14Sep25

14Sep25: I am posting Kapsberger Intavolatura di Chitarone, v.3 (1626). These are pieces written for a 19-course theorbo, Few people actually have one, so I have made a few adjustments to fit the pieces to a 14-course instrument. The 19th course is equivalent to the 7th course up a half-tone. If your theorbo has the 7th course fretted, you can play this on the first fret. Otherwise, you will have to play it up an octave. Other courses beyond the 14th course are similarly equivalent to other courses raised a half tone, so when they appear you will probably have to use an octave there as well. Fortunately, there are relatively few places where this happens.

There are 15 pieces in this document: 7 toccatas, one galliard, 4 partitas, one corrente, and two elaborate vocal intabulations of madrigals, one by Arcadelt; the other by Gesualdo. The third partita has missing notes in bar 25, and I could not figure out what is supposed to fit there. Maybe the color Forni print is clearer in that place, but I don’t have access to that. If I could get hold of a scan of p. 24, that would be most helpful, or else if someone can figure out what these notes should be, I would be grateful to have them sent to me.

The rhythm is extremely tricky but miraculously fits into measures with a constant duration, with only a very few editorial adjustments. The intro at the beginning explains the tuning and how to play arpeggios, which presumably are meant to fit into the value indicated by their rhythm flags: so some more extensive than others.

Pages 36-48 of the document contain exercises of one sort or another but no actual musical pieces.