Posted on January 14, 2010May 28, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: The Vihuela de Mano and The Spanish Guitar: A Dictionary of the Makers of Plucked and Bowed Musical Instruments of Spain by José L. Romanillos and Marian Harris Winspear Review: The Vihuela de Mano and The Spanish Guitar: A Dictionary of the Makers of Plucked and Bowed Musical Instruments of Spain by José L. Romanillos and Marian Harris Winspear Reviewed by Bryan Johanson Originally published in American Lutherie #80, 2004 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Seven, 2015 The Vihuela de Mano and The Spanish Guitar: A Dictionary of the Makers of Plucked and Bowed Musical Instruments of Spain (1200-2002) José L. Romanillos and Marian Harris Winspear ISBN 84-607-6141-XGuijosa, Spain: Sanguino Press, 585 pp., 2002 In the world of players and makers of fine classical guitars, the name José Romanillos stands tall. For decades he built some of the finest classical guitars ever made. His work with Julian Bream is legendary. With the 1987 publication of his first major book, Antonio de Torres: Guitar Maker — His Life and Work (with an extensive revision published in 1997), we were introduced to another side of this impressive artist, that of author, scholar, and fact-sleuth extraordinaire. We now have his latest contribution to the realm of fact: his amazing new book on Spanish luthiers, The Vihuela de Mano and The Spanish Guitar; a Dictionary of the Makers of Plucked and Bowed Musical Instruments of Spain (1200–2002). It is a rare thing these days to find an author (in this case coauthors, Romanillos and his wife Marian Winspear) tackle the concept of writing a dictionary. The result of this ambitious undertaking is a highly readable reference book that includes much information not ordinarily included in a dictionary proper. 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 January 6, 2010May 20, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: The Early History of the Viol by Ian Woodfield Review: The Early History of the Viol by Ian Woodfield Reviewed by Christopher Allworth Originally published in American Lutherie #5, 1986 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 The Early History of the Viol Ian Woodfield Cambridge University Press, 1984 Out of print (1999) This is for the instrument maker or prospective instrument maker with an historical bent who wants to be inspired into making viols. While this book will not tell him or her how to make a viol (see Bottenberg, Building a Treble Viola da Gamba, 1980, Concordia University) it will provide the historical information necessary for an understanding of the instrument’s evolution up to 1700. Thus, it will encourage the discerning maker especially. This book is a very significant one, for not only is it the first major volume on viols in twenty years, it is the first book to address the “new wave” of viol making; when, with Ian Harwood’s article “An Introduction to Renaissance Viols,” Early Music, October 1974, and the articles contributed by Pringle, Harwood/Edmunds, and Hadaway in Early Music’s second viol issue, October 1978, we became aware of the many faces of the viol as distinct from the rather all-purpose one to which we had become accustomed. In other words, the wave of fresh insights into the harpsichord field initiated by Frank Hubbard in his Three Centuries of Harpsichord Making, 1965, is now being repeated here in the field of viols and therefore Woodfield’s contribution is an exceedingly important and useful 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 January 6, 2010May 20, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: Guitar and Vihuela: An Annotated Bibliography by Meredith Alice McCutcheon Review: Guitar and Vihuela: An Annotated Bibliography by Meredith Alice McCutcheon Reviewed by Joseph R. Johnson Originally published in American Lutherie #9, 1987 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 Guitar and Vihuela: An Annotated Bibliography Meredith Alice McCutcheon Pendragon Press, 1985 $64 from amazon.com In 1978 David B. Lyons published his book, Lute, Vihuela, Guitar to 1800: A Bibliography (Detroit Studies in Music Bibliography, 1978). Although the vihuela and guitar were included, the bulk of his information concerned the lute. There was not enough material in the book to satisfy the ever-growing need for information about the early guitar and vihuela. In 1980 James Tyler’s book, The Early Guitar: A History and Handbook, (London: Oxford University Press, 1980), was published, and it too only partially satisfied the need. What was needed was a bibliography that dealt specifically with the guitar and the vihuela. Ms. McCutcheon’s annotated bibliography is an attempt to fill that need. In her words, the bibliography “is intended to fill the need for an annotated reference tool for the study of the guitar and vihuela. It contains literature on composers, performers, theorists, music and analysis, iconography, and design and construction in both an historical context and in a technical 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.
