O PROJETO rabeca

(Última Atualização - 21 de outubro de 2003)

Esta página foi gentilmente traduzido em bielorrusso por Bodhan Zograf!

Desde originalmente escrevendo esta página, eu comecei muito bom feedback, e ter feito um pouco para
o instrumento real. Tenho sido bastante impressionado com o número de pessoas que realmente
tentaram criar os seus próprios instrumentos, e foram feliz em ver esta página tem sido útil. As pessoas
também me informou que o fundo escuro original com texto luz era impublicável, então eu ter deixado
cair o fundo e mudou o texto para preto simples, de modo que aqueles que querem imprimir isso pode
fazê-lo mais facilmente.

Este documento tem obtido muito gráfico intensivo, então tenha paciência que as imagens muitas (50 +)
que estão sobre ele carregar. Divirta-se!

 Introdução Geral
 Origem e História da Rabeca
 Morfologia do Rebec (w / images)
 Resumo dos dados morfológicos
 Construção do Instrumento
 Brincar, Som, e ajuste
 Fazer o Rebec
 O Instrumento Terminado
 Onde conseguir um Rebec
 Bibliografia

INTRODUÇÃO GERAL

Tenho estado a jogar música medieval e renascentista há vários anos, e estava à procura de criar um som que era mais
próximo do original do que o meu desempenho presente. Atualmente estou jogando a maioria nosso repertório de
principalmente renascimento dança música no violino, que enquanto ambos período de instrumento e aplicação do
instrumento (violino apareceu em algum momento entre 1540 e 1560 - mas isso é outra discussão completamente),
não era realmente apropriado para uma parte substancial da música que tocamos, que antecedeu o surgimento do
violino. Um dos precursores do violino era a rabeca (o outro, provavelmente, ser o lyra di bracchio via di bracchio
viola, também outro ponto de discussão que eu não vou entrar aqui), se não na morfologia, no mínimo, no uso como
um instrumento gama superior melodia tocada pela música de dança, entre outras aplicações, por isso pareceu-me
lógico que eu deveria tentar adicionar esse instrumento para a pilha eu arrastar ao redor. (Como uma nota lateral, eu
tenho agora (Nov. 2001) adquiriu uma vielle 4 corda na Loja de Música Antiga, em Londres, feita por Marco Salerno,
que eu tenho jogado mais vezes como o seu mais tempo do que o violino, e mais alto do que a rabeca.) Então eu fiz
uma pesquisa para uma rabeca, e descobriu que 1.), eles estão longe de ser fácil de encontrar, e 2.), uma vez
encontrados, eles são muito caros. Não tendo os fundos para a aquisição de um de um luthier master (que parecem ser
os únicos que os tornam) e não é capaz de encontrar um kit de qualquer tipo em qualquer lugar, eu me virei para a
perspectiva de fazer um para mim. Para isso, eu precisava aprender muito mais sobre o instrumento, e aproveitou a
oportunidade para aprender mais sobre a sua história e uso no processo. Estas descobertas, juntamente com os
resultados do projeto, passo agora a todos os interessados.
ORIGEM E HISTÓRIA DO BASIC rabeca

Como todas as boas coisas medievais, as origens da rabeca pode ser rastreada para o Oriente Médio. Por volta do
meio para o final do século IX dC, existem várias discussões de um instrumento chamado rabab (há muitos ortografia
desta palavra, mas eu estou usando a ortografia mais simples, mais moderna) nas terras árabes. Infelizmente, há
exemplos físicas do instrumento ter sobrevivido até o presente, e no início o Islã proibiu representações do mundo
real, de modo que a única evidência contemporânea existente é literária. Felizmente, a evidência literária nos dá
algumas descrições muito detalhadas da forma e método de tocar o instrumento. Ibn Khaldun escreve em
Muqaddimah ("Introdução à História"), uma passagem que descreve um instrumento chamado o rabab, que estava
abaixada por uma corda friccionada com resina ligada a um eixo dobrado, que foi traçada entre as strings. Ele
descreve a mão esquerda como sendo usado para parar os strongs para criar alturas diferentes enquanto a mão direita
manipula o arco. Al-Farabi dá uma descrição completa em sua Kitah al-musiqi al-Kabir, escrito por volta de 900
dC. Aqui ele descreve o rabab como semelhante em forma ao Tumbur, tendo uma longa faixa estreita, com um corpo
em forma de pêra. Cordas foram anexadas a um pino terminal e tinha pinos ajustáveis na outra extremidade. O rabab
não tinha fricções, em contraste com o Tumbur. Foi jogado em pé no colo, com o instrumento de costas para o
jogador, a mão esquerda parar as cordas ea mão direita trabalhando um arco. Foi amarrado com duas cordas, às vezes
dobrou em cursos. instrumentos "populares" foram afinado em terças ou quartas aumentadas, enquanto instrumentos
"consorte" foram ajustados para um modelo estabelecido de quintos. Jerônimo de Moravia também comenta sobre a
rabab e sua afinação, e também observa que as cordas foram afinadas em quintas. Ibn Sina em seu Kitah al-Shifa,
escrito por volta de 1000 dC também discute o instrumento, assim como seu aluno Ibn Zaila em um texto mais
tarde. Mais tarde evidência nos diz que os instrumentos foram feitos com um corpo cabaça seca, um tampo de pele
apertada e um pescoço de madeira. O material preferido corda estava torcido de seda, embora intestino seco também
foi usado.

Até o século 11, o instrumento tinha encontrado o seu caminho em Bizâncio e Espanha, onde sua morfologia alterada,
mas pouco. O instrumento bizantino que temos ilustrado evidência foi realizada ponto para cima, como o estilo árabe,
embora o arco foi longa e plana, ao contrário de curvas (embora isso pode ser simplesmente uma tentativa de
perspectiva) [Fig.1]. O único espanhol era mais parecido com a versão em árabe. Embora, como sempre, estamos a
lidar com a evidência pictórica que é sempre suspeito, e detalhes dos artistas pode ser apenas minimamente confiável
sem algum outro corraberation. As imagens retratadas nesses casos são definitivamente "rabab-like", enquanto os
detalhes podem ser de pergunta. O exemplo mais antigo espanhol é do catalão saltério, ca. 1050 AD. [Fig.2] Este
instrumento está sendo ajustado, na foto, e mostra a forma característica e arco curvo curto que caracterizam a rabab,
mas também mostra uma das mudanças que ocorreram como o instrumento se mudou para a Europa - uma mudança
no número das cordas. O exemplo bizantino mostra definitivamente apenas duas cordas, mas textos contemporâneos
note que este novo instrumento tinha em qualquer lugar de 2-3, por vezes, nos cursos (até 6 cordas), uma nota que o
exemplo espanhol demonstra claramente por ter três cordas.

Com a vinda das cruzadas, o instrumento encontra-se espalhando pela Europa - em Espanha, França e Alemanha, por
meio do século 11, e em Inglaterra e no resto da Europa em 1100 ou assim. Os europeus não alterar
significativamente a forma do instrumento. Retém ainda o corpo em forma de pêra, o pescoço comprido, com as
cordas ancoradas em um pino de extremidade de um lado e de cavilhas na outra. Várias alterações que ocorrem, no
entanto. Em primeiro lugar, o número de cadeias de caracteres resolvido em três (ou 6), em vez de dois (ou quatro). O
instrumento foi mais regular feito de madeira, em vez de cabaça ou pele (geralmente verdade de todas as importações
de cordas orientais), eo método de jogar deslocado da posição colo vertical para uma posição mais horizontal na
altura do ombro, muito parecido com o violino moderno. O exemplo espanhol do saltério catalão mostra essa posição
já, por isso parece ter se desenvolvido muito cedo no uso europeu.

