Scholarly discussions about the true origins of the Lute or lute like instruments such as the Oud, the Kithara and Gittern have, for a long time, focused in the area and of the 600 to 700 cultures in Northern frica! frica! "or the most #art this belief is true! $o%ever, recent historic scholarshi# has re&directed the 'uestion of the origins of these chordo#hones beyond the southern (editerranean shores in frica and the (iddle )ast! *ndeed, recent studies of manuscri#ts as %ell as iconogra#hy in terra cotta relieves and carvings #oint out a fe% #otential sources for styles and #erformance #ractices that #redate the *slamic con'uest of the *berian #eninsula of the 6 th century! century! s %e e+amine the arrival of this instrument in the )uro#ean continent, this document %ill not only highlight the North&frican North&frican traditions both -o#tic and (uslim., but also their $ellenic and sian counter#arts! Once %e have a greater g reater understanding of the develo#ments that brought the lute to )uro#e, this document %ill e+#lore the a##lications that ultimately forced the instrument to evolve into the most noble of all instruments during the )uro#ean (edieval #eriod! *n 7// (oorish or Saracen forces invaded most of S#ain! he forces of ari' ari' ibn&1iyad took control of Southern S#ain in a relative short time! he reason for this this success %as the division amongst the Goth rulers of most of %hat used us ed to be a #art of the 2oman )m#ire! )m#ire! Let us remember that in Se#tember 3, 376, the Goth Odoacer de#osed the last 2oman 2oman )m#eror! )m#eror! hen, 4ust over 500 years later, an invading
force came to claim claim a #art of this em#ire! em#ire! he Goths that remained remained in control of S#ain %ere %ere not a cohesive cohesive force! *ndeed, there %ere many 'uarrels among them over feudal territories and ta+ation rights! "urthermore, "urthermore, the #ossibility of a #artnershi# #a rtnershi# bet%een other Goths and the (uslim troo#s of ibn&1iyad has not been entirely ruled out! -onse'uently, Goth King 2odericks futile attem#t to sto# the Saracen forces claimed his life! -ontrasting Goth control, the invading erber forces #roved more ade#t at #olitics that the #rior rulers as they reduced ta+ation and maintained traditions of non&religious nature %ithin their ne% territories! his ne% form of of 89 89 (:S:L(N made u# term. seemed agreeable to local residents %ho resented the former abuses of Goth control! he result %as an over%helming over%helming su##ort for the invading (uslim forces and a tem#orary o#en e+change in commerce and culture! longside their culture, education and religious beliefs, the North fricans brought their musical #ractices and the Oud, %hich %as their #referred #referred instrument! *n fact, this instrument had s#eci;c s#eci;c functions %ithin the (ekelet or rabic system of music that survive almost intact to this date! )timologically, the %ord Lute is is 4ust a miss& #ronunciation of the old rabic al?@AB literally Cthe %oodC.! "or the most #art the Oud is #layed #layed as a ritornello ritornello instrument! melodic DriEF DriEF
or ostinato #attern re#eats during the reciting of #oetry or singing! he to#ics ranged from sacred hymns devoted to llah or (uhammed as %ell as that of $eroic deeds of their chieftains! he Saracens brought their o%n advances and arts and medicine to S#ain! s a result, ne% forms of #oetry such as the mu%ashshah and the a4al emerged set to music and inter#olated %ith the culture of the local S#aniards! "ollo%ing these advances, the musical e+am#les and manuscri#ts started to a##ear! Such is the case of an old (oorish Lute tutor that %as brought to light by George "armer! he actual manuscri#t is a co#y of the original tutor! he co#y dates back to /H03 due to the lack of the later common 8erso&urkish modes! *n its o%n right, the manuscri#t stands as #roof of the inIuence of the S#anish Saracens in music %ith their 53 naubJt rhythmic #atterns. as %ell as the modal structure of their time! he end of the