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Instrument: Viola da gamba |
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Literally Italian for Òleg viol,Ó the name refers to the position in which this six-stringed instrument is held when it is played with a bow: downwards in the lap, or between the legs. The viola da gamba has been made in many different sizes, from pardessus, or high treble, to violone, or contrabass. The highest instruments are the smallest, and donÕt reach to the playerÕs legs, while the violone must be supported on the floor or on a small stool, like the modern double bass.
Having appeared in Europe around the second half of the fifteenth century, the viola da gamba in all of its sizes was one of the most popular instruments during the Renaissance and early Baroque (c.1500-1700) for ensemble music. Different sizes of viols were normally played together, forming a viol consort. Sometimes they were joined by other instruments, such as flutes, trombones, or lutes, making what was known as a Òmixed consort.Ó Because the player bows across the instrument rather than up and down, as on the violin, |
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it is difficult to accentuate certain beats, so the viol is not especially suited to dance music. On the other hand, its distinctive tone makes it able to shine in small ensemble playing, both at court and in the home.
In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, while the violin was a street musicianÕs instrument, the viola da gamba definitely had upper class status. Many kingly courts employed a consort of viols, to provide music for royal weddings and other celebrations. King Henry VIII of England apparently enjoyed their music. He owned a large collection of viols, and a collection of early English consort music, including works by the composers Thomas Tallis and William Byrd, was called Henry VIIIÕs Songbook . Not only did the English court utilize the viol, it was also a fixture in every well-to-do Elizabethan home, and many amateurs played the instrument for their personal enjoyment. Several treatises on how to play the viol were published during this time period, mostly aimed at these amateurs.
By the eighteenth century, however, the violin had become the stringed instrument of choice in court and high society, and the viola da gamba had been all but phased out. Some resented this change; Abbe Hubert Le Blanc, in particular, was a Frenchman who saw the violin as representative of all things Italian, trying to overrun French musical culture, which was based largely on the viola da gamba. He writes: ÒSultan Violin, an abortion and a pygmy, took it into his head to challenge the universal dominion of the viola da gamba in France. Not content with his portion, Italy, he proposed to invade the nearby States....Ó Le Blanc does get at the meat of the reason for the violinÕs success and the violÕs downfall, which was that the refined sound of the viol was not large enough to fill the concert halls that were beginning to spring up all over Europe.
The viola da gamba has enjoyed somewhat of a revival since World War II, thanks to such groups as the Viola da Gamba Societies of the U.K. and the U.S. Instrument makers are making them again, to provide players of Renaissance music with appropriate instruments.
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