Em sua história, a rabeca era visto como um instrumento de corte (assim várias representações de Reis tocar o
instrumento, ou menestréis tocando para o bíblico rei Davi). Instrumentos de arco de qualquer tipo eram muito
populares nos 11 a 13 séculos na sociedade real, e grupos inteiros foram mantidos pelos tribunais em várias regiões,
como Alfonso, o Sábio em Castela, e Manfred de Hohenstaufen na Sicília.Tendo músicos era um sinal de status e
riqueza, uma tradição levada para o século 14 pelos burghars crescentes e "classe média" que muitas vezes
empregada menestréis como parte de suas famílias. Durante o século 13, violinos foram convidados para a igreja
como parte da apresentação musical dos serviços, como mencionado por João de Salisbúria em Honório
Augustodeinensis, São Francisco de Assis, e Johann Aegidius Zamorensis e outros. Sua capacidade de reproduzir
notas rápidas e animadas fez uma partida natural para os que evoluem melodias rápidas de dança. Foi jogado tanto
como um instrumento solitário, como acompanhamento para cantar, ou em consórcio com outros instrumentos (como
é descrito o mais frequentemente). O instrumento prosperaram ao longo do século 14 como um instrumento de cordas
primária até o desenvolvimento dos vielles e violinos concorrentes, que foram trastes instrumentos de arco, mais fácil
de jogar como o músico não tem que ser o mais preciso com a sua colocação dedo. No século XV, o seu apelo nas
classes da corte foi diminuindo, e foi considerado como um instrumento rústico, adequado principalmente para as
danças camponesas. Bellefoiere e Banquet du meninos se referem a ele como um instrumento de "caipira", com um
som muito dura e afiada para ouvidos delicados. Sua alta voz, sharp contrastava fortemente com os baixos tons
maduros do tribunal favorecido cordas inclinadas do tempo, e lentamente desapareceu da cena musical. No entanto,
não foi sem defensores. Rei Carlos VIII de França paga duas vezes para seu jogo - 1483 conta o menciona pagar 30
sol a um homem que tocava rabeca, e em 1490 o dinheiro foi dado a Raymond Monnet - Jogador rabeca. Além disso,
veja o exemplo alemão excepcionalmente talhada abaixo. Ele viu a vida breve no século 16 como um instrumento de
dança. Henrique VIII, em 1526, contou três rebecs entre sua "banda de Estado" e do rei da França manteve dois
"rabeca-jogadores para o Rei" - Lancelot Levasseur em 1523-1535 e Jehan Cavalier em 1559. Agricola em 1528
sequer menciona que a rabeca tinha (como muitos instrumentos do dia) ramificou-se em uma família cheia de
soprano, contralto, tenor e baixo, mesmo que ele chamou de "kleine Geigen oline Bunde (ou pequenos violinos sem
trastes)". Mas o seu destino como um verdadeiro instrumento melodia foi selado por meio século, com o surgimento
do violino, que lentamente suplantou todos os outros instrumentos de cordas inclinadas. Perto do final do século 16, a
rabeca foi totalmente considerado como um instrumento de plebeu, que sirvam exclusivamente para vias públicas e
tabernas. "Dry como uma rabeca" tornou-se um comentário deragatory popular. Até o final do século 17, a rabeca
havia caído de respeito. A portaria 1628 de Paris proibiu violinos nas casas públicas, permitindo que apenas
rebecs. Uma portaria semelhante ao longo de um século depois de Guignon em 1742 resticts a "diversão das pessoas
nas ruas e as casas públicas" para os "três rabeca de cordas" e, especialmente, proibiu a reprodução do nobre quatro
violino de cordas. Por esse ponto a rabeca é totalmente ido de música gravada, e para a maior parte esquecida guardar
como nota de rodapé interessante em Chaucer. Ele sobrevive brevemente em final dos anos 18 e início do século 19
início dos anos como o violino "kit", mas seria difícil provar que o "kit" ou "fiddle bolso" era realmente uma rabeca e
violino, mas não simplificado, ou possivelmente um híbrido de os dois.

Morfologia do aparelho:

Infelizmente, não há exemplos existentes de uma rabeca completa medieval ou renascentista (o exemplo de um
sobrevivente, a Vênus Rebec abaixo, não tem qualquer da configuração sobreviver, por isso é apenas minimamente
útil), de modo que a única evidência que temos para o seu forma e aparência vem de descrições textuais e imagens e
esculturas da época. Como mencionado acima, a evidência pictórica é suspeito, por isso é sempre para ser julgado
com cuidado. Ele é mencionado na literatura período que na maioria das vezes os músicos fizeram os seus próprios
instrumentos, e não com muita frequência a partir de um padrão muito definido, por isso há tantas formas distintas do
instrumento como o seu eram músicos tocando-los, mas alguns detalhes podem ser determinada a partir dos textos e
das imagens.Tenho aqui reunidos uma série de imagens e irá fornecer tanto generalizações do todo e comentários
específicos sobre cada um como um meio de investigar os aspectos fixos e mudança do instrumento.

Vários pontos do instrumento que permanecem as mesmas ao longo de sua história vários século. A forma do corpo
pêra básico, com um tampo liso e arredondado para trás, não muda. O pescoço é estreito, e combina mais ou menos
perfeitamente no corpo. Existem três cadeias, os quais são fixos numa das extremidades ou a um endpin ou uma
ponte fixa, e na outra a sintonizável cavilhas, embora os exemplos estão representados mostram que apenas dois ou
até quatro. O instrumento é baixa, embora a forma exata desse arco muda com o tempo. Ao longo de sua história, as
mudanças pegbox de um apartamento, pá ou em forma de disco pedaço sólido através do qual as estacas foram
montadas verticalmente, a um ângulo de back box rolada que teve os pinos atravessa lateralmente, como em um
violino moderno. O instrumento também teve um arremate, uma ponte e um braço, apesar da presença e forma destes
elementos parecia variar em grande medida, pela representação individual. O instrumento era pequeno (pelo menos
como a forma original soprano), nunca mais de talvez dois metros de comprimento, e da taça do corpo foi
relativamente superficial.

Lidar com as características variáveis, vou examinar as representações individuais aqui apresentados. Estes,
obviamente, não são a cada representação do instrumento em existência, mas servem uma pesquisa bastante
abrangente dos diferentes tipos. Eles são apresentados em ordem chronilogical,

Fig. 1: bizantino, c.1000 marfim caixão (de

Museo Nazionale, Florença, Coll Carrand,
No.26.) - Mais antiga representação de uma
rabeca como instrumento. Tem corpo em
forma de pêra de mistura em longo pescoço
estreito. Há um AnchorPoint definido na
base, com uma espécie de flor arremate,
embora as estacas parecem estar faltando na
representação (nenhum outro AnchorPoint
está claramente indicado). Existem apenas
duas cordas, o arco é muito longo e estreito
(embora ele pode simplesmente ser o artista
tentando o show que o arco é perpendicular à
superfície das cordas, surgindo assim plana
quando vistos borda diante). Não há buracos
de som são mostrados, o tampo parece ser
uma peça distinta, anexa (possivelmente uma
pele que cobre muito parecido em
rababs). Este é o instrumento de transição.
Fig. 2: espanhol, catalão Saltério,
c.1050. ("Rei David e músicos afinando seus
instrumentos" no Bibliotheque Nationale,
Paris, MS Lat 11550, fol 7v..) - Mostra uma
forma normal do corpo de pêra. Três cadeias
distintas, ligado a um peça terminal
triangular na base, e montado verticalmente
cavilhas na outra extremidade. O pegbox é
um disco redondo que parece ser feitas da
mesma peça, como o pescoço / corpo, o que
sugere que esta é uma construção
monobloco. Novamente é indicado um
pouco ponteira ou endpeg. Há dois furos de
som redondo longe de volta no
instrumento. O arco é um arco curvo simples
com aperto pressão final (veja abaixo). Esta
imagem também é suspeito um pouco da
distorção da mão esquerda, que tem os dedos
enrolando para trás em vez de para a frente
como eles realmente deve.
Fig. 3: francês, Gradual de Nevers c.1060
("dança Músico, com a lenda Consonancia
cuncta musica" da Bibliotheque Nationale,
Paris, MS lat.9449 Fol.34v.). Aqui temos
quatro cordas e quatro estacas fixadas em um
diamante em forma pegbox plana. Mais uma
vez há dois soundholes redondas, embora
eles parecem ter bordas ligeiramente
cúspides quase como rosetas. Eles são
colocados mais acima do tampo do que na
imagem anterior. Há um arremate triangular
definitivo tanto como antes. Há também uma
linha aparente para indicar que este
instrumento tinha um braço que se estendeu
a duração do pescoço. O arco também é
bastante semelhante, embora ele parece ter
uma ponteira ornamentado pela aderência.
Fig. 4: italiano, Fresco na cripta de San
Urbano alla Caffarella, perto de
Roma. Executado em 1011. Mostra diversas
variações.Primeiro, os soundholes estão
enfrentando 'S' em forma quase como em um
violino moderno, embora eles são mais
propensos incorrectamente desenhado muito
longe em cima da mesa de som. As cordas
parecem estar ligados a uma ponte fixa em
vez de uma construção arremate / endpeg,
apesar de existirem as habituais três
cordas. A construção pegbox é impossível de
fazer. O arco é normalmente em forma, mas
de curta duração.

Fig. 5: Alemão (Renânia), c.1070 códice da

Bíblia ("Rei David com músicos" no
Graflich Schonbornsche Bibliothek,
Pommersfelden, Cod 2777, fol.I.). Este tem
menos de linha perfeita entre corpo e
pescoço. Construção arremate parece ser
normal, mas também é um presente ponte
definitiva. Três cordas (embora apenas dois
pinos), terminando em um pegbox plana
circular. As aberturas acústicas são centrada
aproximadamente sobre o tampo, semi-
circular, em forma, com a ponte centrado
entre eles. Ou este instrumento tem um
braço, ou o pescoço é feito de uma peça
adicional para o corpo separado - é difícil
determinar especificamente a partir da
imagem. O arco parece normal.
Fig. 6: Southern Inglês, "Tibério" Saltério,
c.1050 ("Músico da suíte do Rei Davi" no
Museu Britânico, em Londres, Cotton
MS.Tib.C.VI, fol 30v.). - Este parece ser um
híbrido do catalão Saltério eo Gradual de
Nevers. Existem quatro cadeias, como a
imagem Nevers, com quatro cavilhas
correspondentes na pegbox plana circular,
que parece ser formado a partir da mesma
peça que o resto do instrumento. O pequeno
arremate triangular com os pequenos buracos
de som redondo longe de volta na mesa de
som recordar a imagem Catalão Saltério. O
arco aparece como normal.

