Mandore (instrument)
Encyclopedia
The mandore was mentioned as a new instrument in French music books from the 1580s. It was a small member of the lute
family, teardrop shaped, with four, five or six courses of gut strings and pitched in the treble range. It is considered ancestral to the modern mandolin
and has also been called the mandora
(Italian), the mandola
(also Italian), the mandöraen and the quinterne (German). It is possibly descended from the gittern
and the earlier citole
and pandura
.
The history of modern mandolins, mandola
s and guitars are all intertwined. The instruments shared common ancestor instruments. Some instruments became fashionable widely, and others locally. Experts argue as to the differences; because many of the instruments are so similar but not identical, classifying them has proven difficult.
Some experts consider the mandore to be the forerunner to the mandolino (also known as a Baroque mandolin), which in turn branched out into a family of mandolins which include the Neapolitan mandolin, the Genoese mandolin and the Cremonese mandolin. Others consider that the mandore and mandolino may have been contemporary, with different names being used in different countries; the mandolino in Italy, the mandore in France. It is also considered a forerunner or close relative of the 17th century mandola
.
.
show many examples from the late 10th century, or early 11th, of instruments similar to lutes, mandores, mandolas and guitars, being played by European and Islamic players. The instruments moved from Spain northward to France and eastward to Italy (which also had links to the Islamic world via its trade ships), and northeast to Germany.
From Mersenne: The normal length of a mandore is 1 1/2 feet long. It is built as a lute, with "strips of fir or other wood" ... "cut and bent into melon shape" to make a rounded back. The fingerboard is on the same plane as the soundboard, with a bridge glued onto the soundboard. Strings are secured in the pegboard in the neck, pass over the fingerboard and soundboard and are tied to a flat bridge, which is glued to the soundboard. The instrument may have as few as four strings or as many as six. It could also have four to six courses of two strings. The soundhole was covered with a rose, either carved directly into the soundboard or glued in.
, 1635: A musician plays the mandore "with the finger or the tip of a feather between thumb and index finger or tied to one of the other fingers." "Those who make perfect use of the mandore would move the pick so fast over the strings that they seem to form even chords as they would be if played at the same time."
Another early 17th century author, Michael Praetorius
, agreed. He said, "They play either with a cittern-type quill plectrum, or with one finger - and this with the speed, clarity, and precision that we would expect from the use of three or four fingers. There are some players, however, who start to use two or more fingers once they are familiar with the instrument."
ends his section on the mandore in his book Harmonie Universelle by saying, "It is nothing but an abbreviated lute." He said this in the context that one could look at his section on the lute for applicable information. Lutes were larger than mandores, which Mersenne described as miniature. Lutes had more courses of strings and were not restricted to the high treble range, but could play into the bass range.
Earlier in the section he compared the lute to the mandore. "Now although the mandore has only four strings, nevertheless one plays it rather above all that is played in a lute, whose chorus it covers because of the liveliness and sharpness of its tone, which penetrates and so preoccupies the ear that the lutes have trouble being heard." He said that good mandore players were prone to speedy picking, blurring notes together in a rush of speed.
Though a member of the lute family, it has been said that the mandore was not a treble lute, which had six or more courses and was tuned the same way as mainstream lutes
.
In contrast, the Neapolitan mandolin's soundboard is bent. It uses metal strings attached to the end of the instrument, crossing over a bridge that pushes downwards into the bent soundboard.
The differences in design reflect progress in a technological push for louder instruments. If the mandore's gut-strings were tightened too much they would break. If metal strings were attached, they could pull the fixed bridge off the soundboard, or damage the soundboard. The bend in the Neapolitan's soundboard (new technology at the time) allowed the soundboard to take the pressure made by the metal strings, driving the bridge down into the soundboard. The result was a louder instrument with less fragile strings. The metal strings were played with a plectrum, creating even better volume.