article #in#oints the Greek inIuence in (oorish S#ain as it #resents a table that cross references rabic lute terminology %ith that found in Greek notation! he original manuscri#t, ho%ever, must date back to at least the early 00s as it #ertains to a four&course instrument! his conclusion is easy to arrive at due to one of the most dramatic documented ste#s in the evolution in the lute! uring the mid 00s 1iryJb, a famous #erformer and teacher of the lute in S#ain, added a ;fth course to the lute in order to have a greater range in the instrument! his addition is of transcendental im#ortance as it marks the evolution of the
instrument in )uro#e that is not noticed immediately in its (oorish counter#art, the Oud! $o%ever, it is im#ortant to note that the Oud did eventually follo% suit in adding a ;fth course under the inIuence of l&Kindi in the late M th century! lthough the Oud and the Lute suEered constant transformation, it is not true that the Oud evolved into the Lute in S#ain as has been sus#ected for the last fe% decades! Several treatises have surfaced #roviding information on the actual lute at %ork in the (oslem countries that #re&date the %ritings of theorist and healer *bn SnJ or vicenna in the early /000s "armer.! lthough this timeframe is closer to the end of the Saracen control of S#ain /3M5. than its onset, it is im#ortant to note that the Lute %as #layed 4ust as much as the Oud in rabic&s#eaking lands! n im#ortant as#ect of the divergence bet%een the Oud and the Lute is the setting of movable frets and the eventual re4ection of them! Several treatises including the old (oorish Lute tutor. s#eak of setting the frets in accordance to diEerent scale systems! *n the end, it is *bn SnJ or vicenna %ho sets the matter straight in his %riting of ca! /000 regarding the #ro#er scale to be used as a model %hile #laying the Oud! efore vicennas scale setting, there %ere several diEerent a##roaches that aEected #laying 4ust as much as tuning of the instrument! "urthermore, let us remember that the scale system of the
(ekelet is based on 'uarter ste#s! "rets designed for half&ste# scales soon become a hindrance as (oorish #erformers ada#ted to their ne% system of scale division! he eventual result %as an all together loss of frets on the *slamic Oud! his fact is #erha#s the most notable distinction in a##earance, tuning and general technical a##roach bet%een the Lute and the Oud! he #roblem that remained %as %hich form of scale to em#loy in the diEerent re#ertoires at %ord during the golden years of *slam! Several scale #atterns arose once the frets %ere done a%ay %ith! here %ere at lease four main forms of music that %ere drastically diEerent from one another! s a result, #erforming the diEerent genres in one instrument %as usually a com#licated aEair! Nevertheless, a fe% musicians and mathematicians came u# %ith systems that eventually led to the actual tuning and a##roach to the Oud that enabled it to e+ecute all idioms of *slam %ith relative ease! he ;rst model %e %ill e+amine is that of an rab scale called the unbur (iani or unbur aghdadi! he #remise of such scale tuning is that of dividing the string into forty e'ual #arts! his scale might have abylonian connections as it is referred to a #re&*slamic scale attributed to a 8andora "armer, 536.! he as%iya %as a scale favored for the Lute as it covered a single octave and set the tuning of the strings at &&G&a! "armer further #ortrays this system in the follo%ing chart ##! 536.
he ne+t scale ado#ted by the rabic #layers stemmed out of 8ersia! his ne% fourth&based tuning allo%ed for a double octave to a. scale made #o#ular in the DGolden ge of *slam!F *n his article, "armer #resents #roof of the scale being attributed to *sha' al&(ausili d! H0. ##! 537.
"ollo%ing this system of tuning, #layers in the east looked u#on %hat #layers in S#ain did in the style of 1iryab %ith a four&course
instrument! he ;rst to #ro#ose the enactment of such addition %as l&Kindi notice the addition of the H th string.