Fig. 7: Inglês (Canterbury), passionale de

Agostinho c.1100 (detalhe de iniciais T do
British Museum, Londres, MS Arundel 91,
fol.218v). Normal na maioria dos
aspectos. Três cordas, em forma de pêra
corpo fundindo-se com o pescoço
longo. Pegbox é plana e em forma de
diamante, e parece ser parte da mesma peça
que o corpo e pescoço. Tailpiece está
presente. Soundholes são semi-circular e
centrada aproximadamente no tampo. Não há
indicação de fingerboard ou ponte. Bow é
normal.
Fig. 8: Alemão (Marchiennes) do século 12
("Rei Davi com músicos" detalhe inicial B,
no Bibliotheque Municipale, Douai, MS 250
fol.2v.). Construção de corpo Singular,
pegbox plana e circular, três amarras para
estacas e arremate triangular
normal.Soundholes são semi-circular e
centrada aproximadamente em mesa de
som. Não há indicação de fingerboard ou
ponte. Bow ampliou alça e é incorretamente
mostrado correndo por baixo das cordas.

Fig. 9: Inglês, Saltério, c.1125-1150

(College Library St. John, Cambridge, MS
B.18, fol.I.). Normal de construção corpo
singular, trevo plana em forma de habitação
pegbox as extremidades dos três cordas. Tem
arremate definitivo (embora muito tempo),
com a ponte perceptível definir muito perto
de arremate. Soundholes são semi-circular, e
ao mesmo tempo centrada sobre o tampo,
ainda são definidas por trás da ponte e da
extremidade de arremate. Bow é normal.
Fig. 10: francês, detalhe do tímpano por
cima da porta principal da igreja na igreja de
St. Pierre em Moissac c.1120 - Esta escultura
interessante mostra dois instrumentos ao
lado do outro de projeto diferentes, mas
ambos são facilmente identificáveis como
rebecs. O instrumento da esquerda mostra
um corpo alongado que se reduz a um ponto
na cauda. Há um arremate, três cordas (ou
cinco cordas dispostas em 3 cursos), um
pegbox diamante em forma plana, com três
pinos (na verdade, ao que parece, como
alguém observou, que havia cinco estacas
dois de cada lado do pentágono perto do
fingerboard , e uma no ápice centro - três são
claramente visíveis, um é metade quebrado
(no ápice) e um é totalmente quebrados), e
dois soundholes redonda pequena começou a
meio caminho para baixo o tampo. O outro
instrumento é mais em forma de corpo com
um pescoço stubbier. Há três cordas, mas o
pegbox é cicular invés de angular, e os
buracos de som são o voltado para dentro
"C" ao invés de apenas buracos redondos. O
pouco que resta de curvar-se em na face do
instrumento de esquerda, o que mostra a
ponta padrão de um arco a ser traçada entre
as strings. A mão direita do rei está
posicionada corretamente e definir para
segurar a outra extremidade do arco, mas as
outras partes que se desprenderam e estão
perdidos para nós. NOTA: os instrumentos
aqui "aparecem" para ser plana, como uma
guitarra ou mexer, mas que parece ser mais
uma indicação do estilo baixo relevo da
escultura do que uma verdadeira descrição
da natureza do instrumento. Note-se a
planura na descrição das pregas de tecido.
Fig. 11: francês, detalhe do tímpano por
cima da porta principal da igreja na igreja de
St. Pierre em Moissac c.1120 - Esta escultura
muito bem detalhada revela uma série de
pontos de multa sobre esta versão do
instrumento - que compartilham o mesmo
conjunto de escultura como a figura
acima. Os três cursos de cordas (quanto
menor dois são dobrados) estão claramente
indicadas. O arremate é talhada e facilmente
reconhecível, como é o laço da corda
(intestino), que se conecta ao endpin na
cauda do corpo. O pegbox é a forma de
diamante familiar, com três pinos limpa
indicados, e os restos de dois adicionalmente
evidente.Existe até evidência de um
fingerboard, com uma ligeira curva para ele,
demonstrou apenas sobre onde o pescoço
encontra o corpo. Também está presente uma
ponte, situada perto do pedaço da cauda. Os
soundholes são uma forma de rabisco
incomum que pode ser um reflexo da
fantasia do stonecarver, ou pode ser um
instrumento elaborado (a escultura no
arremate, eo acento botão na dica pegbox no
último). Eles estão centrados bem de perto
sobre a ponte do instrumento no centro do
tampo. Mais uma vez o instrumento parece
meio chato apoiado, mas novamente eu acho
que é mais o estilo do escultor de
representação do que uma reflexão sobre a
natureza do instrumento. No arco é retratado.
Fig. 11A: francês, do século 12, o rei Davi
na Capital de um pilar na Catedral de
Vienne. A visão tridimensional bem do
instrumento, embora posicionada em um
assento de jogo impossível. Mostra forma de
pêra simples, corpo arredondado com o
pescoço significativamente mais fino do que
o corpo. Esta escultura sugere um corpo
muito rasa (não uma profundidade total de
semi-círculo), embora mais uma vez que
poderiam ser as restrições da pedra. Ainda
assim, os outros detalhes são muito bem, e
eu seria tentado a dizer isto, de fato, retratar
um instrumento bodied superficial. O
cravelhas é em forma de diamante, os
buracos de som são as formas C aberto
voltado para o interior. Este instrumento tem
uma ponte que as cordas literalmente
atropelado, e um arremate ligeiramente de
forma estranha - como uma espécie de
borboleta perpendicular à corda. É colocado
relativamente longe da extremidade do
instrumento, e seria, portanto, sugerem um
arremate flutuante. Há um final de ciclo de
longa duração para uma estaca (não visível
neste ângulo). Parece haver três cordas, e
aparentemente três pinos no cravelhas mas
algum desgaste no cravelhas torna difícil
dizer com certeza absoluta. Ainda assim,
uma forma agradável do instrumento.
Figura 11b: A partir do Batistério na
catedral de Parma, Parma, Itália, esculpida
por Bennedeto Antelami, ca.1180. Ainda
mantém alguns dos coloração original! Um
jogador rabeca agradável, mostrando a
posição de jogo decente. O instrumento é em
forma de pêra, com pegbox em forma de
disco. Tem um arremate, embora não parece
ter um braço ligado separadamente. Há
quatro cordas distintas (em oposição aos três
mais normal), e os buracos sonoros são
simples meio círculo C de voltada para
dentro. O corpo é uma tigela rasa. Em geral
um modelo de tipo bom. O arco é um arco
simples.

Fig. 12: francês, 1200-1250 ("Rei David

com músicos" B inicial da Koninklijke
Bibliotheek, Haia, MS 76E II (ex-y 421), fol
2r..). A iluminação do manuscrito que
mostra vários instrumentos, incluindo esta
rabeca. Este rabeca tem o corpo em forma de
pêra normal, se um pouco alongada. Há três
cordas, ligados claramente a um arremate
decorado e três pinos fixados em um
diamante em forma pegbox plana. Os
soundholes são "C" em forma, voltado para
dentro, e estão centradas aproximadamente
no tampo. Parece haver duas peças do
embutimento estabelecidos no tampo em
direção ao pescoço, e não uma decoração
antes visto. Nenhum outro detalhe é capaz de
ser determinado em relação a fingerboard ou
ponte (nem aparece). O arco é padrão.
Fig. 13: francês, Lambertus Treatise, século
13 ("Rei Davi com músicos" no Bibliotheque
Nationale, Paris, MS lat.6755 (2), fol
Av..). Este instrumento oblongo mostra três
cordas, mas cinco pinos em sua pegbox em
forma de disco. Seu é um arremate decorado,
e uma ponte definitiva indicado, situado no
centro de dois soundholes semi-
circularmente (de frente para "dentro"). A
escala também é indicado para o
pescoço. Odd é o pequeno triângulo preto
aparecendo sobre as cordas a meio caminho
entre a ponte e braço. Não sei bem o que isso
é suposto ser - prehaps um terço soundhole,
ou talvez uma representação estranha do fim
de um fingerboard (antigo parece mais
provável). Bow tem uma alça bastante
elaborado, mas por outro lado é bastante
padrão.
Fig. 13A: Inglês, início do século
12. (Detalhes de uma miniatura do
manuscrito saltério anotado na Bibliotheque
Municipale em Lunel, MS.I, fol.6). Este é
um instrumento interessante. Eu não tenho
certeza se eu classificá-lo como uma rabeca
ou violino como um oval. Tanto neste
momento foram construídas a partir de um
monobloco (um pedaço do corpo e pescoço),
embora as linhas da rabeca são mais
suaves. Isto parece estar algures no meio. Ela
tem um arremate marcada com endloop e
endpeg. Há uma escala definitiva que é
gerado fora do pescoço. Existe um amplo
cravelhas trevo. Soundholes são o comum
semi-círculo C de voltada para dentro. A
razão pela qual eu acho que isso pode ser um
violino em vez de uma rabeca é o número e
configuração das cordas. Parece haver cinco
cordas. Quatro progresso normalmente sobre
o fingerboard, com uma corda periférica
(chamado de bourbon), que normalmente é
jogado tanto se reuniram com o arco como
um drone, ou arrancado com o polegar da
mão esquerda e permitiu a ressoar como um
zangão. Bourbons eram muito comuns no
início dos violinos, mas rara ou inexistente
em rebecs. Eu incluí esta imagem por duas
razões. O primeiro a mostrar que o arremate
flutuante e fingerboard levantou existia
distintamente neste início de um período. E
segundo para mostrar um instrumento que
demonstra que as linhas entre rabeca e
violino pode ser um pouco turva. A distinção
entre os dois, especialmente, logo no início
do século 12, quando instrumentos de arco
foram apenas aparecendo em grande parte da
Europa, pode ser artificialmente imposta por
nossas idades posteriores. A outra coisa
interessante nesta imagem é o arco, com suas
marcadas três cordas, aparentemente
tensionada pela mão direita.
Fig. 14: - (?) De De Musica de Boécio
século 14 além de um manuscrito do século
10 ("Minstrel, com a legenda" Nicolo da la
viola fiorentino '"- na Biblioteca
Ambrosiana, em Milão, Itália, Cod.C. 128 ,
Inf., placa 3a.). Este rabeca é standardly,
com três cordas principais para três barras do
pegbox em forma de disco em forma de
pêra. Há evidências de um braço
(aparentemente feito de uma madeira
diferente do que o tampo). O arremate é
longo e "T" em forma, e parece ser fixado
diretamente à mesa de som (sem evidência
de uma endpeg e cordas, embora isso possa
ser um oversite artística). Os "3" soundholes
forma estão enfrentando para dentro, e são
definidos de volta em direção à cauda, atrás
do início das cordas da longa arremate. O
arco é muito interessante. Isso mostra uma
falta de uma curva difícil, mais um gentil um
com uma frente de "gancho" tanto quanto em
uma curva moderna. A extremidade do
punho do arco também mostra um sapo (o
pequeno quadrado debaixo da vara do arco
para que os cabelos do arco estão ligados),
também uma característica bastante
moderno.
Fig. 15: Inglês, Grã Canterbury Saltério,
c.1180-1190 (na Bibliotheque Nationale,
Paris, MS Latina 8846, fol.54v - Nota:. Há
pelo menos dois outros textos referidos como
"Canterbury Saltério" -, mas este é o único
encontrado em Paris). Um trio Inglês de
harpa, rabeca e violino. Este instrumento é
em forma de pêra com um rosto largo. Três
cordas terminar em três pinos fixados em um
pegbox em forma de disco. Há um arremate
firme, e os soundholes são "C" em forma,
voltado para dentro e centrada na mesa de
som antes do arremate. O arco é um pouco
mais viciado do que em outros exemplos,
mas por outro lado parece normal.

