# Music by Genre > Orchestral, Classical, Italian, Medieval, Renaissance >  New Bowlback Luthier

## Jim Garber

I have been conversing via email with Peter Sawchyn who informed me that he is currently making a bowlback. The one he is making is in the German style and resembles a Knorr or Albert & Mueller. He promised me that he will release photos to the MC public (us) as soon as it is done which may be very soon.

In the meantime, does anyone have a source for Schaller MG2 machine heads for slotted headstock? It seems that in North America they are difficult to come by and Schaller will not sell direct to Peter.

I think that that bringsd the total of three (count 'em) luthiers who are brave enough to try bowlback construction: Dan Larson, Brian Dean and now Mr. Sawchyn.

Jim

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## Martin Jonas

Schaller MG2 tuners are distributed in the UK through Touchstone Tonewoods, which is the luthiers' supplies division of Stentor Music. I would have thought they should be happy enough to sell to the US, too.

Martin

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## Jim Garber

Peter did find and knows of them. I guess he was looking for a wholesale source. BTW this one is his first bowlback mandolin but he has built some domras. Also, he is in Canada and will prob get those tuners from Touchstone. He may build a case for the mandolin.

Jim

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## Martin Jonas

Touchstone are a wholesale source: Stentor are the primary wholesaler for music shops in the UK. Jon may know whether their wholesale prices are better than the retail prices on their web site -- I got my bowlback case through Jon from Touchstone wholesale, but as the web site for some reason doesn't list the bowlback case, I can't compare prices.

Martin

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## Eugene

I'm curious. Will this become a production model for him? Do you know what he's charging for it?

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## Jim Garber

It sounds like it may be a production model:



> The Bowl Back (my model CM-84) is a custom order from one of my Domra customers (I also build these), so it is spoken for. I've worked out a current price of approx. 3200.00CND, including case.


I also asked him about construction. It looks like there is no cant to the top:



> The mando top doesn't have a cant in it , but is radiussed to 15', and the neck canted back slightly to give a good bridge height. Putting a cant in, in my opinion, limits the tops ability to work as one unit and I wanted the whole top to be very responsive. This has worked well on my Domras(and even on my little BeaverTails) so should work on the CM-84. I couldnt tell what Knorr does either, I think a slight cant and arch possibly.


I checked on the Knorr site to see what they do. I cannot recall if the one Knorr I played had any cant to the top. If it did, it is probably pretty subtle. In certainly hardly shows in the photos.

The workmanship looks excellent from what he has sent me. I also sent him photos of my Pandini in the hope that he may someday attempt a more Italianate model.

Jim

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## margora

I know about this custom order because at CMSA this year in the first mando section I sat next to the person who ordered it. She was playing one of Peter's domra's, a very beautiful instrument, with superb sound, but felt it was a little out of place in a mandolin orchestra (not so, IMHO). On the other side, however, she was sitting next to someone playing a Seiffert, so I could understand the point of view.

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## onthefiddle

Just a quick note regarding Touchstone: they supply both professionals at trade prices, and amateurs at retail prices. The prices they advertise are the retail prices, but if Peter gets in touch with them (email is normally easiest) he'll be able to open a trade account with them. As they are now owned by Stentor, they can also supply anything distributed by Stentor, so it's always worth checking with them even if they don't list something.

Jon

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## Jim Garber

Peter just contacted me with the photos of the completed mandolin. It looks beautiful. I will post a few of these photos.

Jim

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## Jim Garber

Here is the rear view.

Jim

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## Jim Garber

A few details... the face.

Jim

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## Jim Garber

The tailpins.

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## Jim Garber

The headstock.

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## Jim Garber

The back of the headstock also showing neck volute.

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## jmkatcher

Whoa that's cool looking!

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## trebleclef528

I agree WOW! looks an impressive beasty... wonder how it sounds. 
Ian

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## Fretbear

A brand new classic-absolutely stunning...

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## Mike Crocker

What's that in my trousers...sorry (blush).

