Logical Baroque Lute Tablature Idea: Weiss Fantasie

As a professional musician, I just do not have the time anymore to learn a new music reading system. Reading traditional music and also guitar tablature is quite enough! If you play the lute, you are 'expected' to become acquainted with lute-specific tablature, which might as well be written in alien symbols as far as I'm concerned. Therefore, I've devised a system for my 13-course lute where all the information I need can be written within the standard guitar-based six-string tablature score. Strings 1-6 are written as normal guitar type tab:

1-6: E, B, G or F#, D, A, E.

Courses 7-13 are indicated thus: * (and placed on the 6th string tab) and the
open COURSE and corresponding pitch is written immediately below.

For example:


E|--*----
D(7)


The above indicates that the 7th CR(which is my open 'D' string in my tuning) is to be played as an open string.

Here's the first few bars of one of my scores which is the famous Fantasie by Weiss for lute. Let me know what you think. I know I don't use authentic tuning for my 13-CR before traditionalists get upset! My aim here is to access baroque lute repertoire using the skills I already have as a 'six-stringed instrumentalist'; there is another word for this starting with a 'g' but some do not like this, especially if uttered in the same vicinity as the word 'lute'. I therefore intend to place the baroque lute in a new and original context and to derive a way of presenting a score that is both accurate and concise.



Fantasie by Sylivus Leopold Weiss (1686-1750)


Reacquainted interpretation back to 13-cr Baroque Lute
(Swan neck German Theorbo-lute: Widhalm) by Dale Harris.

Copyright c.2010 Dale Harris (All rights reserved).



This arrangement tuning is: 1E 2B 3G 4D 5A 6E 7D 8C 9B 10A 11G 12F 13E



E|------------1---5---6---|------------0---3-0-5-0-|------------1---5-3-5---|
B|--------3-----3---3---3-|--------2-----2---------|--------3-----3-------3-|
G|----2-----2-------------|----3-----3-------------|----2-----2-------------|
D|--3---3-----------------|--2---2-----------------|--3---3-----------------|
A|------------------------|------------------------|------------------------|
E|*-----------------------|0-----------------------|1-----------------------|
..D(7)



E|------------------------|--1---0-----------6-----|--0---------1-------1-0-|
B|------------------------|----------3---3-----3-6-|------1---1-------------|
G|--3-2-3---5-3-5---2-0-2-|----2---3---2---0-------|----0---------2---0-----|
D|------------------------|3-----------------------|------------------------|
A|------------------------|------------------------|3-------0-------2-------|
E|3-------0-------1-------|------------------------|------------------------|




E|--0-------0---0---------|------------------------|----0-------------5-3-5-|
B|------------------3---3-|--3-0-----1-------0-----|------3---2-3-5---------|
G|----2-0---------4---2---|------1-----2-------2---|--1-------------2-------|
D|------------3-----------|--------------3-------3-|------------------------|
A|4-----------------------|------------------------|--------0---------------|
E|--------*---------------|0-------1-------*-------|0-----------------------|
..........D(7).............................D(7)



Dale Harris, March 2010