Fig. 16: Italiana, Veneza Saltério, c. 1270

(Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana, Veneza,
MS Latina I.77, fo.115). Esta imagem
descreve um jogador rabeca acompanhando
um cantor. A rabeca tem a forma de pêra
característica, com três cordas que conduzem
a um pegbox disco. Existe na indicação de
uma cercadura sobre o corpo (ou tubagem
incrustação, ou uma sugestão de que o tampo
seja fixado entalhado para dentro do corpo,
em vez de completamente colocado na parte
superior). Há um arremate, que é longo e se
estende para o centro da placa de som. Há
também uma ponte situada perto do
arremate, e uma escala indicada. As
aberturas acústicas são "C" e em forma de
cara para o interior no centro do tampo,
sobre o mesmo com a peça terminal mas por
trás da ponte. O arco parece bastante
moderno, com um final de gancho, um sapo
e manusear, e um espaço muito estreito entre
o cabelo e haste.
Fig. 17: Inglês, Tickhill Saltério, c.1303-
1313 (da New York Public Library, MS
Spencer 26, fol.17). Tem uma perspectiva
um pouco estranho, mas por outro lado
mostra uma rabeca em forma de pêra, com
três cordas, levando a um pegbox disco-
como aberto. Esta é a primeira evidência de
uma caixa aberta com os pinos atravessa
horizontalmente (os botões dos pinos são
apenas visível na parte superior) Há um oval
arremate bastante elaborada em forma. A
ponte está claramente indicado com uma
sugestão que tinha "pés" como uma ponte
violino moderno. As linhas duplas na base
do pescoço sugerem também um braço. Os
soundholes são "C" em forma, voltado para
dentro, e situado fora do centro da mesa de
som para a frente da ponte. O arco é típico.

Fig. 18: Smithfield Decretals, c.1325-1350

(a partir da Biblioteca Britânica, MS Real
10.E.iv, fol.71). Esta ilustração mostra um
pouco distorcido a forma depois da pegbox
como um decorado "rolar" - aqui um cavalo
de cabeça (?) - Colocadas em ângulos quase
reto com o braço do instrumento. Caso
contrário, o instrumento tem três cordas, sem
cauda perceptível, uma ponte definir muito
longe de volta na mesa de som, e dois "S"
soundholes forma centrada
aproximadamente no tampo. A ilustração
também incrivelmente tem o jogador
dedilhando o instrumento na seção curvada
(tocando a pegbox). Bow é típico.
Fig. 19: Lutrell Saltério, c.1325-1340 (a
partir da Biblioteca Britânica, Adicionar MS
42130, fol.149.). Este jogador grotesco
mostra um bom rabeca em forma de pêra
com um pescoço bastante ampla. O arremate
é talhada, eo endloop ao endpeg é bastante
visível, embora não haja nenhuma ponte
indicado. Três cordas terminar em dois
pinos, com duas cordas parecendo
impossivelmente ser anexado a um peg
(artista de problema). Este instrumento
apresenta a pegbox em forma de disco
aberto, com os pinos montados
horizontalmente entre os lados da caixa
(nesta ilustração não têm eles continuam
completamente através da caixa, mas a
simples passagem através de um lado). Os
soundholes são semi-circular, mas virada
para fora. O arco é típico.Curiosamente, este
é um jogador canhoto ...

Fig. 20: Janela rondel St. Edmunds, c.1400

Bury, atualmente no Victoria and Albert
Museum, em Londres. Este instrumento
também levemente distorcida mostra
novamente o pegbox rolagem forma tardia
dobrados. A forma de pêra é típico, e um
arremate está presente. The number of
strings varies down the length, starting with
three, but only two make it past the bow.
There are no soundholes and no pegs in the
pegbox, and no indication of a fingerboard or
a bridge. Bow has an end hook, but
otherwise is typical.
Fig 21: From the room of the Church of St.
John in Stamford, 15th century. This
sculptured figure plays a pear shaped rebec
with three strings. The tailpiece is clearly
indicated, as there is a hint of a bridge. The
soundholes are harder to discern exactly,
though there are appear to be four small
circular ones centered around the middle of
the soundboard (though that could be the
sculptor's way of creating the "S" figure ones
and the cut between them has faded...hard to
say though). The pegbox has broken off, so it
cannot be commented on. The bow is fairly
typical.

Fig 22: The Venus Rebec - the only

physically surviving rebec of which I am
aware. From 15th Century Venice, presently
housed in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in
Vienna. Very elaborately carved, with floral
patterns on the sides, a large figure of nude
Venus on the back, and a man's head on the
sickle shaped peg-box. The unusual angular
body is probably to accomodate the carving.
The soundboard and other setup of the top of
the instrument have been lost, so cannot
comment on the sound-hole shape, presence
of tailpiece or the like, however there were
three strings as indicated by the existing
three holes. Definitely a courtly instrument,
showing that even this late there was still
noble interest in the instrument. This was
carved entirely out of a single block of
pearwood, with the soundbox hollowed out.
It probably did not have a great sound, as the
high relief carving on the back did not allow
for the soundbox to be hollowed very deeply.
As a side note, my wife was very happy with
the discovery of this piece, as she is an
ancient historian whose dissertation/first
book was on the origin of Aphrodite
(Venus), and she sees this as a merging of
her and my interests. I thought it was an
amusing synchronism.
Fig 23A/23B: These are two details from
paintings by Gerard Davis. The left one from
"Virgin among Virgins" dated 1509. The
right hand is from "Virgin and Child with
Angels". Both were happily suggested by
Allen Garvin, whom I thank for the
information on. This is now showing the
renaissance version of the rebec. Unibody
carvings were now less common, in favor of
much lighter ribbed instruments (and yes,
they are MUCH lighter). The rebec could go
either way. The instrument portrayed very
realistically on the left falls into that vague
category. The body here appears to have
straighter sides, and not be as rounded as the
earlier forms (Goerge's reproduction (found
at EMS-see below)follows this kind of
pattern, though his is a unibody). This has
simple C soundholes, turned in and placed
just high of the bridge. The pegbox is a
simple sickle, not fully scrolled. There is a
floating tailpiece, a simple arched bridge,
and a raised fingerboard (though the ebony
inlay only goes down half the length). There
are three strings, with three pegs laterally
struck throught the pegbox. The bow is a
simple arch bow, very short. One possible
"unique" aspect here is the potential that the
disk/rosette on the fingerboard indicates that
the instrument is hollow that far down the
instrument - the neck not becoming fully
solid until it reaches the ebony inlaid
fingerboard. This is impossible to know, of
course, but in general rosettes are rarely
blind, and usually do indicate a hollow space
behind. An interesting playing note - the
angel appears to be stopping the low string
with his thumb - a technique sometimes
described, but rarely clearly illustrated. The
other (smaller) picture shows more or less
similar characteristics (even to the thumb
stopped string). The tailpiece on that
instrument is more ornate, and the
fingerboard appears to go down the full
length of the neck (though interestingly not
the full width).
Fig 24: St. Mary's Church in Beverly, 16th
Century - this late cheruby fellow shows an
odd variant of a rebec. The instrument shape
is correct, as is the bow, tail and endpeg, but
the strings and pegbox are odd. The strings
number five (more typical of a fiddle than a
rebec), and the bent-back pegbox resembles
that of a lute or a gittern more than any
bowed instrument of the time. The
instrument has a rounded back, and lacks
frets, so it could possibly be called a rebec,
but it is a strange version.

