Archlute after Martinus Harz
54. 67cm & 144cm, 14 courses (6 x 2 + 8 x 1) after Martinus Harz 1665 (Edinburgh University No.300) 45 ribs; the original is in shaded yew with ebony strips between. The neck is veneered in ebony and the extension is ebonised sycamore. Triple rose. This instrument has the large body typical of Roman archlutes but a shorter string length than usual and the extension is typical of German rather than Italian work. The pitch standard in Rome was very low at about 392Hz whereas in the rest of Europe it was usually closer to our current convention of baroque pitch: 415Hz. So it has almost certainly been cut down to suit the higher pitch standard current in 18th century Germany and today. Because of this it has only eight frets on the neck but, with its large body and correspondingly powerful sound, it is therefore more suitable for continuo work and Corelli trio sonatas than for playing the solo repertoire.
The instrument shown is a close copy of the original but with heartwood yew in place of the shaded yew.
Price: £5300
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