Pet another combination of ;ngerings #rovided a more am#le utiliation of the ;ngerboard! l&"arabi #ut together the t%o added ;ngers 8ersian and 1alalian tones! he follo%ing gra#hic #ortrays
the additions by name
he confusion that ensued bet%een the addition of the 8ersian and 1alalian ;ngerings #er#le+ed #layers that traveled from one estate to another! *bn Sina #rovided a diEerent tuning allo%ing D1alalianF notes in the second octave, %hich %ere e+cluded under the system of tuning by fourths!F "armer ##! 5H7.
he resulting tuning of the Oud by *bn Sina is still the same today -, ", Q, )Q! Rhile (uslim musicians and theorists %ere busy at %ork on their (ekelet, )uro#ean musicians directed their aim at the results given by the half&ste# movable frets tied to the neck of the lute, )uro#ean #layers e+#erimented %ith diEerent tunings until they reached the standard tunings of g, d, a, f, c or a e b g! $o%ever, )uro#ean lute #layers did not come to a standard tuning until the onset of the trescento he %ork of mathematiciansTmusicians such as l&"arabi and *bn Sina %as not truly ackno%ledged until the mid /H00s by GioseEo 1arlino!
he diEerences bet%een Oud and the Lute range from the visual to the #ractical! bbot and Segerman #oint out that the #eg&bo+ of the lute is bent back due to s#ace constrains during ban'uet #erformance
situations in their article DRhy re Lute 8egbo+es ent ackUF here are several accounts of lute #layers being used during medieval ban'uet dinners and other functions at the diEerent courts! *n fact, the most common em#loy of lute #layers %as at the end of meals %hen the ruling lord and his guests %ould retire to larger halls or libraries to digest the sum#tuous meal they had 4ust had! -onsorts of lutenists in diEerent arrays of ensemble combinations %ould #erform for their lieges and %ould need to be #ut together in sometimes rather #recarious balconies set in claustro#hobic environments! $aving the #eg&bo+ bent back%ards %as a trait that ma+imied s#ace usage o%les.! Other uses of the lute %ere to serve as accom#animent for roubadours in the lbigencian -ourts as %ell as in the later rouvere "rench -ourts! "or this #ur#ose, the luteT#oet %ould do one of t%o things %ith the lute he most common assum#tion unfortunately most roubadour accom#animents are not %ritten out. is that they #erformed an ostinato ;gure that %ould re&occur through the #iece, thusly becoming a form of accom#animent! he other assum#tion is that of them strumming a series of notes to create some form of chordal accom#animent! o do this, it %as im#ortant for the lutenist to have a %ay to sto# strings at diEerent #oints on the ;ngerboard %ith relative ease! *n order to do this, the instrument needed frets *n this latest re'uirement of the instrument, %e ;nd the other diEerence bet%een the (oorish Lute and the Oud, %hich by the 00s %as no
longer a fretted instrument! Nonetheless, it is im#ortant to once more re&state that recent scholarshi# #oints out that the Lute came to S#ain %ith frets it 4ust did not loose them.! "ollo%ing our understanding of the #ur#ose of our instrument and the a##arent origin of it should not satisfy our curiosity! Ras the Lute, then a Northern frican instrumentU 2ecent scholarshi# ;nds itself in turmoil %hen it comes to this 'uestion! $o%ever, there are a fe% consensuses amongst scholars! o be fair to all 'uarreling sides, it is best to consider three #otential origins of the Lute ncient )gy#t, Greece and *nner sia! he results of this endeavor %ill reIect that the Lute might not be as northern frican as earlier sus#ected!