That looks fantastic! Everything about it looks perfect. Maybe if I put my kids out to work...

Congratulations. If it sounds as good as it looks, you might have the mandolin to end all mandolins.

Peace, Mooh.

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## manjitsu

... not even a wrinkled bedsheet can detract from that incredibly beautiful instrument!

-Chris

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## jasona

Wow indeed!

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## Eugene

Very nice. He obviously took much inspiration from the modern German camp. #I am keen to see one in person...and on the Eye Candy page. #I'd like to see one with finer frets and fretted to at least 24.

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## RSW

Tailpins could pose problems if the string loops aren't big enough. I also dislike the jumbo guitar like frets. Wood is pretty though and the shellac (I can only guess) looks like it's sea worthy. Would be nice to have one in hand for a ride.

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## margora

Peter's work is superb. Re: fret size, coming from the guitar, I like the larger frets. The client in this case, I am sure, got what she requested. I am equally sure he would make one with finer frets, longer fingerboard, smaller tailpins, whatever. What is particularly useful to a US customer base is that he is not in Germany.

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## Plamen Ivanov

Hello,

What I`m wondering about is the different attitude to the modern German bowlback mandolins and this, let`s say modern American bowlback mandolin. There`s not such big difference in construction (still not speaking about the sound) I think, except the Jumbo frets, which is not a plus for me. But almost everyone seems to be very excited, while the German bowlbacks have been always defined here as "over-built", "heavily-built", "too heavy for my taste", etc, etc. How is this different attitude to explain?

Best,
Plamen

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## Martin Jonas

Plamen, I don't think there is any such thing as a consensus and by and large the comments you mention about Germna bowls are not from the same people as the ones in this thread. I'm not terribly excited about modern German bowlbacks, and I'm not terribly excited about this one (other than for the fact that it's a North American bowlback and may indicate greater appreciation for bowlbacks in general). That doesn't mean I would turn it down if someone gave it to me, but then I wouldn't turn down a Knorr either.

Martin

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## Jim Garber

> But almost everyone seems to be very excited, while the German bowlbacks have been always defined here as "over-built", "heavily-built", "too heavy for my taste", etc, etc. How is this different attitude to explain?


I don't exactly recall folks complaining that the German aesthetic favored heavily-built instruments. I was very impressed by the one Knorr I did play some time ago and thoiught it was a wonderful playing instrument imppecable crafted. I just find that the tone produced in this German style is very refined and enhanced by the smoothness of the TI strings and the flexible pick. The Italian aesthetic is a little more soulful and more to my taste. That doesn't preclude my appreciation for the players in the German style or to appreciate the style and workmanship of Peter's mandolin.

I think it is also wonderful to have yet another maker who make bowlbacks instruments in the fold, esp one in North America. 

If I get to that point, I would commission him to build me an Italian style mandolin.

Jim

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## John Zimm

Pardon my ignorance, but what difference do you all think there will be in sound/playability with a bowlback that does not have a cant on the top? I'm curious because I am fiddling around (or mandoing around) with making a bowlback-I have several of the ribs cut out and bent, and the topwood all ready to go, but figuring out some of the intricacies of the cant has bedeviled me a bit. If it makes no appreciable difference I'd like to make it a flat top. 

-John.

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## Jim Garber

John:
I believe that Peter's has an induced arch to it -- like many of today's and vintage flattops as well. I can't recall the Knorr I played but from the photos on the Knorr site I would say that that is the case there as well.

I would imagine that the cant would add some rigidity to the top but it would also depend on how you braced either. I would say either examine many bowlbacks or go on your own quest. Keep us posted on your progress.

BTW Scott is right on the case. Peter's mandolin is now pictured onm the bowlback Eye Candy page.

