| Quintbass |
 |
 |
|
Here I introduce an old instrument, that currently gains in popularity: The Quintbass guitar
This kind of guitar was very popular at the late 18th and early 19th century. It was even buit by the great Hermann Hauser and a few years ago I had the opportunity to examine and play one of his instruments. I was immediately infected by the touching warm and rich sound and since then I was thinking of making such a guitar myself.
A quintbas guitar is tuned a quint lower than a normal guitar, so when you play a barree on the 7th fret, it sounds like a normal prime guitar. By its low tuning, the body of the guitar reacts differently and the guitar appears in a very touching, warm and rich sound. So as a companion to any ensemble, or in combination with other instuments and even as a solo instrument, it opes a bunch of new possibilities, e.g. Cello suites that can be played closely to the original tuning.
Here are some pictures of a quintbass guitar, that I play myself in an ensemble. It looks like a normal guitar, has a 66cm scale and a normal neck. So it can be played like a normal guitar which was my intention to avoid getting used to a new instrument. A bit further down you find some sound samples that let you listen to the possibilities of this instrument.
Bach Air sur la corde de Sol - Guitar ensemble with three guitara and quintbass:
Bach Cigue of the Cello Suite No. 5 - Extract, Ricardo Havenstein
Bach Sarabande a-moll - Ricardo Havenstein
|