Nora Scott talks about the instrument of a famous court musician at %ork in the house of Semut in hebes, ncient )gy#t during the 9V*** ynasty /3M0 -. in her article Dhe Lute of the Singer $ar& (osW!F he timing of this ;nd is of utmost im#ortant as it ;nds the )gy#tian em#ire and sia (inor being brought together, as no lute&like instruments %ere found in the realm of the 8haraohs before this time! *t is also #robable that the instrument brought into Northern frica might have suEered some changes as it became ;t to #erform music a#t for -o#tic ears! he records of $ar&(osWs #erformances #lace him in high regard during his day on an instrument that %ould become a sta#le of the (iddle )astern culture! he ;rst fe% records of Lutes in Greek culture a##ear in reliefs of terra cotta scul#tures that date from X50 to 500 - in the research of $iggins and Rinnington&*ngram! Not only are the instruments in some case fretted, but are #erformed by %omen as %ell! Some of the ;gures sho%case either a blade sha#ed headstock or a blunt one! *n some instances, tuning #egs a##ear and in others the strings are ligated tied to the headstock and attached to the bridge %ithout using tuning #egs.!
Laurence 8icken also s#eaks of the culture clash bet%een of the Greek $ellenic )m#ire and sia (inor %hat is kno%n today as fghanistan and 8akistan.! $e arrives at the same conclusion regarding the con'uests of le+ander the Great! Nevertheless, his article dabbles in a realm that 4oins the "ar Rest %ith the "ar )ast! he -hinese #i&#a might not be as -hinese as %as once believed! *ndeed, his research brings the origins of the #o#ular -hinese lute back to D-entral sia, #erha#s amongst *ranised urco&(ongols, %ithin the area of the ancient ;rst¢ury kingdom of the KusanasF /00 to 5X0 . during the 9ia and $an dynasties! 8icken #oints out the %ords for #ulling and #ushing the reins of a horse #i and #a. in literature that de#icts the short neck lute as an instrument for the riders of inner sia fghanistan and #arts of *ran.! he instrument became #o#ular #ossibly because it could be #layed %hile riding a horse! *t is undis#utable that the #o#ularity of lute&like fretted as are the -hinese #i#a and bi%a. s#read to all realms of the kno%n %orld of the $ellenic, )gy#tian and -hinese dynasties! -onse'uently, all e+tant evidence #oints at inner sia as the birth#lace of this controversial instrument the controversial as#ect of the lute %ill be discussed at the end of this #a#er.!
$aving a better understanding of the origins of the lute let us no% return to the )uro#e in the tenth century! he rise of the roubadours in Occitain and -ataluYa in the late /000s %as of monumental conse'uence for our instrument! *t %as the Lute, %hich most likely served as accom#animent to the robadour art of music and #oetry for #erformances during festivities and ban'uets as described earlier in this document.! he #o#ularity of the instrument forced its ne+t evolutionary ste#! s bbot and Segerman stated it in their article, the Lute no% needed to accommodate large numbers of #erformers in smaller con;nes! he result of this need %as to bend the #eg&bo+ back in order to create more room! 8roof of this is reIected in the elaborate illustrations on the -antigas de Santa (aria of lfonso el Sabio at the -astillian court in S#ain! Not only do %e notice music and #oetry that is suitable for lute accom#animent, but also iconogra#hic evidence of the usage of the lute and the Oud #erforming together should %e say in harmonyU.! lthough the gra#hic #ortrays the Kithara %e %ould need to see the back to ascertain %hether it is a (orisca or Latina.,
other iconogra#hic re#resentation #ortrays the Oud and the Lute as %ell! Rhat is remarkable to notice is that not only %ere Sarracens and -hristians in coe+istence but they #erformed and e+changed musical languages together! he 1a4al format of the #oetry in the -antigas reaZrms this notion!
he late (iddle ges and onset of the 2enaissance in /3M5 sees the birth of a ne% era in S#ain! he -astillian cro%n 4ust about eradicated Saracen control over the *beric 8eninsula and set oE to re4ect anything that reminded them of the long&lasted occu#ation and eventual coe+istence bet%een )uro#ean and (uslim communities! he lute suEers a setback in the lands belo% the 8yrenees as the ne%ly united and #o%erful. S#ain re4ects it as a symbol of the (uslim occu#ation!
