Posted on March 6, 2024March 7, 2024 by Dale Phillips Making a Weissenborn-Style Guitar Making a Weissenborn-style Guitar by John Calkin previously published in American Lutherie #102, 2010 “You shouldn’t write a Weissenborn story,” said Lamar Scomp, “’cuz I don’t want to build one.” Lamar tends to take everything personally, and the rest of humanity be damned. “You didn’t want to build a dulcimer either, until I twisted your arm. But you had fun with it, didn’t you?” I said. “Yup.” “And didn’t you tell me that playing dulcimer was making you a better guitar player?” “Yeah,” said Lamar suspiciously, like he could see the trap in front of him and knew he was going to step in it anyway. “Well, a Weissenborn is sort of the ultimate dulcimer on its way to becoming a guitar. The plates are flat, but braced like a guitar. My version has no taper to the sides, just like a dulcimer. Since it’s meant to be played with a slide, there are no frets to mess with, and setting the high action is a breeze. And it’s fun to play. I think you should check out some ace players on YouTube. You’ll be impressed.” “I don’t believe nothin’ I see online. It’s all computerized trickery,” he said. “OK, Lamar. But the Weissenborn is your next step on the way to making guitars. I think you need to build one.” Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on March 3, 2024March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips Vihuela, Mystery Instrument Vihuela, Mystery Instrument by Wally Eubanks Originally published in Guild of American Luthiers Quarterly, Volume 8, #3, 1980 Vihuela is an unusual name for an instrument. It is known today only to a few musicians, some luthiers and not at all to the average person. Pronounced vee-whey-la, it is the Spanish name for a stringed instrument of the Renaissance age. This guitar-like instrument was used in the Iberian peninsula, in Italy and to a small extent in western Europe during the period of the late 1400s to the early 1600s. It was the virtuoso instrument of its type to Spain as the lute was to the rest of Europe in the same period. Spanish nobles cultivated their favorite maestros. Individual musicians vied for attention and favors from the ruling class and developed tablature and special music for the instrument. Several of these composers wrote and published books of instruction and music in tablature. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on March 2, 2024March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips Guilds of the Middle Ages Guilds of the Middle Ages by Gregory Smith Originally published in Guild of American Luthiers Quarterly, Volume 9, #4, 1981 The Guilds of the Middle Ages in western Europe were the outgrowth of religious, economic, political, social and legal needs of the working class people of the period. The collective power and influence of a large group of craftsmen or businessmen could wield enough force to effectively combat the oppression of the feudal lords. The guilds influenced them in various ways ranging from petitioning their grievances, leading revolts against the nobles in the case of the Flemish weaving guilds, or the wealthier guilds simply paid the lords to issue ordinances that were advantageous to their trade. Guilds were established so the workers could gain control of the different trades and professions by setting standards of workmanship and prices of goods and through prohibiting poorly trained workmen from carrying on a trade, and by setting up a hierarchy of status within the system. They even had pension funds and gave money to journeymen and masters that were ill. In London, a guild came into existence by an ordinance of the mayor and aldermen of the city which granted them the power to control their trade. This was usually followed by a Royal Charter of Incorporation granted by the king.1 Throughout most of Europe, guilds were chartered and named either according to the materials used by the craftsman or by the item produced. The Joiners, who were incorporated in England in 1307, joined wood together and this group included cabinetmakers, makers of virginals, harpsichords and other wooden instruments such as lutes and viols. The Brasiers and Stringers were granted a charter in 1416. The Brasiers of brass workers made various items including trumpets and other brass instruments. The Stringers made strings for archery bows and it seems likely that they also made gut strings required by the many types of stringed instruments of the Renaissance. In 1603, the king granted a charter to the Musicians and also to the Turners, who turned wooden articles, including recorders and other wind instruments on their lathes. The instrument makers, or luthiers, of France were united into one guild in 1599 by a statute issued by Henry IV. Before that time they were ordinarily grouped by the materials with which they worked. The trumpet makers around 1300, for example, were members of the iron and copper pot makers.2 As early as 1270 a small guild of wire drawers existed in Paris.3 Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on April 21, 2023March 5, 2024 by Dale Phillips The Two-Storey Dulcimer The Two-Storey Dulcimer by Roger Alan Skipper Originally published in American Lutherie #101, 2010 I read John Calkin’s “Dulcimer 101” in AL#98 with interest, but with little expectation of practical application. I’ve never built a dulcimer; I’ve never wished to build one (sung to the “Purple Cow” jingle). Within a month, though, my best customer and great friend Dr. Gerry Snelson asked me to do exactly that. Perhaps anticipating my reluctance to regress to such a basic instrument, Gerry came armed with photos of high-end dulcimers, video clips of accomplished players, and with his normal bundle of challenging demands and fresh ideas. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on April 21, 2023March 5, 2024 by Dale Phillips Travel Lute Travel Lute by Ben Cohen Originally published in American Lutherie #101, 2010 I am an amateur luthier and a lutenist. I recently attended a reunion of sorts with a number of singers from my old early music ensemble at Oberlin College, and I regretted not having a lute handy to be able to accompany some friends on lute songs. I travel with a mandolin because it fits in the airplane overhead bin and allows me to play Bach suites and choros while my flight is delayed. Lutes aren’t good for air travel. The funny shape makes them hard to fit in the overhead bin. While there are some small 6-course instruments that might squeeze into an overhead bin, most lutenists would prefer to travel with an 8-course instrument to cover as much repertoire as possible. Lutes are also delicate and expensive. Flying with a lute usually requires some kind of super-protective flight case, awkward and expensive. Guitars do not make decent lute substitutes. The guitar has only six strings, and they are not spaced at all like a lute. The world needs a good travel lute. A banjo approach struck me as the way to go, since the lute has such a thin top that it sounds more like a banjo than any other wooden plucked string instrument. I used a Remo 12" pretuned hand drum that I had on hand. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
