remain for the mother, seven for the father, and seven for the child.As a guitar player, I rarely had to deal with the issue of explaining what my instrument was to people I met. How to play kora, how to sing, how to write his own songs. The hunter started to play and people said: "This music is very nice to listen to." Afterwards, whenever the hunter went to sleep he saw in his dreams the man he met on the road. Nobody had seen anything like this before. The name means if you are tired, it can help you." He showed the hunter how to play and then said: "Take it home and I will show you many things." When the hunter entered the village everybody came to look at the kora. So the hunter asked this man: "Do you know what this is? Is it yours?" The devil answered: "Yes, this is a kora. On his way back to the village he met a stranger. He waited a few more hours and then took the kora. If nobody comes for it I will take it home, he thought.
After a while he reached forward and touched the strings. "I?ve never seen anything like this", he said to himself.
After a few hours the hunter got tired and looked for a place to rest. Once, upon a beautiful day, a man and his dog went to the bush to hunt.
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