he Lute at the end of the /300s %as a drastically diEerent instrument than that of the 700s! *t %ould be fair to say, that this ne% creation %as solely S#anish in conce#t as the Oud evolved in a com#letely diEerent direction! he decisions taken by "erdinand and *sabella of -astille %ith regards to the heritage of the (oorish con'uest of S#ain %ill set forth a fe% ironic musical scenarios! uring this time, the Vihuela surfaces as the S#anish ans%er to all other )uro#ean nations and kingdoms that have embraced the Lute! *ronically, the Vihuela shares the same tuning and fret relationshi# %ith the Lute! *t 4ust looks diEerent *n the end, the abandonment of the Lute in S#ain can either be seen as controversial or tragic! 8erha#s it is out of this sadness that fate had another instrument the *beric Nation to develo# he guitar! o sum u# the history and transcendence of the Lute #rior to and during the middle ages re'uires mention of several areas of the %orld! 2ecent scholarshi# has #laced the crib of the instrument some%here bet%een modern *ran and fghanistan! he rider #layers of inner sia aEected great nations %ith this small instrument! 2ecords sho% Lutes being #layed in the $ellenic )m#ire of le+ander the Great as %ell as in the -o#tic celebrations of )gy#tian 8haraohs and -hinese ynasties ranging from the 9ia to $an! he lute inIuenced instruments such as the Gittern and #i&#a! *t also #ro#elled change in its counter#art the rabic Oud! s a result of the (oorish -on'uest of S#ain, both the Oud and the Lute e+#erienced great changes! One instrument became
more #oly#honic, %hile the other %as re&structured for 'uartertone melodic #laying! he Lute %as embraced as the noble instrument of the ourgeoisie and royalty for it enabled singing of the noble #oet com#osers of the land of Oc and eventually the land of Oil! he tragic and ironic tale of the lute is that of an or#han child re4ected by its mother S#ain and embraced by the rest of )uro#e for another four hundred and ;fty years before com#osers started favoring the creations of -ristofo -ristofori and the luthiers in the schools of -remona!
Annotated Bibliography: Journals
&bbott, 4ilda and )#h Segerman! DRhy re Lute 8egbo+es ent ackUF )arly (usic, Vol! H, No! / [an!, /M77., #! //X bbott gives evidence for the sus#icion of the characteristic Dbent backF headstock or #eg&bo+ of the lute! *ndeed, this is one of the most notable traits serving the #ur#ose of distinguishing the lute from its close brother the Oud! he issue of s#ace and cramming several lutenists together has long been a sus#icion! he 'uote this article brings about hel#s solidify this hy#othesis! &nonymous! Dhe (edieval, 2enaissance and aro'ue Lute!F )arly (usic, Vol! X, No! 5 #r!, /M7H., ##! /X7&/XM (ore than an article, this is a historical set of iconogra#hic materials that hel# de#ict not only the instrument, but also their #erformance #ractices! "eatured amongst the several scul#tures and #aintings are sets from the Santiago de -om#ostelas 8ortico de Oro as %ell as the -hurch of San "rancis of sisi! he materials stem out of the Lute Society 8icture -ollection! &#el, Rilli! D)arly S#anish (usic for Lute and Keyboard *nstruments!F he (usical \uarterly, Vol! 50, No! X [ul!, /MX3., ##! 5M&X0/ his lengthy article focuses #rimarily on renaissance com#osers such as 8isador, -abe]n and Valderr^bano! $o%ever, the de#iction of a mi+ in customs and cultures such as the S#anish and (oorish is #ro#erly 4u+ta#osed %ith that of the rest of the )uro#ean -ontinent! #el s#ends 'uite a bit of time describing the S#anish or Nea#olitan tablature and contrasts it %ith the *talian one that %as most conventional during the early and mid /H00s! &edbrook, G! S! Dhe Nature of (edieval (usic!F (usic _ Letters, Vol! 56, No! 5#r!, /M3H., ##! 7& he article is rather e+tensive as it #retty much covers the entire gamut of music forms during the (iddle ges! $o%ever, the bit on the #resentation of the lute as brought in by Sarracens in S#ain and later by the -rusades #lays 'uite %ell %ith this #a#ers to#ic! "urthermore, edbrook goes into detail as to the #erformance #ractices of the Oud and other #lucked instruments and com#ares them making the big assum#tion that the middle eastern #erformance #ractice has not changed much by these days. to %hat must have been done by roubadours! he #oint is a rather good one and %ill most de;nitely ;nd its %ay into the #a#er!