Jim

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## Bob A

The cant basically provides the means to increase the break angle of the strings, and bring a bit more pressure onto the top. You could perhaps have the same effect by using a taller bridge. The Greek bowlbacks have very little cant angle, but the construction of the top is quite different: in fact, it is meant to sink around the bridge, whicle the Italian construction involves building an arch into the top. There's a fascinating photo in American Luthiery of the disassembled top of an old Italian bowlback: the top in question had been removed from the instrument and flattened out. There was quite a noticeable pie-slice cut out from the two adjoined halves beyond the bend, when placed together on a flat surface, and the braces had a distinct curve to them. This of course is an engineering response to overcome string pressure on the top, with the force flowing thru the arched top and pushing downward and outward on the rim of the bowl.

The final result of the various trade-offs in construction does have a significant influence on the sound of the instrument. Also on the "feel". No one who has played a Gibson right after playing a light Italian bowlback could fail to note that they were picking up a heavy chunk of wood. The difference is almost comical. (Walter Kaye Bauer, who had his own axe to grind, has been quoted stating that Gibsons were like "lumberyards painted up like prostitutes". While I disapprove of his sentiments, I can see where he's coming from.

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## Eugene

I've played Knorr and Seiffert. #From what little I've seen, the craftsmanship is very nice. #They are anything but heavily built (they certainly are largely built), but the tone is not for me. #The bright sound of the older styles is just what I like to play. #As I commented, this new Sawchyn doesn't look substsantially different to me than the nicer German mandolins. #As nice as it looks, it likely wouldn't be for me. #I would love to hear one in the hands of Caterina Lichtenberg, Daniel Ahlert, or Gertrud Weyhofen.

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## Mark Levesque

Hmmm, I'm interested.
I wonder if the owner would email me and discuss the sound a bit?

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## Jim Garber

Mark:
 I would just contact Peter and see if he can get you fixed up with the owner.

Jim

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## Embergher

Interesting thoughts on this thread, but I have the impression that many don't really know what to think of these German style instruments ... the situation is indeed a bit complicated.
Opinions are quite different about it, but this is what I think: (I'm only comparing high quality German style mandolins to high quality Italian style instruments.)

What I *do* like about German style instruments:
- very high quality craftsmanship (generally better and more precise than modern Italian instruments, even from the 'famous' makers ...)
- very high quality wood (generally better than modern Italian instruments)
- they have a zero fret (many Italian makers today still don't seem to realise the advantage of it)
- they all have slotted heads with the machines fitted sideways .... so I can keep my arm and hand in a "normal" position when tuning :-)
- they are not as heavily built as many think ... I've seen modern italian instruments that are much heavier.
(- they often come in very nice cases ... unfortunately I can't use them for an Embergher :-( 

What I don't like, but is not necessarily a problem of the mandolin itself:
- the sound: I know they are designed for flatwound strings and rubber plectrums, but I've never heard one with a traditional set of strings and played with a traditional plectrum .... I might as well like it!

What I don't like (just personally), but doesn't affect the sound/playability:
- the shape of the head (more Guitar like) - but it's still better than any non-slotted head.
- rounded shape of the neck (not a real problem, but feels uncomfortable for players that are used to Roman style instruments)
- the rosette (it's very nice, but it reminds me of a guitar, not of a mandolin)
- the ribs (again, very nice, but it makes the mandolin look like a lute)
(Knorr's Soloist Mandolin "La Raggianta" already looks much better though with its 15 ribs instead of 9)
- the round shape of the table (nicely done, but it doesn't look like a mandolin, not even like a lute) - these large tables will also influence the sound to some extend, but not necessarily in a negative way.

What I don't like and *does* affect the sound/playability:
- width of the neck (often 28mm at the nut and more ... for me those are sizes for a mandola or mandoloncello)
- not enough frets for a lot of music of the serious classical solo repertoire. (should be 29 for a concert instrument)
- flat fingerboard (not that bad ... if you aren't used to playing a radiused one)
- the 'gradual' compensation of the bridge (or placing a straight bridge oblique on the table) is a quite primitive way to compensate and will never result in perfect intonation.
- often we hardly see any crank (cant). This certainly affects the sound ... it is a basic feature of a classical mandolin which provides a different way of dealing with the presure of the bridge and strings. 
I must say I do see a crank on Knorr and Woll mandolins (and maybe some others, I certainly don't know them all). As far as I know they are assumed to be the better German style instruments.

