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Strange tab-letter in "Tablature de guittarre" de Mr. Dupillé

Dear members,

while trying to find out how to play the music in F-Bn, ms.2344 de Mr. Dupillé (Tablature de guittarre, 1649) I found a strange letter looking like a crossed out b. That cannot be an error by the scribe or copyist because it's present like this in several pieces. I guess it must be some kind of ornament, but I have no idea how to play this. Usually it's in the final bar of a piece or part of a piece, and it sounds together with the ground note. For example: upper voice: note c [letter "b" crossed out, 2nd course] - lower voice: d [letter: "a" on 4th course]. Have a look on the example attached here. Does anyone know what this tab-letter means and how to play it?

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Permalink Reply by Monica Hall on February 18, 2021 at 16:05

I'm just guessing really but working on the basis that the x with a tab letter is descending appoggiatura or trill starting on the upper note, the letter with a line through it could be an ascending appoggiatura.

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Permalink Reply by Juan Pablo Pira on October 3, 2021 at 1:25

I was thinking it could be a trill. In Spanish tabs you find things like 2% with a 3 underneath the % meaning that you are supposed to trill on frets 2 and 3. Since French tab uses the top line for highest string, it makes sense to use then b above the trill sign rather than below.