Fig 25: A detail from the painting "Allegory

of Hearing" by Jan Brueghal, 1618 - image
kindly pointed out by Allen Garvin. This
shows the final phase of the rebec/poquette.
The dance masters by the late 16th century
had adopted the violin as the primary melody
line instrument, but often violins were either
prohibited as wholy "court" instruments, or
simply too expensive or bulky. So the lines
of the rebec and violin merged back together
to generate a small, portable violin-like
instrument known variously as a pockette,
poquette, or simply "kit". They had a rebec
like unibody, often with a small rounded
soundbox. Otherwise they were set up like a
violin, with tapered tailpiece, raised
fingerboard, scrolled pegbox, and four
strings. The soundholes are usually ornate
F's or C's. This is a good baroque example of
the instrument, with ornate C holes and
pretty inlaid fingerboard and tailpiece (as
was often found on baroque viols and
violins). They tended to have a thinner,
tinnier sound than the violin, so in a sense
they are the direct descendent of the rebec.
They persisted until the end of the 18th
century.
 However, the instrument is not entirely dead,
even today. Variations of the rebec are still
played in Spain. One helpful person Alfonso
Garcia-Oliva informed me a tradition still
going on in Cantabria in northern Spain,
where the rebec survives as a rustic folk
instrument. On the island of Crete (off the
coast of Greece in the Mediterranean Sea),
the Cretan lyra preserves the tradition in an
instrument that is more or less a rebec
(pictured to the left, with tunings). Here is a
nice article on the Cretan Tradition . Also,
the Arabic rabab in its various forms is still
of course played throughout North Africa
and the Near East.

SUMMARY DATA FROM FIGURES:

Body shape: The most common form appears to be pear-shaped, with a rounded body and a narrow neck with a clean
merge between the two. Several variants do occur, with the instrument being more oblong, or having a tapered tail or
a wider neck, but they appear to be deviations rather than standards.

Pegbox: For the early instruments (up to the 14th century), the standard was to have the "box" as a flat disc or
diamond through which the pegs were mounted vertically. Variations on the shape occurs, from pure circles, to
angular diamond like forms, to spades or other more elaborate decorative shapes. During the 14th century, the pegbox
slab was hollowed out, and the pegs started to be mounted horizontally through the walls of the box. This eventually
developed into the bent back scrollbox seen in several of the later versions, often elaborately decorated in a figurative
fashion.

Soundholes: The soundholes show a lot of variation, from simple circles cut out of the board to elaborate "S" and
squiggle shapes. Most common appears to be semi-circular or "C" shaped, with the open side of the "C" facing
inward toward the strings. The position of the soundholes also varied, from close to the tail, to far foward toward the
neck, but most often they were fixed fairly close to the center of the soundboard laterally, and spaced more or less
evenly between the strings and edge of the soundboard.

Tailpiece: The tailpiece construction consists of a peg thrust through the end of the sound box, to which was attached
a cord (gut or similar material) that held a small block of wood to which the strings were anchored. The tailpiece is
almost always present, but could serve several functions. In earlier instruments without a bridge, the tailpiece was
both anchorpoint for the strings, separating them appropriately, and also served to raise them off the soundboard. This
function of setting both the spacing and position of the strings is later served by the bridge. The tailpiece was
generally triangular in shape, but could be very elaborately decorated. The length varied from a small endpoint to half
of the length of the soundboard, not with any consistancy of time or place, though. Only in very few examples was
the tailpiece missing altogether, and that was probably an artist's error.

Bridge: Bridges also appear from almost the beginning, but appear sporadically. Several designs of the tailpiece
allowed the tailpiece to function both as tail and bridge, thus eliminating the need for one. Other times the bridge is
simply not represented. When the bridge is present, generally it is positioned close to the tail, and appears to be only
slightly wider than the width of the strings' spacings. The curvature is impossible to truly comment on based on the
images, but several depictions seem to indicate some small curvature present. Some would be necessary in order to
play the strings separately, but the depictions are not telling.

Fingerboard: The addition of a fingerboard over the neck also appears fairly early on, but seems to be more often
present in later instruments. Generally they seemed to stop at the point of the neck, and not continue over the body as
in a modern violin. This supports the notion (in modern commentary) that only first position was used when playing
(ie, the hand did not slide up the fingerboard as modern violin players do, but remained in one position during all
playing).

Number of strings: Generally three, though a couple of variations go from 2-5 strings. Three is the most common,
and seems to be the standard. The illustrations do not suggest that they were doubled, as in some of the later rababs.
Note - there is mention in the texts of a "bordunus" or drone string that apparantly existed on some early rebecs
(never mentioned past 1300) that was strung off the soundboard. I was unable to locate any pictoral indication of this
feature.

CONSTRUCTION OF THE INSTRUMENT

As mentioned above, generally the musicians themselves made their own instruments, and thus the number of forms
and shapes is about as much as number of individual players. Some texts however did comment on the construction,
materials and exact form of the instrument so that a few details can be known.

The main body of the instrument was carved out of a single block of wood. The body, neck, and (earlier on) the
pegbox were all fashioned out of a single piece, though when the shape of the pegbox changed to the bent scroll, that
was "attached," made from a different piece. The body was hollowed out until it had thin walls, and then a
soundboard was affixed over the top to create a resonating chamber. Soundholes were cut through the soundboard,
and then the pegs, tail, and, if present, fingerboard and bridge were added onto the instrument. Meister Konrad von
Megenberg refers to the construction as always consisting of two parts, the "pauch" and the "poden", or the body and
the soundboard. The whole of the body and neck, the pauch, was carved of a single piece of wood to which the
soundboard, or poden, was attached. This indicates that the neck and sides were not separate pieces (this was true
even of the vielles of the time).

The main block was best made of a hard, non-porous wood to best "hold in the sound." Albertus Magnus in his De
Vegetabilis (1206-1280) suggested sycamore or maple, though apricot, walnut, almond and ebony all are mentioned
in the various texts. The soundboard needed to be made out of a more porous wood, and be readily able to resonate
the sound. The earlier skins of the east were rejected in favor of fir or spruce, as mentioned by Albertus and Konrad
von Megenberg's Das Buch der Natur. Konrad also mentions that the instrument has a better and smoother sound if
the surfaces of the wood are finished and smooth. Several writers mention varnishes, including a 1440 Turkish
treatise suggesting a varnish of powered glass and glue.
The tail and other parts were made of similar hardwoods, often in contrasting colors for appearance's sake.
Fingerboards were made of particularly hard woods to resist the constant wear of the rubbing of the strings and
fingers on the instrument - one reason for their addition. The bridge could be made of many materials - wood, amber,
ivory and bone are all mentioned. Earlier mentions indicate that it was glued to the soundboard - often inserted under
the tailpiece as a "lifter." It starts off flatter and ended up more curved, and notches were cut on the upper surface to
hold the strings in place.

The strings themselves had a variety of materials. The arabs preferred spun silk strings, as they believed they had a
better tone, could endure more tension, and held their tuning well. The Europeans preferred gut strings made from
sheep's gut. This enduring argument is made by Amarcius in the 11th Century, Liederhandschrift in the 12th century,
the Franciscan Bartholomeus Anglicus in his De Proprietatus Rerum (1230), Hugo con Tromberg in 1280 or so, and
John of Trevisa in 1398. The technique for making gut strings is described in great detail in the Secretum
Philosophorum (14th century), and I will not repeat it here. A contrasting voice is heard in The Summa Musica of the
13th century noting that metal strings of silver or bronze are superior to gut.

The bow was made of a flexible piece of wood such as yew or birch, and had several strings attached to it. Early on
sometimes a single string sufficed. One end of the string was tied to the tip of the bow, with the other end affixed near
the other end, leaving a space at the end of the shaft for a handle. Often the player would press on the string to
"tighten" the bow to maintain tension. Rosin was rubbed into the string(s) to provide friction between the bow and the
strings of the instrument.

The glues used in the construction were "hide" collagen glues, made by bioling down the hides of animals and
thinned as necessary. The instruments were sanded smooth, and were apparantly oiled or varnished according to
some texts, with these "finishers" being made of anything from glass dust and glue to simple vegetable oils.

PLAYING, SOUND AND TUNING

The rebec was played up at the chin or chest, with the instrument held horizontally in the left hand, while the right
hand drew the bow laterally across the strings. All depictions show this methodology, though one or two reverse the
side of the instrument, and this method is described in most of the texts dealing with its playing. The fingers were
used to stop the strings, with the players having to master the exact positioning to maintain correct pitch, as the
instrument had no frets (note: Mary Remnant, in her article "The Use of Frets on Rebecs and Medieval Fiddles"
in Galpin Society Journal argues for the possible existance of tied frets on the rebec based on the representation in the
Cantigas de Santa Maria, which I mention for completion but don't see as the norm based on all other evidence).
Early on it is suggested that the strings be exclusively stopped with the nails to firmly hold the string, though later on
the pads of the fingers are also mentioned as a method of stopping the strings (though even 16th Century masters
continue to promote usage of the nails).

