Alfabetto question

[Bill Brettschneider]

Can anyone tell me what is going on here, in the "aleman," under the 3rd full bar. 3 T. ?

[Bill Brettschneider]

Ok, I tried to include an image, but it seems it got lost. it is page 17 of Carlo Calvi, Intavolatura di Chitarra e Chitarriglia, Bologna, 1646

[Bill Brettschneider]

[Bill Brettschneider]

Thanks. So numbers under the line are always on the first string?

[Monica Hall]

Yes - that's right.

[Bill Brettschneider]

thank you.

[Bill Brettschneider]

Ok, so do you play those first string notes by themselves, as a chord with the remainder of the ordinary alphabet chord left un changed, or something else I haven't thought of?

[Monica Hall]

You play it as a chord.   If we are talking about chord C the first time you play G stopped at the 3rd fret on the 1st course, the second time F at the 2nd fret. The first chord top down is 3- 3-2-0-0 .   The second chord is 2- 3 - 2- 0- 0.  Hope that is clear.

[Bill Brettschneider]

yes, I understand you. Is it always that way? I started playing some of the Passacales y obras, I think it was, and many of the pieces have this sort of notation, but feel extremely awkward to play as a chord, at times. for example, I believe it was the second passacale, por "A" (G) if I remember correctly, where there is an H chord at the 5th fret, alternating with the 7th. so its a (modern) D chord, and the first string note will alternate between a and b, at an eighth note. I am not sure how one would do that. I was cheating, playing only the first three strings so that I could get that first string b with the pinky, justifying it to myself by saying "with the re-entrant tuning, I'm not leaving any notes out." From what I've read, this is probably not the "authentic" solution, But I haven't been able to come up with a better one.

[Monica Hall]

No - there are two different scenarios.

1. Harmonic - usually a 4-3 suspension.   The note must be inserted into the first statement of the chord and resolved in the second.  The figure will be immediately below an alfabeto chord with stroke mark.

2.   Melodic.   The note is played as a single note between two 5-part chords creating the melodic line.   The figure will be below a stroke mark without an alfabeto chord. 

So in the second part of the Ciacone sopra A on p.9 all the figures will be played as single notes until you get to the C on the last two beats of the last full bar.   Here the note G on the first course will be substituted for the F sharp in the first stroke and resolve onto the F sharp in the second.

Calvi's book is a reprinted version of Corbetta's 1639 book.  You can read the full instructions for playing these pieces in the preface to his book - which is translated into English with examples on my web page... 

[Bill Brettschneider]

Excellent. Thank you again, very much! I think I saved it for off line reading. I will go read it again.

[Peter Sinnaeve]

Not a specialist, but I'd think that's just your regular 4-3 cadence or progression, adding a 3 on the first course to your C (D) chord, followed by a trill (the T) or something similar, before resolution into the A (G) chord. Hence 3 & T.

[Monica Hall]

That's right - you play G stopped at the 3rd fret on the first course instead of F and then  the F on the second stroke with a trill.