Mandolins are tuned in fifths, typically g-d-a-e for a four string mandolin.
s. Bowl-backed mandolas resemble mandores. One example that has survived of a bowl-backed mandola is that made by Vicenti di Verona in 1696, held by the Hungarian National Museum, Budapest, Hungary. By looks alone, telling the bowl-backed mandola from the mandore can be a challenge.
One difference was in the way that they were tuned. The mandore used a combination of fourths and fifths between the courses of strings, such as c-g-c-g or c-f-c-f. The mandola used fourths e-a-d-g (or if using a 5 or 6 course instrument g-b-e-a-d-g).
As the instruments developed, they became physically less similar. By the 17th century, makers such as Antonio Stradivarius made the mandore smaller, with the mandola having strings almost twice as long as the mandore's. By this time, the mandore could well have been called "mandolino"; but mandolinos were tuned entirely in fourths, like the mandola.
Lute
Lute can refer generally to any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back, or more specifically to an instrument from the family of European lutes....
family, teardrop shaped, with four, five or six courses of gut strings and pitched in the treble range. It is considered ancestral to the modern mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
and has also been called the mandora
Mandora
A mandora is a type of lute. The terms referred to different instruments at different periods in history.-Treble instrument:During the Renaissance, the term mandore was applied to the treble lute and in such usage it is difficult to distinguish from the mandola, the simple lute that is the ancestor...
(Italian), the mandola
Mandola
The mandola or tenor mandola is a fretted, stringed musical instrument. It is to the mandolin what the viola is to the violin: the four double courses of strings tuned in fifths to the same pitches as the viola , a fifth lower than a mandolin...
(also Italian), the mandöraen and the quinterne (German). It is possibly descended from the gittern
Gittern
The gittern was a relatively small, quill-plucked, gut strung instrument that originated around the 13th century and came to Europe via Moorish Spain. It was also called the quinterne in Germany, the guitarra in Spain, and the chitarra in Italy...
and the earlier citole
Citole
Citole, also spelled Sytole, Cytiole, Gytolle, etc. , an archaic musical instrument of which the exact form is uncertain. It is generally shown as a four-string instrument, with a body generally referred to as "holly-leaf" shaped...
and pandura
Pandura
The pandura is an ancient Greek string instrument from the Mediterranean basin.It is derived from pandur, a Sumerian term for long-necked lutes...
.
The history of modern mandolins, mandola
Mandola
The mandola or tenor mandola is a fretted, stringed musical instrument. It is to the mandolin what the viola is to the violin: the four double courses of strings tuned in fifths to the same pitches as the viola , a fifth lower than a mandolin...
s and guitars are all intertwined. The instruments shared common ancestor instruments. Some instruments became fashionable widely, and others locally. Experts argue as to the differences; because many of the instruments are so similar but not identical, classifying them has proven difficult.
Some experts consider the mandore to be the forerunner to the mandolino (also known as a Baroque mandolin), which in turn branched out into a family of mandolins which include the Neapolitan mandolin, the Genoese mandolin and the Cremonese mandolin. Others consider that the mandore and mandolino may have been contemporary, with different names being used in different countries; the mandolino in Italy, the mandore in France. It is also considered a forerunner or close relative of the 17th century mandola
Mandola
The mandola or tenor mandola is a fretted, stringed musical instrument. It is to the mandolin what the viola is to the violin: the four double courses of strings tuned in fifths to the same pitches as the viola , a fifth lower than a mandolin...
.
Name controversy
While the mandore and mandora have been considered equivalent names for the same instrument by some authors, there are authors who believe that mandora is strictly for a different kind of lute, tuned in the bass range. For an article on the bass-range instruments, see MandoraMandora
A mandora is a type of lute. The terms referred to different instruments at different periods in history.-Treble instrument:During the Renaissance, the term mandore was applied to the treble lute and in such usage it is difficult to distinguish from the mandola, the simple lute that is the ancestor...
.