The sound of the instrument is generally described as high pitched and sharp, sometimes as shrill. Its voice was
described like that of a woman's: Aymerie de Payrac speaks of a minstrel who "bowed the rebec as if imitating a
female voice." The Archpriest Juan Ruiz de Hita in his Libro de Buen Amor in 1343 comments about the rebec that
"con sua alta nota." Tinctoris in De Inventione et Usu Musicae grants the rebec a higher but pleasant tone. Not all
agreed with this assessment. In Bellefoiere and the Banquet du boys, the rebec is dismissed as a rustic instrument
with a harsh shrill sound. Chaucer's Friar comments that a woman's voice was "shrill lyke a rebekke," and a similar
comment in made by John Skelton. Nonetheless, the general sense is that the instrument has a high sounding voice,
higher than the contemporary fiddles and viols, which were tuned similarly to modern violas and cellos, and had a
soft, mellow sound.

The exact tuning of the strings is more difficult to discern precisely. The rabab is noted consistly in its "classical"
form to have its strings tuned to 5ths. Jerome of Moravia notes that these notes are middle C and the G above it. That
would give the instrument a fairly high voice, much like the two middle strings of the modern violin (which are D
and a). The three stringed variant has two possible tunings mentioned in several sources. Virdung (in 1511) notes the
rebec as having three strings tuned in fifths. Agricola's Musica Instrumentalis Deudsch again mentions that the rebec
is tuned in 5ths with a bridge allowing the sounding of the strings individually and having no drones. The 1545
edition of Agricola gives these notes as G,D,a - the LOWER three strings of the violin. Gerle's Musica Teusch also
describes the instrument as being tuned in 5ths, and that it has no drones, but does not mention any notes. Other
sources mention again the notion of 5ths, but provide the notes as D,a,e - the UPPER three strings of the violin. The
second tuning set (starting on D) more closely matches the soprano range of other instruments like the recorder and
shawm. If the notion that the player did not move out of the first position, the first tuning (starting on G) gives a full
note range of G to e, while the second tuning gives a full note range of D to b'. Either is more or less acceptible to the
range of period music we have, though the later dance music (Renaissance) would favor the higher tuning to the
lower one for the keys that are usually represented. However, it cannot be ruled out that the musicians would simply
alter the key of the music to fit the range of the instrument, or simply retuned the instrument.

THE MAKING OF MY INSTRUMENT

My attempt at making this instrument will combine authenticity with some practicality regarding available funds and
musical needs. I have decided for both historical, aesthetic, and ease of making reasons to use the earlier disc shape of
pegbox. I have decided to include both a bridge and a fingerboard, and to use the most common form of soundholes -
the "C" shape facing inward. The body will be carved from a block of maple, and the soundboard will be sitka spruce,
in fitting with the historically mentioned materials. The tailpiece and fingerboard are to be made from lacewood for
its durability and contrast in color (slightly darker and redder than the light maple). I managed to find some
instrument makers hide glue in a random hardware store, so that aspect should be rather authentic, and am planning
on using only hand tools to make the instrument.

To work out some of the aspects of making the piece, I decided to first make a "test" instrument slightly more than
half size, to work out some problems and to try my hand at the carving. I made the body, neck and pegbox out of
basswood (quicker to carve). The piece I had was too short to carve the pegbox as one piece, so it had to be added on
as an additional piece, something that will NOT occur in the final model (not happy with that joint). The soundboard
is made from balsa wood. The "C" holes are turned outwards closer to a violin's structure as an experiment, but I have
decided that such leaves the bit the bridge rests on too fragile, so I am going to go back to the idea of using the
inward turned "C" shape. The fingerboard, tail, endpeg, and bridge all are carved from black walnut wood to contrast
with the body - cheaper for the model than the ebony I would have otherwise used, and definitely easier to find. The
body was stained with a wood oil, both for color and sealing the wood, but no varnish was applied. The pegs
themselves are from a half-sized violin, and were cheap and easier than carving ones myself, which I will do for the
final version. The strings are metal violin strings, unlike the gut strings to be used on the final version. Overall it
came out rather well, enough so to encourage me to continue with the "real" version. It produces a rather high, shrill,
but pretty loud sound, especially for something made from bass and balsa, though it would require fingers less than
half as wide as mine to actually play it as the strings are so short the finger placement is VERY close. Pictures are
below:
The Final Version:

I have drawn up the final plans now, modified slightly from the original ones to reflect the knowledge gained from
the model. Westwind Woods in Canada is my source of wood, and they have provided me with quite nice pieces,
including a rather sweetly resonating soundboard bit of air-dried sitka spruce. Work on that shall presently
commence, and I will be taking pictures of the process and the tools, results etc. as I go along to post here. As they
get developed, I will share the results with all! These are plans I've drawn up to work from:
Also existing now (in 2001), are drafting plans for the instrument, complete with fine-tuned measurements and the
like. This is the smaller version. You may click on it to get a higher-rez printable version, but be warned the file is
large - about 900K.

PLANS FOR REBEC - FINAL VERSION

Overal Comprimento 20 5/8 inches

Largura 5 1/2 polegadas

Altura Total 2 3/4 polegadas
String Length (playable) 12 3/4 inches
Bridge to end of neck
Comprimento do corpo 9 1/4 inches
Neck Length 8 1/8 inches
Pegbox Length 3 inches

The final size was determined by string length. I already play the violin, and in my laziness did not want to have to
relearn my finger positioning, so the string length is exactly the same as that on my violin from the bridge to the
pegbox notch, and as such should have similar fingering to the violin. The rest of the body was built around that
scale.

First pictures of the final version process are available now:

These are the three pieces of wood from which the

instrument shall be made. The top piece is the
soundboard chunk, which is air-dried sitka spruce
from western Canada. This is the closest
approximation I could get to the European spruce that
would be the actual wood used on the period
instruments. The bridge will probably also be cut
from this piece. The large center piece is the nice
chunk of maple that will serve as the body and
pegbox of the instrument. The lower piece is
lacewood (planewood), which will be used for the
fingerboard, tail, and pegs.
These are the tools that I will be using. They include
two large wood clamps (mostly for holding the
soundboard to the body), three small metal clamps
(mostly to hold fingerboard to neck), a coping saw
(all sawing), a large metal file (for shaping), a small
metal file (for fine shaping), six chisels and gouges
for shaping the body and parts, a wooden mallet for
doing some of the chisel work on the really hard
wood, hide glue (all gluing), and a ruler for
measuring and straight edges. The second picture
shows the "additional" tools. They include the larger
saw (which proved necessary for the cutting out of
the body), the long flat file (for shaping fingerboard,
etc.), the mini-files (for all the small bits), the bigger
file, the large straight chisel (which has left its mark
on me) and the large curved chisel (for scooping out
the bowl).

.
STEP ONE of the actual construction is the rough
shaping of the body of the instrument. This begins by
drawing the plan onto the block of maple, as shown
here.

Next I took hand saw to wood and began cutting it

out. I started out with the coping saw, but that ended
up taking literally forever, so I acquired a bigger saw,
which I'll add to tool picture set later. Even with the
larger saw, hand cutting the wood went at about the
rate of one inch in about an hour, as the wood is very
hard and dense. As it was it took a really long time to
do this portion, but a rough cut out shape finally
emerged, and is pictured to the left. Doing this with a
power saw would probably have taken a few minutes.
By hand, took about 80 or so hours! Using modern
tools, another gentleman working on a similar
instrument came up with the neat idea of turning the
whole body on a lathe, which produces two
instruments at one time! This method efficiently cuts
out the body and does the rounding of the bowl all in
one step! If I decide to make any more of these
things, I'll probably do it that way!
STEP TWO: was to round out the outer shape of the
instrument. This was again done by hand, using
chisels. Again, I found the small chisel that I started
out with to be woefully inadequate for the task, and
got myself a larger 3/4 inch straight edge chisel,
which I used to carve the majority of the body. If you
look closely, you might also notice that I rounded off
the end of the instrument a little more from the top
view. Once I got it about where I wanted it, I decided
to start carving out the bowl.