Well, this is just my honest opinion and I hope not to offend anyone. 
These instruments will never be my cup of tea, but I have to say the biggest problem I have with them is the sound ... which is mainly caused by the strings, plectrum and the technique of the player.
If anyone knows of a recording on a Knorr, Seiffert, Woll, ... setup with traditional strings (round wound) and played with a traditional plectrum, I'd love to hear it

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## Jim Garber

Thanks, Ralf, for your thorough assessment. I think that the heart and soul of the German instruments is inextricably tied to the technique of playing which is very different from the Italian style. I suppose one could string these with Calacve strings but I have a feeling that they would not quite work acoustically as well as they do the German style of playing.




> I must say I do see a crank on Knorr and Woll mandolins


It looks to me that the "crank" on the Knorr is very subtle as compared to the Italian models.

It is hard to see in this photo of La Gioiosa.


You can see it (sort of) on the side of this La Raggianta


Jim

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## Embergher

This Woll mandolin has a more defined crank:


Not all the italian models have a big crank either ... this Calace 16bis doesn't have much of a crank ... not to be compared to the Embergher below.

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## John Zimm

Wow, there is a lot of great input here. I imagine there is a way to bridge the gap between the serious cant on the Embergher and the flat top mandos. I should email a luthier-I wonder if some sort of fan bracing could achieve a slight cant without the great angle (which, to an amateur woodworker like me, is a bit of a challenge). If I make some progress I'll post some pictures. 

-John.

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## Sean103

I am relatively new to the classical mandolin world. With all the discussion in this forum on Italian vs. German instruments, could someone please elaborate on the difference between Italian style/method of playing and German methods? Especially German, as there seems to be a great deal of info out there on the Italian tradition, but relatively little about the German style. Sorry if this is getting way off track.

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## Jonathan Rudie

Sean 103 "Could someone please elaborate on the difference between Italian style/method of playing and German methods? [QUOTE]

Hi Sean,

Scholar Alex Timmerman of the #Het Consort in November of 2002 wrote a great post (article would be more accurate) addressing your question in detail. #It was so well written and informative I saved a copy and have cut and pasted it below as I do not think it is still available on this site #It is very long so I had to divide it into two posts. #