A brief history
The mandore came into Europe from Islamic culture via Spain, where European and Islamic societies met. The Cantigas de Santa MariaCantigas de Santa Maria
The Cantigas de Santa Maria are 420 poems with musical notation, written in Galician-Portuguese during the reign of Alfonso X El Sabio and often attributed to him....
show many examples from the late 10th century, or early 11th, of instruments similar to lutes, mandores, mandolas and guitars, being played by European and Islamic players. The instruments moved from Spain northward to France and eastward to Italy (which also had links to the Islamic world via its trade ships), and northeast to Germany.
Construction
Like the earlier gittern, the mandore's back and neck were in earlier forms carved out of a block of wood. This "hollowed out construction" did still exist in the 16th century, according to James Tyler, but was becoming rare. The method was being replaced by gluing curved staves together to form back, and adding a neck and peg box.From Mersenne: The normal length of a mandore is 1 1/2 feet long. It is built as a lute, with "strips of fir or other wood" ... "cut and bent into melon shape" to make a rounded back. The fingerboard is on the same plane as the soundboard, with a bridge glued onto the soundboard. Strings are secured in the pegboard in the neck, pass over the fingerboard and soundboard and are tied to a flat bridge, which is glued to the soundboard. The instrument may have as few as four strings or as many as six. It could also have four to six courses of two strings. The soundhole was covered with a rose, either carved directly into the soundboard or glued in.
Methods of playing
From Marin MersenneMarin Mersenne
Marin Mersenne, Marin Mersennus or le Père Mersenne was a French theologian, philosopher, mathematician and music theorist, often referred to as the "father of acoustics"...
, 1635: A musician plays the mandore "with the finger or the tip of a feather between thumb and index finger or tied to one of the other fingers." "Those who make perfect use of the mandore would move the pick so fast over the strings that they seem to form even chords as they would be if played at the same time."
Another early 17th century author, Michael Praetorius
Michael Praetorius
Michael Praetorius was a German composer, organist, and music theorist. He was one of the most versatile composers of his age, being particularly significant in the development of musical forms based on Protestant hymns, many of which reflect an effort to make better the relationship between...
, agreed. He said, "They play either with a cittern-type quill plectrum, or with one finger - and this with the speed, clarity, and precision that we would expect from the use of three or four fingers. There are some players, however, who start to use two or more fingers once they are familiar with the instrument."
Tuning
Mersenne indicates in his book that there were many ways to tune a mandore, but three ways predominated: tuning in unison, tuning with a lowered string, and tuning in a third.Tuning in Unison
For a four string mandore, Mersenne said, "The fourth string is a fifth of the third; the third string is at the fourth of the second, and the second at a fifth from the treble string." In other words, the mandore used a combination of fourths and fifths the courses of strings, such as c-g-c-g. The Scottish mandora used the pattern d-g-d-g-d.Tuning with a lowered string
Mersenne indicated that this was less common than tuning in unison. To tune this way, "the treble string is lowered a tone, so to make a fourth with the third string." In other words, going from tuning c-g-c-g to c-g-c-f.Tuning in a third
In tuning a third, one "lowers the treble string down a minor third, so it makes a major third with the third." An example is going from c-g-c-g to c-g-c-e.Mandore compared to lute
Marin MersenneMarin Mersenne
Marin Mersenne, Marin Mersennus or le Père Mersenne was a French theologian, philosopher, mathematician and music theorist, often referred to as the "father of acoustics"...
ends his section on the mandore in his book Harmonie Universelle by saying, "It is nothing but an abbreviated lute." He said this in the context that one could look at his section on the lute for applicable information. Lutes were larger than mandores, which Mersenne described as miniature. Lutes had more courses of strings and were not restricted to the high treble range, but could play into the bass range.
Earlier in the section he compared the lute to the mandore. "Now although the mandore has only four strings, nevertheless one plays it rather above all that is played in a lute, whose chorus it covers because of the liveliness and sharpness of its tone, which penetrates and so preoccupies the ear that the lutes have trouble being heard." He said that good mandore players were prone to speedy picking, blurring notes together in a rush of speed.