STEP THREE: Carving out the bowl. I wanted to try

to get the walls to about 1/8 - 1/4 of an inch thick by
the time I was done. I drew out the bowl on the wood,
and began hacking it out, making a really big wooden
spoon, more or less. Again, I discovered the small
chisels that had worked so nicely on the model were
too small for this larger version, so I acquired a larger
scoop chisel to do this. While doing this, I reshaped
the outside of the instrument again, softening the
taper more, and thinning out the neck a bit more.
This is the image of the carved out bowl, with the
pegbox fully finished shaping. About halfway
through carving out the bowl, I discovered that
moving the large chunk of the pegbox was getting
tiring, so I decided to carve it down a bit more toward
its final shape. It was while doing this at about one in
the morning that I slipped with my nice newer
straight chisel and carved the top of my left thumb to
the bone, cutting the extensor tendon. Oops... Two
months later, after surgery to re-attach the tendon and
close up the wound, and after a couple of weeks of
physical therapy to get use of the thumb back, I went
back and finished carving out the bowl. And the
thumb is all better now, more or less, with a rather
large scar on the first joint (see picture below left). I
guess I can honestly say now that I made this thing
with tears, sweat and blood! I did however, 'cheat' a
bit when finishing the pegbox, given my previous
problems, and used the dremel to shape out the last
bit around base where it meets the neck. A
combination of two problems resulted in a slightly
different shape for the pegbox. First, I had gauged out
a chunk of the lower right corner by accident while
working, and needed to remove that corner for
asthetic purposes. The second and more relevant
problem involved playability. The slow sloping angle
of the original pegbox did not let my hand get into
proper position to reach the flat/natural first note. I
needed more room to slide up the neck and settle in
my hand. Therefore, I notched the peghead a bit into
a more spade-like shape. That solved the problem
nicely, and even looked pretty good. Also, this image
more accurately shows the true, really blonde color of
the wood than the previous ones.
STEP FOUR: The Soundboard. As previously
mentioned, I have a nice piece of spruce which shall
become the sound board. First step is to rough cut it
out, and thin it down to the proper thickness (about
3/16 inch or so). Here is the rough cut board on top.
Below that was the really tough part. I did not have a
belt sander, nor did the original people that made
these, so I had to thin the plate mostly with files. This
was a slow and rather rough process, but I managed
to narrow it to a about 3/16ths of an inch. See original
thickness and final thickness to the left. After this, the
sound holes are carefully placed onto the soundboard
(taking into consideration the bridge position and the
length of the vibrating portion of the string), and
drawn on the back using a paper template so that they
match each other exactly. Then I drilled a hole at
each end of the 'C' shape, and using the coping saw,
rough cut out the holes. The fine tuning for the edges
of the sound holes was done with the small files. The
last picture shows the completed soundboard.
STEP FOUR: THE FINGERBOARD. This was
shaped out of the lacewood chunk. The lacewood is
very hard, but very fibrous. It saws much more easily
than the really small grained and hard maple of the
body, but it also chips and shreads more easily as
well, and was rather difficult to work with in that
respect. For other people attempting this, I would
probably recommend dark walnut as a better
alternative. I drew out the rough design on the block
and sawed it out (top images). Then with much action
of the files (which proved much easier than the
chisels or knife) I angled it down and rounded it over.
The shaggy grain proved difficult to sand and
smooth, but so far it seemed okay.
STEP FIVE: THE SMALL BITS. This includes all
the other little pieces - the tail, the end nut, the end
peg, and the actual pegs. Here I got a little lazy. I
acquired some very attractive rosewood violin pegs
and a matching endpeg from a local music store, and
am using them instead of making my own, at least for
the moment.

Next I fashioned the tail piece from the lacewood

block. The next picture does give you a good idea of
the grain of that wood. I cut that out with the coping
saw and filed it down (I have come to love my files),
then carved out the slope and the little notch at the
end where it will rest against the soundboard and be
tied to the endpeg. .
The end nut (the raised bit at the end of the
fingerboard that the strings rest in) was cut out of the
lacewood, split to appropriate narrowness with the
straight chisel, and then carved down with knife and
more files. Note that the grain of the wood for the end
nut should go perpendicular to the strings, so that it
better resists being cut into by the strings themselves.
The nastiest thing to carve was the bridge - its very
delicate, and easy to split. Again, the grain of the
wood has to go perpendicular to the strings,
otherwise their tension could split it. I used the
leftover spruce from the soundboard, and cut out a
rough rectangle to use for the bridge. It took three
tries to carve it down into shape using the drill (to put
in the initial holes), the coping saw (to cut the slits)
and the mini-files. The first two tries both split apart
while trying to make them (the first when trying to
cut out the bottom, the second when trying to cut the
slits). VERY delicate work, but at least I had enough
wood that it wasn't a problem. The final bridge you
see here turned out to be a bit too tall - so I carved a
fair amount off the top of it (as you'll see below). It
also is potentially more complicated than it needed to
be. Others making these bridges in a historical
fashion tend to use a simple arch bridge, something
like this: . It probably would
have been a lot easier to make, and if this bridge ever
breaks, I'll probably replace it with the simpler
variety.

STEP SIX: PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER. The

next part is to put the whole thing together. The first
step of this was to drill the holes in the body to allow
for the endpeg and string pegs to be put in. The end
peg hole was rather large, and I was rather scared that
it would split the wood and trash all this effort, but
everything turned out fine. Next I used the drill to put
in the holes for the string pegs. The hard portion of
this is that they had to be reamed carefully to the
exact angle of the pegs. I discovered that the handle
of the long flat file happened to be the same angle, so
I used that to ream the pegholes, and it proved to
work very well.

All the pieces were now done. I'd added the small
drilled holes in the tailpiece and the pegs, and
positioned the soundboard and the fingerboard and
checked the fit and position. The fingerboard required
a small notch be cut into it where it overlapped the
fingerboard by about an inch or so, which I filed
down. The bridge (as mentioned earlier) and endnut
also both proved to be too tall, and I ended up filing
them down considerably lower. These are all the
pieces laid together roughly as they would go.
 Next I glued on the soundboard and the fingerboard.
As the back of the instrument is totally rounded off, it
presented the problem of how to clamp the pieces
onto the body. I chose the solution of placing it on a
flat surface and weighting it down lots! It proved
effective enough. First I glued on the soundboard, let
it dry, then sanded the edges down. Then I glued on
the fingerboard (see picture), let that dry, and sanded
its edges down and smooth with the body. Then I
added the end nut (the little raised bit at the peg end
of the fingerboard) and glued and braced it down.
The whole thing was then smoothed and sanded
down into its final form (see lower picture). The rest
of the pieces are held on by the pressure of the
strings, so they are not glued on.

STEP SEVEN: Finishing and varnishing. The next

part was to add the finishing to the body and parts.
The lacewood parts (fingerboard and tail) were
simply oiled using a wood sealing oil from the
hardware store. As tends to happen, the wood
significantly changes color when its oiled. Here the
lacewood darkened and reddened, so it is an almost
mahogany color. I think its pretty. The body was then
treated with a sanding sealer and a spray lacquer
obtained from Musicmaker Kits Inc. , a very nice
group of folks who also provided me with kits for my
wooden music stand and mandolin (both of which
came out very nicely). The spruce darkened a little
bit, but the maple regained its striped sheen, which
had kind of dissappeared from the time I started
carving it. I think it looks really neat! Once all the
oils and lacquers had dried, I then finished off the
instrument!

THE FINISHED INSTRUMENT

This is the finally finished instrument with the strings put on. The stringing process was done as follows. First, the
tail peg was inserted into its hole. Then a thick string of gut was looped around it and threaded through the holes in
the narrow end of the tailpiece, and tied off. That was stretched over the end of the soundboard. Next the middle
string 'A' was tied into the center hole at the wide end of the tailpiece, and run down the instrument to the small notch
cut into the endnut. The end was threaded around the peg, and gently tightened. The same process was repeated for
the 'E' and 'D' strings to its right and left respectively. Then I placed the bridge underneath them, centered between
the soundholes, and pushed the strings into their notches on the bridge. The strings were then slowly brought up to
tension, which much creaking and groaning of the wood (mostly the bridge) that made me very nervous. But in the
end, the whole instrument came together, none of the strings snapped (yeah!), none of the wood snapped (bigger
yeah!), and the instrument works! Sound files to come soon... The strings are made of gut (sheeps), obtained from a
company called Purr'll Gut Strings , to give the instrument a more authentic sound. They are tuned like the three
upper strings of the violin, D,a,e. Diameters of the strings are 0.975mm, 0.750mm, and 0.475mm respectively. They
produce a softer sound than the standard metal strings on my violin. Other views of the final instrument:
These images were taken very recently. Note how the color in the lacewood has significantly "mellowed" away from
the brighter red it used to be into a kind of golden brown. I did encounter one problem almost immediately, however.
As the gut stretched, the end loop of gut loosened a lot and the tail started slipping too far forward. Retightening it,
the gut string started to carve into the soft wood of the spruce soundboard, and the anchor point of the tail was tauntly
buzzing against the soundboard. I did not want to have the soundboard cut in too deeply or cracked by the tail. Also
the tail was now positioned at an awkward angle, and the little corner of wood supporting the tension was cracking.
So I decided to rework the tail end of the instrument. I carved off the end support (the lifter) at the end of the tail, and
decided to have it just "floating" above the soundboard. I then inserted a small tailpiece at the very edge of the
instrument to take the tension of the endloop and not have it carve into the soundboard. It also served to lift the now
floating tail away from the soundboard. Of course, my first attempt to attach it forgot to take into account the fact that
you cannot glue a piece to another varnished piece (duh!), and it immediately broke off. I had to sand off the varnish,
so that the wood would be glued to wood, and that worked very well! So this is now how the tail end is set up.

THE BOW: having finished the instrument, I tried to play it with my violin bow. This proved unusally difficult, as
even my fairly decent violin bow proved too heavy to use on the instrument without a lot of scratchy noises. I did a
fair amount of research into the bow itself, but determined that I didn't feel like making a bow - the materials cost
would have approximated the finished cost almost exactly. So I acquired a very nice fixed arch bow from Bernard
Ellis (see below for info on Ellis) for a very reasonable price, and it worked very well on the instrument and produced
a very nice sound.

