THE STRINGING OF THE FIVE-COURSE GUITAR

 

OCTAVE STRINGING ON THE THIRD COURSE

 

I.Bc Ms. AA 360. (c.1660)

 

I.MOe Ms. Campori 612. (Undated).

 

Two Italian manuscripts seem to imply the use of an upper octave on the third course. Neither source indicates that this method of stringing is to be combined with octave stringing on other courses and in both the information given is ambiguous.

 

I.Bc Ms. AA 360. (c.1660)

Manuscript of violin music, some in staff notation and some in tablature.

 

On f.109 the tuning of the five-course guitar and the violin are given in staff notation.

 

ILLUSTRATION 7 - TUNING OF THE GUITAR AND VIOLIN

 

Tuning illustration

 

The text reads

 

Accordatura da chitarra spagnuola il primo ordine s'accorder con A la mi re dello spineto.

 

Tuning of the Spanish guitar. The first course is tuned with A lamire of the spinet

 

Il biolino va accorder il Basso in G sol re ut [G below middle C] dello spineto le altre corde vanno in giusta.

 

The lowest string of the violin is tuned to G sol re ut of the spinet, the other strings accordingly.

 

Comments: A lamire can be the A either below or above middle C. The courses of both the guitar and violin are numbered in reverse order. The notes representing the thrid course of the guitar are shown twice with a note between them “canto in mezzo” – “canto” in the middle.  This could refer to the position of the high octave string between the other eight strings indicating that is it is on the bass rather than the treble side of the course.

 

However it is possible that the purpose of the diagram is to match the lowest string of the violin (g) to the third course of the guitar (also g) and that it does not actually have anything to do with the way the guitar is strung. "Canto" can also mean "angle", "corner", and in architecture "the point at which two walls meet".

 

I:MOe Ms. Campori 612 "Regole per imparare a sonare la chitarra". (Undated).

A manuscript colection of strummed music in alfabeto. The introduction, including an engraved illustration showing the tuning of the guitar, has been copied from Banfi's "Il Maestro della Chitara". (see in Italy).

 

ILLUSTRATION 8 - BANFI'S ILLUSTRATION/I:MOe Ms. CAMPORI 612

 

hand hand

 

Comment: In the manuscript the staff notation and an additional tuning check have been added to Banfi's original. This may be intended to clarify Banfi's rather ambiguous tuning instructions. If the standard Italian tuning check is used with a re-entrant tuning there will be a discrepancy between the fourth and third courses - the fourth course stopped at the fifth fret will sound an octave above the third course, rather than in unison with it. The staff notation may have been added to illustrate this discrepancy and to indicate that the third course must be tuned an octave lower.

 

Alternatively, since a number of Italian tuning instructions explicitly mention the fact that first course stopped at the third fret sounds an octave above the third course, the staff notation may be intended to indicate that this is so in the tuning checks, the other intervals being read as unisons.