Mandore compared to treble lute
Mandores and treble lutes were tuned differently: treble lutes from the 16th and early 17th centuries had six or more courses of strings, tuned to a "4th, a 4th, a major third, a 4th, a fourth."Though a member of the lute family, it has been said that the mandore was not a treble lute, which had six or more courses and was tuned the same way as mainstream lutes
.
Mandore compared to mandolino
To a layman, images of the two instruments show no obvious differences, when comparing two instruments from the same time period. The Italian mandolino was tuned entirely in fourths. The French mandore used combinations of fourths and fifths.Mandore compared to Neapolitan mandolin
Pictures and illustrations of the mandore show an instrument that at a casual look, appears very similar to lutes and the later mandolins. The mandore differs from the Neapolitan mandolin in not having a raised fretboard and in having a flat soundboard. Also It was strung with gut strings, attached to a bridge that is glued to the soundboard (similar to that of a modern guitar). It was played with the fingertips.In contrast, the Neapolitan mandolin's soundboard is bent. It uses metal strings attached to the end of the instrument, crossing over a bridge that pushes downwards into the bent soundboard.
The differences in design reflect progress in a technological push for louder instruments. If the mandore's gut-strings were tightened too much they would break. If metal strings were attached, they could pull the fixed bridge off the soundboard, or damage the soundboard. The bend in the Neapolitan's soundboard (new technology at the time) allowed the soundboard to take the pressure made by the metal strings, driving the bridge down into the soundboard. The result was a louder instrument with less fragile strings. The metal strings were played with a plectrum, creating even better volume.
Mandolins are tuned in fifths, typically g-d-a-e for a four string mandolin.
Mandore compared to mandola
Two styles of mandolas have made it into museums, flat-backed and bowl-backed. Flat-backed mandolas resemble citternCittern
The cittern or cither is a stringed instrument dating from the Renaissance. Modern scholars debate its exact history, but it is generally accepted that it is descended from the Medieval Citole, or Cytole. It looks much like the modern-day flat-back mandolin and the modern Irish bouzouki and cittern...
s. Bowl-backed mandolas resemble mandores. One example that has survived of a bowl-backed mandola is that made by Vicenti di Verona in 1696, held by the Hungarian National Museum, Budapest, Hungary. By looks alone, telling the bowl-backed mandola from the mandore can be a challenge.
One difference was in the way that they were tuned. The mandore used a combination of fourths and fifths between the courses of strings, such as c-g-c-g or c-f-c-f. The mandola used fourths e-a-d-g (or if using a 5 or 6 course instrument g-b-e-a-d-g).
As the instruments developed, they became physically less similar. By the 17th century, makers such as Antonio Stradivarius made the mandore smaller, with the mandola having strings almost twice as long as the mandore's. By this time, the mandore could well have been called "mandolino"; but mandolinos were tuned entirely in fourths, like the mandola.
Mandore compared to the Scottish mandora
A principal source of music for the Scottish variant of the instrument can be found in The Ancient Melodies of Scotland by William Dauney. This book is a history of Scottish music, and contains some information on the mandora. Dauney makes it clear that the mandora (which he also calls the mandour) for which the tunes in the Skene Manuscript are written, is the same instrument that Mersenne called the mandore. It was tuned in fourths and fifths d-g-d-g-d. Another tuning in fourths and fifths: A-d-a-d-a.Composers
- Renaissance mandore: Martin AgricolaMartin AgricolaMartin Agricola was a German composer of Renaissance music and a music theorist.He was born in Schwiebus in Lower Silesia. His German name was Sohr or Sore....
, Pierre Brunet, Adrian Le RoyAdrian Le RoyAdrian Le Roy was an influential French music publisher, lutenist, guitarist, composer and music educator.-Life:Le Roy was born in the town of Montreuil-sur-Mer in northern France to a wealthy family...