SO here is what the true final instrument looks like, with its bow:

And for comparison's sake, here is the rebec next to my violin. This is a 150 year old German 4/4 fiddle modeled
after the Stradivarius dimensions. Note the body size of the rebec is much smaller, but the useful string length (from
bridge to nut) is almost exactly the same (easier to see on the side view). Also note the difference in the length and
shape of the bows.
SO WHAT DOES IT SOUND LIKE?
Here is a sound sample in MP3 format of me playing the rebec. The piece is called Mit Gantzem Willem by Konrad
Paumann, dating from the 15th century. In the SCA, this is music used for the basse dance Turin. The file is over
800K, so give it a little time to load. Sound sample: REBEC IN MP3 FORMAT .
And as a final shot of this, this is me (with my wife in her gypsy persona in the background) playing the little rebec at
an SCA event last winter.

The next rebec experiment involved the rebec kit now being offered by EMS - this was one of the prototypes. You
can see the experience with it here.

WHERE DO I GET ONE?

A fair number of people have asked me this, so I figured I'd include a brief section on where to get finished instruments, in the event you like
the notion of the instrument, but don't feel like venturing into the luthier business yourself! First off, at present I do not plan on making any
more of these in the immediate future, so I'm not a viable source of finished instruments :). However, there are several places where you can
find them:

 BERNARD ELLIS :a British luthier who specialized in early stringed instruments. As far as I'm concerned,
he would seem to be the best source for practically any early stringed instrument, as he seems to have the
nicest instruments for the most reasonable prices. In the case of rebecs, he makes two varieties: an Italian
rebec family (soprano with three strings, alto and tenor with 3 or 4 strings) with f-holes and scroll pegbox, and
a rebec family modeled after the Praetorius illustrations (1620 or so), with a rosette soundhole and scroll
pegbox. He also is by far the best source for bows, if you are making the instrument yourself and don't want to
make the bow. Accepts credit cards and the like for easier overseas transactions. About the $800-1000 range
for instrument and bow with shipping (to eastern US, at least). NOTE: in November of 2000, Bernard Ellis
passed away from an illness. His instruments are to my knowledge no longer available directly from him,
though there are used instruments of his sometimes to be found.
 EARLY MUSIC SHOP (of London) : the premier place to acquire early period musical instruments,
especially in kit form (though the kit maker now has their own direct buy site). They sell Bernard Ellis Italian
style rebecs. NOTE: in November of 2000, Bernard Ellis passed away from an illness. His instruments are to
my knowledge no longer available. They also sell rebecs by fellows named James Bisgood (a treble and a
tenor version- see and hear his at the Falsobordone website) and Goerge (a 3 string treble and a 4 string alto),
and also carry Marco Salerno rebecs, which are very nice. New for Summer 2003 they are offering a soprano
rebec called the Mitre Rebec (made either by Ceske of Czech republic or in Pakistan, haven't determined that
yet) that is only around $300 or so - easily the most affordable instrument on the market at this point. They
also periodically have used instruments, so worth a check.
 ANTIQUE SOUND WORKSHOP, LTD : located in Massachusetts near Boston in the US. Another very
extensive shop with a very wide selection of instruments of all kinds from medieval to baroque and early
classical. A good American rival for EMS. Sells Bernard Lehmann rebecs, in soprano and alto/tenor 3 string
styles. About $800-900 with bow - haven't checked shipping with them.
 BERNARD LEHMANN : a well respected instrument maker from New York State. Does a 3 string rebec
selling for $600, with other potential options. His rebecs use medieval shaping, and you can see pictures there.
He also has nice bows for under $100 (I have one of them, and it works quite well).
 KELISCHEK WORKSHOP : another American early music instruments shop - not quite as extensive as
ASW, but still very good. They make a soprano rebec with 3 or 4 strings, and an alto/tenor rebec with 3 or 4
strings. I haven't seen or heard these instruments, so I cannot directly comment on their shape or sound, but
other Kelischek products I have seen have been very good, so I don't see why these wouldn't be. Instrument
runs around $950 or so; their bows are a pricey $300.
 NORTHERN RENAISSANCE INSTRUMENTS : a small workshop in England, very good source for
strings, varnishes, early sheet music, and the like. Sells a full family of renaissance style rebecs, including the
only version of a "bass" rebec I've seen listed anywhere. Prices are a little difficult to work out (you buy the
instrument, strings, extra decoration, etc. all as separate things) and their shipping is also a bit complicated.
They only take payment in pounds sterling (drawn on UK bank) but now do accept credit cards. They do
perform inexpensive custom work. I think a soprano would work out to about $700 with shipping, but I could
not find any information on bows. I haven't physically seen or heard any of their instruments, so cannot
comment on their quality.
 ANCESTRAL INSTRUMENTS : an individual maker, David Marshall, who makes some very nice
Medieval fiddles, and is claiming to start producing a tenor rebec. He also unfortunately, as just an individual
in England, takes only payments in pounds sterling drawn on UK bank, and does not accept credit cards.
Some nice very historical recordings, though. Further bad news - David Marshall has also passed away
recently, so his instruments are no longer available except on the used instrument market.
 MID-EAST MANUFACTURING : is now making a handsome little medieval style rebec. Looks really
nice, comes with hard case and bow for an amazingly low $300. Very much worth checking out if you are
interesting in acquiring a good beginner instrument. Haven't heard it played yet, so cannot comment on sound,
but will probably be acquiring one eventually to check it out. Its worth the price for the case and bow alone!
 MARCO SALERNO : an individual maker in Italy, who makes very nice early fiddles, rebecs, and viols. Not
cheap ($750+), but very nice. I have one of his early fiddles, which I perform with and have received much
acclaim regarding.
 JESUS REOLID : an individual maker in Spain, who also makes very nice early stringed instruments. Site is
entirely in Spanish, but he does have a great photo sequence of making his three string rebec/rebab (with a
skin head, rather than wooden soundboard). The thumbnail images appear to be missing, but if you click on
each one, you can watch him carve out the whole instrument using nothing but hand tools in the traditional
fashion. Rather cool, actually. His instruments look wonderful, but I have no idea how much he charges or
how they sound.
 KATE BUEHLER of UNPROFITABLE INSTRUMENTS : an individual maker in the US, studied with
Daniel Larson above. Only maker of the Tromba Marina (see her site for an explaination - very amusing) I
 know of... also makes a nice assortment of rebecs of various types. Prices runs around $800-$900, depending
on individual features. She also does very nice period bows at a pricey $325 (only $275 with instrument).
 CHRIS ELMES and GAITA MEDIEVAL INSTRUMENTS : located in Scotland, mades a nice early
period style rebec. Looks really nice, and has easily removeable soundpost for variable performance.
Assuming it is priced comparably with his fiddle, would run around $700-$800 depending on details. Also has
some really cool early bows, including some wonderful hooked bows nobody makes for around $100 or so.
Not sure how he takes payment.
 BARRY EBERSOLE and JUBILTORES : located in Ohio, USA, makes a variety of fiddles and rebecs-
I've heard in recording, and they do sound nice. Don't know pricing or specifics yet as website is still under
construction.
 JOHAN HEDVALL in Sweden makes a nice doghead rebec of the later renaissance style. His harps are
really nice, so I expect that his rebec will be good as well. Website in Swedish, and no listed prices that I can
find, however.
 HISTORISCHE MUSIKINSTRUMENTE is a German company making two different types of later period
rebecs, one based off the italian model (literally after B. Ellis's version), and another off of Praetorius'
illustration. Another model after Virdung also appears to be in the works. Very nice work, but I am unaware
of the prices.

To my knowledge at this point, nobody makes a "kit" variety of the rebec. If I ever do get space in my house for a
real wood shop, I might eventually do so, but at this point that isn't happening.

BIBLIOGRAFIA

Bachmann, Werner. The Origins of Bowing . trans Norma Deane. Oxford University Press: London, 1969. This is the root source for most
modern research, and practically everybody cites him. A very good comprehensive study of early string and bowed string instruments.

Remnant, Mary. English Bowed Instruments from Anglo-Saxon to Tudor Times . Clarendon Press: Oxford, 1986.
Also a very good book for stringed instruments.

Hayes, Gerald. The Viols and other Bowed Instruments . Broude Brothers Ltd: New York, 1969.

Boyden, David. The History of Violin Playing from its Origins to 1761 . Oxford University Press: London, 1965.

Bachmann, Alberto. The Encyclopedia of the Violin . De Capo Press: New York, 1966.- don't know if any relation
to Werner..

Crane, Frederick. Extant Medieval Musical Instruments. University of Iowa Press: Iowa City, 1972. Obviously
nothing on the rebec directly, but mentioned because it does give useful information on what existing instruments we
do have in collections around the world.

Two Older and somewhat out of date texts:

Bessaraboff, Nicholas. Ancient Musical Instruments , Boston 1941.

Panum, H. Stringed Instruments of the Middle Ages . London, 1939.

And since some people asked, a short list of primary texts describing the instrument:

Johannes de Grocheo. De Musica. circa 1300.

Johannes Tinctoris. De Inventione et Usu Musicae from about 1487.

Sebastian Virdung. Musica getetscht. 1511.

Martin Agricola. Musica instrumentalis deudtsch. 1528.

Michael Praetorius Syntagma Musicum - esp. vol 2: De Organographia and vol 3: Harmonie Universelle. 1618.

There are others, but that should get anybody interested a good start...

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Contact this guy at pbutler@crab.rutgers.edu. Comments and questions are welcome.