&o%les, )dmund ! D(usical *nstruments at the (edieval an'uet!F 2evue belge de (usicologie T elgisch i4dschrift voor (uiek%etenscha#, Vol! /5, No! /T3 /MH., ##! 3/&H/ o%les gives a detailed discourse on the musical events that normally took #lace at festive meals at court! $e focuses #articularly in the "rench and urgundian -ourts, %hile he mentions the 8ortuguese court in #assing! he article is rich %ith 'uotations from guests and dignitaries that describe the celebrations, %hich include a #assage of the meeting of the Gentlemen of the Golden "leece! (ost instruments described for the #re&meal announcement and the meals itself are irrelevant to this #a#er unless %e are to count the lute as accom#animent for rouveres! $o%ever, the article becomes useful on the after&meal retirement to halls such as libraries, %here consorts of Lutes and guitars %ere em#loyed in combination! o%les states that the lute re#laced the har# as a favorite for accom#anying the voice during the late middle ages! &"armer, $enry George! DRas the rabian and 8ersian Lute "rettedUF he [ournal of the 2oyal siatic Society of Great ritain and *reland, No! X [ul!, /MX7., ##! 3HX&360 "armer gives several references that ;nally deny the long&lasted belief that the lute came to )uro#e fretless and ac'uired its frets in S#ain! he belief has been based on #oor translation and the continued use of the Oud in rabic&s#eaking lands as %ell as #oor inter#retation of iconogra#hy regarding frets! he Lute, in the end, %as fretted! $o%ever, frets %ere lost in the (uslim %orld and ke#t in the )uro#ean one! very good read! &"armer, $enry George! Dn Old (oorish Lute utor!F he [ournal of the 2oyal siatic Society of Great ritain and *reland, No! 5 #r!, /MX/., ##! X3M&X66 he uthor focuses on the translation of this tutor that %as found in the iblioteca Nacional de (adrid under the D(anuscritos `rabesF section! his co#y of the original tutor dates back to /H03 due to the lack of the later common 8erso&urkish modes! he manuscri#t stands as #roof of the inIuence of the S#anish Sarracens in music %ith their 53 naubJt as %ell as the modal structure of their time! he end of the article #in#oints the Greek inIuence in (oorish S#ain as it #resents a table that cross references rabic lute terminology %ith that found in Greek notation! he original manuscri#t #robably #redates the 00s as the lute described here has four courses and not the ;ve as introduced by 1iryJb in the mid 00s! &"armer, $enry George! Dhe Lute Scale of vicenna!F he [ournal of the 2oyal siatic Society of Great ritain and *reland, No! 5 #r!,
/MX7.! 53H&5H7 Once (ore, "armer does a thorough 4ob at stating his #oint, or rather, the #oint of *bn SnJ or vicenna! he 8ersian theorist amongst other things for he also created a com#lete school of medicine. sti#ulated a ne% direction in tuning for the Lute %ith regards to the scale it %as able to #lay! $e made direct mention of frets and the #lacement of them! his article %hich details a #art of the rabic manuscri#t %ith a translation. #resents clear evidence of the fretted lute in the rabic %orld! "armer states the #roblem of fret setting as a result of ada#ting to the old 8ersian system of tuning strings a fourth a#art! he to a scale attributed to *shJ' al&(ausil and the DGolden ge of *slamF %as further ada#ted to the Lute %ith frets! nother interesting develo#ment #resented by "armer is the coincidental addition of the ;fth course by the Greeks as inIuencing the rab %orld in the mid 00s as %ell as 1iryJbs addition of the same string in (oorish S#ain bet%een 55 and