Alex Timmerman post from November 2002
"Topic: Bowl back playing styles & plectra use with video, Bowl back 
Joined: Oct. 2002Posted: Nov. 28 2002, 20:04
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Hello,
Because I have been frequently asked if I could explain the differences and/or similarities - in play style on modern bowl back mandolins - between the Traditional Italian Style and the 'New technique' of the German schoolI have taken the liberty to write down my experiences and thoughts on this matter. It is not my intention to place a method or style above the other, although probably my own preference will be clear. As a mandolin teacher I taught and teach children who started taking mandolin lessons at the age of seven or eight years old. Occasionally I have taken on very young children that were four and a half years old. I teach them at the Music School until they are accomplished amateurs or, if a student is talented enough to become a professional player or teacher, at the Music High School in my hometown Zwolle in the Netherlands. Some of my students have been taught in both the 'New technique' and the Traditional Italian Style. My ideas are the following: If a student has reached a certain level and is interested in the way to play the mandolin in the best way, that person has to be able to choose. So she /he has to be told seriously by his teacher about what kind of 'Schools' there are and how the most celebrated mandolinists (of the old days and the ones - among others Silvio Ranieri, Giulio Tartaglia, Raffaele Calace and Giuseppe Pettine - who wrote the most important tutors) reached their virtuoso playing level. Then one can make up his/her mind and choose (with the teachers help) what is the right way for them to study the mandolin. The most celebrated way and highest developed level to perform on the mandolin, was and is reached through study of the Traditional Italian methods. This has always been an important part in other 'Schools', since their authors (tutors like Theodor Ritter, R. & E Vorpahl, Johan B. Kok, Ernesto Khöler, F. Lalechère, Madeleine Cottin and Jules Cottin, to name but a few) all used the exercise repertoire or related their study material to that of the Italian methods. And there are quite a number of Italian methods with a lot of studies and exercises, etc. It is like with many things: "There are more ways that lead to Rome", as we know a saying here in the Netherlands. #The Traditional Italian Style. The Traditional Italian Style has always been advertised as such by the leading (Italian) teachers on classical music and is shown by soloists and orchestras of the past. It is still very much in use by mandolinists from Italy, Japan, France, Denmark, Belgium and the Netherlands etc. Of course the Italian Style had produced its own posterity with top grade performers who, around 1900 in their turn, saw it as their task to bring the mandolin(ist) at the highest possible level so that the instrument and its performer were fully accepted among other musicians. Tutors were needed and better instruments had to be developed. High quality mandolins with the priority on sound and playability were created in co-operation between mandolinist and luthier. Excellent examples in this respect where the thoughts and wishes of celebrated mandolinists that were applied in the best instruments by the most famous Italian luthiers. In Neapoli this cooperation was between the virtuoso Raffaele Calace and the Calace atelier and between the greatest virtuoso ever Ernesto Rocco and the Vinaccia workshop. In Roma the mandolinist Giovanni Battista Maldura and the luthier Giovanni De Santis worked together and - last but not least - The friendship between the Roman born virtuoso Silvio Ranieri and the luthier Antonio Luigi Embergher. That these musicians wrote down their musical ideas and thoughts in compositions and methods is nothings else but logic. The differences on the technical approach to play the mandolin that come to light in their methods are understandable, especially when the mandolin models they had help to develop, are examined. Munier and Calace favoured the Modern Neapolitan Mandolin with it's flat fingerboard and round shaped neck while Maldura, Tartaglia and Ranieri praised the Modern Roman Mandolin that was equipped with a curved fingerboard and a neck that was designed to have a "V" shape. Generally speaking these innovations did of course not affect the clear and "bell" like sound character of the mandolin. Interesting and maybe also due to the differences mentioned above, Embergher had designed a special long and two-pointed oval plectrum to be used on his Modern Roman instruments of the mandolin family. To be able to hold and play with this special plectrum, a different use of the right hand fingers is necessary. Fortunately the mandolinsts of both (Italian) technical ways did respect each other highly so that the Traditional Italian Style stayed intact as the Mainstream. #This can be noticed by the fact that for instance Silvio Ranieri dedicated his marvellous Concerto to Ernesto Rocco and that Raffaele Calace attributed his first Mandolin Concerto to Giuseppe Pettine." 

