Orfeo

3. Classification, typology & evolution [27-40]

Previous methods of classifying (organising) ancient musical
instruments are evaluated, and their strengths and weaknesses
exposed: from the artificial principles proposed by Francis Galpin
(1932; 1937) and Otto Andersson (1930; 1937) to the hierarchical,
essentially natural, quasi-biological systems of Curt Sachs and
Erich von Hornbostel (1914), recently revisited by Laurence Picken
(1975). The very antiquity of ancient instruments makes them quite
different from modern folk instruments, requiring new approaches.
An interpretive error is identified in some natural schemes which
have attempted to embody supposed evolutionary kinships based
mainly on modern ethnographical observation. A particular error is
discerned in the eliciting of chronological value, and 'progress', from
typological series. A further weakness of some systems is their
retention of functional criteria - for instance, whether an instrument
was plucked or played with a bow - since in the archaeology such
information is often absent. Instead a system is proposed based
purely on observable morphological traits.

A theoretical framework is set out which will provide the structure of
the thesis: that musical instruments, like other human artefacts,
serve sets of behaviours, occupying in effect behavioural niches
comparable with those of biological ecosystems. The forms -
designs - of musical instruments are therefore products not only of
the traditions which connect them but of competing pressures,
both aesthetic and practical, in their working environments. If this is
true then amongst evidenced design changes we ought to be able
to discern changing patterns of musical usage reflected.

The chapter concludes that progress in the evolution of instruments
does not mean progress in the sense of 'ever greater sophistication'
or of 'striving for improvement': as in biological evolution, it is simply
about adaptation to meet changing requirements.

4. Non-operative elements in design [41-62]

Analysis of design characteristics begins with an illustrated review
of elements which seem to relate, directly, neither to practicalities
of manufacture and structure nor to acoustic and ergonomic
requirements of performance. Although from a musical perspective
this may be only the first stage in a process of elimination, it also
reveals things which are of intrinsic value since, according to the
adopted paradigm, even non-operative elements should be present
for a reason. Decorative motifs are the most obvious of these. Both
animal-based and plant-based ornamentation are considered, from
the vine-scroll patterns and wolf- and dragon-head terminals of
medieval harps to the paired birds and birds' heads associated with
early lyres. Their symbolic role is explored, in terms both of
associated concepts (such as aristocratic or divine association)
and of inherent properties (such as structural strength, lightness
and loudness). Paired birds, associated in the Old Norse poem
Grímnismál with Huginn and Muninn, the two bird-messengers of
the poet-god Odinn, also occur in the iconography of King David as
Psalmist. It is proposed that some may reflect attribution with
magical properties, including animacy, enabling reinterpretation of
the personal name 'Scilling' in the Old English poem Widsith -
previously assumed to be the poet's human accompanist - as his
instrument.

Aspects of fashion, including conservative and antiquarian tastes,
are also detected. Number symbolism is considered in relation to
stringing. But the aspect which is of particular evolutionary interest
is the survival of vestiges and skeuomorphs of once-functional
components. Most obvious of these is decorative reference to
natural resonators (such as tortoise shells) but more subtle forms
include residual curves and angles. These reach their minima in
the plain, elegant outlines of the lyres of the 6th to 8th centuries.

5. Construction technology and design [63-99]

A premise of the thesis is that, contrary to previous studies,
musical properties cannot be elicited from examination of the
surviving evidence without first considering practical aspects of
their manufacture and structure. The nature of manufacture
therefore forms the focus of the first of three substantive
treatments, combining technical analysis with experimental study
(Chapters 5-7).

Lyres, lutes and harps are considered in turn, each according to
three main categories of work: shaping (carving, hollowing and
planing), joinery (jointing and box assembly) and fitting-out
(manufacture and attachment of tuning pegs, bridges and strings).
Here the hard detail afforded by archaeological finds comes into its
own. No identifiably musical tools or workshops survive, but
examination of instrument surfaces and forms enables
experimental exploration of methods and equipment which seem to
be indicated. The technical challenges presented by surviving
specimens are discussed and illustrated.

All extant early medieval finds possess wooden resonators
(sound-boxes and sound-boards) and all have been gouged or
adzed out of solid wood, without use of fire. None shows
awareness of composite (e.g. carvel or box) techniques, or use of
glue. Nevertheless a very high specification is repeatedly achieved.
Timber is carefully selected, both for species and for grain, and
delicate, thin-walled structures obtained. So substantial an
investment of time, skill and material must mean that the
instruments enjoyed high cultural status. It is shared by the large,
all-wooden lyres of ancient Greek art, identified by philologists with
the kithara of the texts, and by the large, post-medieval harps of
especially Irish and Scottish tradition.

The chapter traces the transformation from natural resonators to
all-wooden forms and the genesis of late composites. Parallels are
drawn with other crafts: trough- and bowl-making, cabinet-making,
vehicle-building and ship-building. An association of early medieval
lyres with carpentry, advocated by David Wilson (1968), is queried.
Player-manufacture, advocated by Werner Bachmann for the
instruments shown in later medieval art, is similarly rejected for
early medieval finds, and some of the later. Instead some
specialist involvement is favoured. The nearest modern equivalent
seems to be cabinetmaking; but metalworking and jewellery are
also much in evidence. The decline in build-quality in later medieval
lyre finds is considered to correspond with transfer of fine
lyre-making skills to harp-making.