H5! &Gome, (aricarmen! DSome 8recursors of the S#anish Lute School!F )arly (usic, Vol! 50, No! 3, *berian iscoveries * Nov!, /MM5., ##! HX&HMX Gome begins her article %ith a detailed de#iction of the life and doings of court gittern #layer 2odrigo de la Guitarra during the early and mid /300s at the -atalan&ragonese -ourt! She follo%s this narrative %ith other #layers at the courts of Seville and Valencia, 8edro lfonso de Sevilla %hom ultimately became %ell&kno%n in the court of -onstantino#le. and (art de runa from -ataluYa! he latter %as also kno%n as D(artn el -iegoF the blind. and re#uted as a gifted Lute and Gittern #layer much like the #rior musicians.! Gome closes the article %ith useful information regarding the several customary ensemble combinations in S#ain during the rs Subtilor Gittern and LuteB Lute and VielleB trio of Gittern 8layers! Our author concludes %ith mention of a (oorish alfabeto chord book. as co#ied do%n in /3M7 by a student of the ominican [aume Salv^! &$iggins, 2! ! and 2! 8! Rinnington&*ngram! DLute&8layers in Greek rt!F he [ournal of $ellenic Studies, Vol! H /M6H., ##! 65&7/ $iggins focuses on over t%enty terra cotta images of Lute #layers during the $ellenistic era in Greece and frica! fe% ;ndings are of note! Romen are #ortrayed #erforming on the Lyre and the lute as early as X50 or 500 -! Some of his ;ndings su##ort the statements of other authors as he notices that strings %ere ligated tied to the headstock and not inserted through #egs. on either a blunt or s#ade& like headstock, %hich is not bent back at all! $e also evidences frets being used to hel# sto# the strings! his latter statement su##orts "armers %ell&founded claim that the Lute entered )uro#e %ith frets tied on! he uthors continue on to discuss #erformance #ractice
suggestions based on the %ay the instruments %ere held on the reliefs! hey also continue on to assert the nature of the lutes and distinguish them form the Kithara! heir ;ndings #lace the lute as a #ossible result of le+ander the Greats con'uests in inner sia! & 8icken, Laurence! Dhe Origin of the Short Lute!F he Gal#in Society [ournal, Vol! , (ar!, /MHH., ##! X5&35 8icken brings about a logical course of events! lthough he claims that he and other scholars %ithin his circle are changing the #erce#tion on the origins of the Lute, it is #erha#s better to consider his statements all based on fact. as a link bet%een the $ellenistic Greek and the sian #i&#a for%ards&back%ards.! he con'uests of le+ander the Great in %hat is no% considered fghanistan and *ndia bring about a rich cultural e+change! Rithin the e+change, %e ;nd the #i#a or asian luteTkithara! his instrument found its %ay into the Greek em#ire before it started its inIuence on the (oorish lands! 8*cken #uts together his information to conclude that the #i&#a #robably originated in D-entral sia, #erha#s amongst *ranised urco&(ongols, %ithin the area of the ancient ;rst¢ury kingdom of the KusanasF /00 to 5X0 .! &2ubsamen, Ralter $! Dhe )arliest "rench Lute ablature!F [ournal of the merican (usicological Society, Vol! 5/, No! X utumn, /M6., ##! 56&5MM 2ubsamens #a#er deals at length %ith the several manuscri#ts that are described as the earliest in #rint or co#y! here are several e+tant documents he Vinceno -a#irola, he "olingo (S, he 8erugia (S G 50., 8rints by 8ierre ttaignant, and he G! hibault (S! $o%ever, the (anuscri#t that %ins this #rie is a leather&bound collection near 8esaro, *taly hence the 8esaro (anuscri#t. #rinted bet%een /37/ and /3M7! he author %ent through %atermark analysis as %ell as style of com#osition and intabulation in order to arrive at this conclusion! he research %as 'uite thorough and meticulous! -Scott, Nora )! Dhe Lute of the Singer ar&(osW!F he (etro#olitan
