Re: Lute tablature

[David Raleigh Arnold]

On Monday 19 May 2003 11:58 am, Laura Conrad wrote:
> >>>>> "David" == David Raleigh Arnold <address@hidden> writes:
>
>     Taco> About your Dowland edition: EVERY luteplayer prefers the
>     Taco> lutetablature to some modern notation. A tablature part
>     Taco> should exist in every dowland edition.
>
>     >> Well, dra obviously disagrees with you,
>
>     David> Not at all.  I was simply pointing out that all you have
> to David> do to get the lute tab for Dowland is to use letters David>
> instead of numbers, leave off the stems, and include David> notation
> *also*.
>
> And a lute player who was reading the tab would be able to get the
> stem information from the keyboard part? 

The keyboard *version* of the same part.

> That seems unlikely

I find that opinion astounding.  That's the preferred method even for 
banjo music, which usually has only one voice.  Lute parts often have 
four voices.

>, but I
> would be willing to believe that lute players don't really figure out
> the rhythm from the stems.

?  From where then?
>
>     David> The advantage is not only that it would be accessible to
>     David> more people but also it could have the highly desirable
>     David> feature of omitting the stems from the tablature.  While
>     David> the notation does take up vertical real estate, so do the
>     David> stems.
>
> Vertical real estate isn't my problem; convincing a lute player to
> play with me is.  If leaving off the stems makes it harder for a lute
> player, I don't want to do it.

That's a big if.  The problem is that the lute part is only one voice, 
and if the stems are different from the notation and the music is 
complex, they are more trouble than they are worth, which may even be 
negative.
>
> I'm not under the impression that the stems are all that big of a
> problem.

Maybe not, but they are the biggest problem in reading the stuff.  Lute 
players back in the day would have killed to have it the way I am 
suggesting to you.

>  Rune couldn't remember how to do it off the top of his
> head, but surely a staff with the lines invisible and the note heads
> (all on the same pitch) invisible (OK, and all the stuff like clefs
> and key signatures not printed) would do it.

I'm sure you can do it the way you want to.  The better musicians they 
are, the more helpful they will find the notation.   DaveA

-- 
The biggest losers of all are the winners of an unjust war.
The wars are not over.  Just the winning part is over.
Bush lied.  Thousands died.  dra@ http://www.openguitar.com