continued on next posts

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## Jonathan Rudie

continuation of Alex Timmerman post from November 2002
"Topic: Bowl back playing styles & plectra use with video, Bowl back 
Joined: Oct. 2002Posted: Nov. 28 2002, 20:04
If talked about 'new' ways of playing the mandolin, a closer look on the matter can give some significant differences between the Traditional Italian style and the manner practised by the players of other Schools. The most important deviation from the Traditional Italian style, in how to hold the mandolin and how to play it, can be seen when one hears and looks too the performances of those who have been educated in the 'new technique' as it is called by its supporters in Germany. The Traditional Italian Style of holding and playing the mandolin (a briefexplanation).As is practised on the Italian bowl back mandolin, strung with round wound strings that are played with a thin tortoise shell, celluloid or plastic plectrum (last two kinds available in heavy, medium and light variants). 1) The manner of holding the mandolin in a seated position is - for both hands - adjusted through the development of the mandolin through the ages. This means that the mandolin is placed slightly diagonal on the upper part of the right leg that is crossed over the left leg. The right side of the sound box (if looked at its front) is placed on the right thigh and its left side against the chest. Nowadays the mandolin is held in position by a synthetically cloth between the body and the back of the sound-box. Sometimes a footstool under the right foot of about 6 to 8 inches is preferred. 2) The left arm should rest against the performers body in a natural 'hanging position. The neck and headstock of the mandolin should be situated at the height of the left shoulder and held about 10 inches from the latter (Ranieri). The position of the left arm and hand enables the player to execute the whole tone range possible on the mandolin without being hindered by the thigh of the left leg. 3) The position of the right forearm is situated near the base and sometimes even in the middle of the mandolin (Calace and Ranieri). The exact place where the right arm touches the base of the sound box is about halfway the elbow at the forearm. The wrist of the right hand is angled slightly forwards. 4) The down and up stroke are both controlled reflex movements. Meant here is that the down and up stroke movement of the hand and forefinger is controlled by the wrist in such a way that no, or almost no, tension is used. The middle, ring and (to a lesser extent the little finger) are loosely fisted (bent inside the hand). The nail of the forefinger pointing (in a diagonal line) to the right side of the sound hole (looked from above while playing). But still the top joint of the forefinger is slightly bent in wards. The palm of the hand does not though the bridge or the strings between the bridge and string holder. This is done to allow the sound waves, produced when a tone is hit, to carry on through the wood of the sound table as good as possible without being damped by the hand (Calace, Pettine and Ranieri). 5) The plectrum that was used for playing on Modern Italian mandolins played in the Neapolitan way by for instance Raffaele Calace and Alberto Bracony is made of a piece of thin tortoise shell or celluloid or (nowadays) made of plastic (last two kinds available in heavy, medium and light variants and in some examples there is a hole in the grip). 6) For playing the Roman Modern Mandolin Luigi Embergher had developed two different tortoise shell plectra which were advertised as: Specialità della Casa Embergher. Both examples are sharp pointed and were named by him as: 'Sistema Napolitao e Sistema Romano "Embergher", per concertisti'. It was his friend Silvio Ranieri who, at the very beginning of the 20th Century, perfected Emberghers long plectrum into an even longer two-pointed oval plectrum. The use of the long oval and two pointed Embergher/Ranieri Plectrum. To be able to play with this long and sharp pointed plectrum the following aspects of how to hold it must be taken in account: The seated position is the same as described in the Traditional Italian Style. The left hand thump is positioned in more or less the same way as on round-necked Modern Neapolitan Mandolins. The Modern Roman type only differing in that it has a "V"-shaped neck, so that the top joint of left hand thump is placed on the upper part of the "V". The narrow slightly curved fingerboard was developed especially to enable the player - once he/she has discovered the advantages of it- for tackling difficult chords and fast scale playing. The left hand is a more complicated matter. Embergher probably wanted his plectrum to be approached as the bow of a violin. The plectrum should be held very lightly between the thumb and the forefinger, as is the case with a bow, and only controlled (if necessary) by the rest of the fingers. If Embergher's instruments are examined one often sees similarities between the violin and the mandolin. For instance: the curved and extended fingerboard with 25 up to 29 (sometimes even up to 31) frets beneath the e' string. A precise idea of design after the fingerboard and bridge like that of the violin. All ideas with one goal in mind: that of the possibility to play the whole violin repertoire (inclusive the great violin concertos) on his instruments. It is therefore likely that Embergher had something special in mind with his oval plectrum design. By giving a close look on the many photo pictures that are left to us, taken of his friend Silvio Ranieri - one of the most celebrated mandolinist in Europe - we find a clue that