(useum of rt ulletin, Ne% Series, Vol! 5, No! H [an!, /M33., ##! /HM&/6X his article does a fe% things! "irst of all, it traces the entry of the lute to the 9V*** )gy#tian ynasty as sia (inor came in contact %ith them! he article dabbles in 'uite a bit of detail regarding the instrument of a famous musician at the house of Semut in hebes /3M0 -.! his hel#s trace the lute back to 8ersia and sia (inor from )gy#t before it crossed the (editerranean Ocean through Gibraltar to get to S#ain! Books
<on Smith, ouglas! A History of the Lute: From Antiquity to the -anada he Lute Society of merica, 5005 Renaissance. his is a thorough te+t that devotes entire cha#ters to the origins of the Lute in nti'uity ncient Greece, the (uslim countries and sia., as %ell as regional a##earances of Lutes or Lute&like instruments in S#ain and later through )uro#e! he DLate (iddle ges and )arly *talian 2enaissanceF cha#ter is of #articular interest as it traces the develo#ment of the instrument in *taly as it #rovides e+tensive information on com#osers at %ork in the diEerent courts #ages /5X& /X0 deal %ith the life and %orks of a (ilano.! Several cha#ters deal %ith genres including intabulation. and the construction of the instruments favored in diEerent areas as %ell as times during the 2enaissance! he te+t is e+tremely thorough! &Schlegel, ndreas! Die Laute in Europa: Geschiche und Geschichten zum Geniessen. asel, -$ erta $ess&-ohn Stiftung, 5006 his book %as %ritten by an actual lute #layer and #ortrays the genealogy of the lute in its many transformations! he structure of the book is very clear as it #ortrays the ty#es of instruments %ith commentaries on their use from nti'uity to #resent time as %ell as their a##lications! he te+t does not dabble in the re#ertoire nor #rominent com#osers! &(cGee, imothy! D*nstruments and their music in the (iddle ges!F ldershot shgate, c500M.! he book is more of a collection such as ours! )ach article has readings that dabble in s#eci;c instruments! elo% is a list of the articles * bro%sed for this #ro4ect! lthough e+tremely %ell %ritten, the articles herein did not #rovide me %ith ne%er information! Nevertheless, this is a book * %ould still like to o%n myself all the articles are in one book as o##osed to being scattered amongst doens of [ournals. /Hth century tablatures for #lucked instruments a summary, a revision and a suggestion T avid "allo%s && he /Hth century lute ne% and neglected sources, T -hristo#her 8age && he medieval gittern and citole a case of mistaken identity T Laurence Rright && 500X.
Reviews
&oye, Gary 2!, /M65&! C $istory of the Lute from nti'uity to the 2enaissance!C Notes HM!3 500X. M0H&M07 his is a very com#rehensive and #ositive revie% of the lton Smith ook! he author has a de;nite bias to%ards the holdings of his university ##alachian State :!.! his revie% summaries the Smith te+t and #uts in a bit of notion as to the current necessity for such a book by lutenists and guitarists! No mention of "rancesco a (ilano is made, ho%ever the article #oints out the setu# that leads to the develo#ment of the lute from (edieval times to the aro'ue #eriod in *taly! &olata, avid! Die Laute in )uro#a
Oud scale #atterns -Farmer, Henry George. “An Old Moorish Lute Tutor.” The Journal of the oyal Asiati! "o!iety of Great #ritain and $reland, %o. & 'A(r., )*+) ((. +*-+
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