, Ottomar Luscinius, Sebastian VirdungSebastian VirdungSebastian Virdung was a German composer and theorist on musical instruments. He is grouped among the composers known as the Colorists. He studied in Heidelberg as a scholar of Johannes von Soest at the chapel of the ducal court. After being ordained, he became chaplain at the court in Heidelberg....
et al. - 18th century mandora: Johann Georg AlbrechtsbergerJohann Georg AlbrechtsbergerJohann Georg Albrechtsberger was an Austrian musician who was born at Klosterneuburg, near Vienna.He originally studied music at Melk Abbey and philosophy at a Benedictine seminary in Vienna and became one of the most learned and skillful contrapuntists of his age...
, Giuseppe Antonio BrescianelloGiuseppe Antonio BrescianelloGiuseppe Antonio Brescianello was an Italian Baroque composer and violinist.His name is mentioned the first time in a document from 1715 in which the Elector of Bavaria appointed him violinist in his court orchestra in Munich...
, Johann Paul SchiffelholzJohann Paul SchiffelholzJohann Paul Schiffelholz , was a German Baroque composer and an important composer for the variety of baroque lute called a mandora , as well as writing the usual trio sonatas, etc., for the violin family instruments...
et al.
External links
- Page (in French) explores differences between Mandore and Mandolino.
- Page by the Ensemble Gabriele Leone compares "French Baroque" mandore with other baroque instruments
- Many pictures of vintage mandolins and pre-mandolins laid out side by side
- Brief history with pictures; shows relationship between mandolin, gittern and mandore
- Picture of a Stradivarius mandolin or mandolino, from Cremona, Italy, 1680. Very similar to the mandore.
- Important academic paper by James Tyler laying out a detailed view of the mandore's history. First page is free; there's a charge to read the whole paper.
- Mandore tablature from Skene manuscript.
- Comparisons of mandolin type instruments.
- Music for the mandore.
Museum Examples
- Good picture of a mandore in the Victoria and Albert Museum, England.
- Page from the French museum Médiathèque de la Cité de la musique, Paris with a 17th century mandore, with pictures from several angles
- Another page from the French museum Médiathèque de la Cité de la musique, Paris featuring a 17th century mandore, with pictures from several angles.
- A 1655 mandore made by Ebar Enrico, in the collection of the Future Museum, Southwest Scotland.
- An 18th century mandore labelled Michel Angelo Bergonzi figlio di Carlo fece in Gremona l'anno 1755, from the collection of the Future Museum, Southwest Scotland.
- Another 18th century mandore from the Future Museum, Southwest Scotland, labelled Petrus Merighi fecit Parmae 1767.
Literature
- D. Gill: Mandore and Calachon, FoMRHI Quarterly, no.19 (1980), 61–3
- D. Gill: Mandores and Colachons, GSJ, xxxiv (1981), 130–41
- D. Gill: Alternative Lutes: the Identity of 18th-Century Mandores and Gallichones, The Lute, xxvi (1986), 51–62
- D. Gill: The Skene Mandore Manuscript, The Lute, xxviii (1988), 19–33
- D. Gill: Intabulating for the Mandore: Some Notes on a 17th-Century Workbook, The Lute, xxxiv (1994), 28–36
- C. Hunt: History of the Mandolin; Mandolin World News Vol 4, No. 3, 1981
- A. Koczirz: Zur Geschichte der Mandorlaute; Die Gitarre 2 (1920/21), p.
- Marin Mersenne: Harminie Universelle: The Books on Instruments, Roger E. Chapman trans. (The Hague, 1957)
- E. Pohlmann: Laute, Theorbe, Chitarrone; Bremen, 1968 (19825)
- M. Prynne: James Talbot's Manuscript, IV: Plucked Strings – the Lute Family, GSJ, xiv (1961), 52–68
- James Tyler: The Mandore in the 16th and 17th Centuries, Early Music, Vol 9 No 1, pp 22–31, Jan. 1981
- James Tyler and Paul Sparks: The Early Mandolin, Oxford, 1989
- James Tyler: The Early Guitar: a History and Handbook (London, 1980)
- James Tyler and P. Sparks: The Early Mandolin: the Mandolino and the Neapolitan Mandoline (Oxford, 1989)