The History of the Viola
Description:... "This is the first book to deal with all aspects of the history of the viola from c. 1500 to the present. The development of the instrument, the music especially written for it, and the outstanding violists who played it are discussed and evaluated. While doing research (1950-1957) at the University of Michigan for a doctoral dissertation entitled The Teaching of Bowed Instruments from 1511 to 1756, it became apparent to the author that the histories of the violin, the cello, and the double bass were well documented in many treatises. There was, however, very little information available on the development of the viola. In an attempt to fill this void, the author immediately began to gather material on the viola. In 1971, he made the first of four trips to England and Europe to continue research on this project. This book, therefore, constitutes a report of information gathered from visits to museums, libraries, music archives, the cities of Cremona and Brescia, the shops of prominent luthiers, and from interviews and correspondence with many of the leading violists and viola scholars of the 20th century. Violists and luthiers will read with interest the history of the large (tenor) violas and the small (alto) violas, covering the period from c.1500 to c.1800. At this latter time, most of the tenors were being cut down in size to make them easier to play. Included in the book are photographs, descriptions, and dimensions of important violas from the shops of such masters as members of the Amati family, Gasparo da Salò, Paolo Maggini, Andrea Guarneri, Antonio Stradivari, J. B. Guadagnini, and others; as well as material about the numerous 19th and 20th century craftsmen who attempted to 'improve' the instrument. The story of the viola's music is traced from c.1600 to the present; and the reasons for its paucity during the 17th century are explained. An account is given of the great surge of 18th century compositions, which have recently been discovered and made available in modern editions. For the teacher and the student, this book chronicles the contributions of the earliest method books printed for the viola in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It records the influence of such great 20th century artist-teachers as Hermann Ritter, Maurice Vieux, Vadim Borissovsky, Lionel Tertis, and William Primrose. Performing violists will find, not only the history of their instrument, but also accounts of the contributions of such individuals as Karl and Anton Stamitz, Chrétien Urhan, the artist-teachers mentioned above, and of over 300 others, whose names and biographies appear in the text and in an appendix to the book."--Dust jacket.
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