that solves this mystery. Ranieri had moved permanently to Bruxelles in 1901, but kept a close and friendly relation with Embergher in Rome ever since. It is Ranieri, who perfected Embergher's plectrum design in an even longer oval plectrum (see picture at the bottom of the article, with the Ranieri, Calace and pettine plectra). On the pictures of Ranieri we see him holding his oval plectrum between the thump and forefinger in such a way that point of the plectrum, opposite the strings, is free to move up and down. In Ranieri's Theoretical Part on page V to XI of his celebrated method "L'Art de la Mandoline", publisched in 1925 by Aug. Cranz, we find a thoroughly explained and pictured explanation of how to handle the two pointed oval plectrum. His explanation about how to hold the plectrum is so detailed that I would like here to quote the maestro himself: 'How to hold the [Ranieri] plectrum. The plectrum has to be held between the tip of the forefinger and the first phalanx of the thumb in such a way that the thumb is about a centimetre beyond the forefinger. The forefinger must be [only slightly] curved in order to avoid pressure on the plectrum and the thumb must be stretched for the same reason. The other fingers, like the forefinger, must be curved. The tip of the middle finger lies alongside the first phalanx of the forefinger, that of the ring-finger beside the first phalanx of the middle finger while the little finger, shorter than all the others, rests against the middle of the second phalanx of the ring-finger. As emphasized in the case of the thumb and forefinger, all pressure must be avoided from the other fingers. This is the necessary condition for obtaining a fine rich tone. The plectrum must be able to oscillate freely and must retain the utmost elasticity. In playing, the plectrum must be held at right angles to the strings which must be struck with the flat side'. bout the right arm Ranieri mentions: 'The right forearm must be placed a little to the left of the strings, so that when the G-string is played the plectrum is at right angles to the string and strikes it with the flat side. As is the case with other stringed instruments, a usual mistake is to play with the arm. From the very beginning the pupil must take care not to move his arm but to play from the wrist which must be supple'. This, together with three photo pictures printed in his method point out the way Ranieri's plectrum had to be used. A long oval shaped plectrum that had to be held very loosely between the thumb and forefinger near it's point where one struck the strings. The outer side of the plectrum has to be able to move freely so that it can react as a kind of leverage, to every down and upstroke. The right hand middle- and ring finger are only sometimes bent inside the hand; most of the time they lay along side each other and surve as 'weight guides' for the plectrum, thumb and forefinger to ensure a steady movement of the hand.When this is well practised a very smooth, even and beautiful sound is gained from the mandolin.  I am happy that it is now possible trough Internet to show videotape on which this special and high-developed plectrum technique can be seen and heard. On the video the young Dutch mandolinist Sebastiaan de Grebber demonstrates in a partially recorded (3.47 min) Preludio No. II composed by Raffaele Calace, the use of the Ranieri plectrum.I would like to express my special gratitude to Mr. Raffaele Calace Jr. for his permission to show on the Internet the video with the Preludio No. II, composed by his Grandfather, Raffaele Calace. Thanks also to Sebastiaan de Grebber for his cooperation and fine playing and to Frido Kuijlman, first guitarist of the Mandolin Chamber Orchestra 'Het Consort' and our special Web master, for making it possible to publish this video on Internet. Last but not least my thanks to Mr. M. Pouwels, who recorded the public concert (April 2002) where Sebastiaanplayed Calace's second prelude on the mandolin.  Click here to view the video: 
http://www.mandolineorkest.nl/Calace...i_Plectrum.WMV 
reetings, Alex Timmerman 
PS. if you have a PC with XP on it downloading the video will be very 
quick and you'll be able to see the film almost immediately. For those 
who have older PC systems downloading can take a while.
Photo picture of the Ranieri, Calace and pettine plectra. 
Edited by Alex on Nov. 28 2002, 22:00 
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Joined: Oct. 2002Posted: Nov. 28 2002, 20:06
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Continuation of the previous article 'Bowl back playing styles & plectra 
use'.The 'New technique' of holding and playing the Modern German mandolin.As is practised on the German bowl back mandolin, strung with flat wound strings that are played with a thick rubber or plastic plectrum.1) The manner of holding the mandolin in a seated position is closely copied - for both hands - after that of the "Classical" guitar. This means that the mandolin is placed diagonal between the upper legs and that it is held in that position through the use of a footstool nder the left foot and by a synthetically cloth between the body and the bowl (back) of the mandolin.2) A high position of the right forearm leaning on the upper side near the base of the mandolin. The exact place where the right arm touches the edge of the sound box is about half way the forearm. The wrist of the right hand is angled slightly downwards.3) The down and up stroke are both controlled "go over to action" movements. Meant here is that the movement of the hand (and fore-finger) is very controlled by the wrist. The middle, ring and (to a lesser extent the little finger) are loosely fisted (bent inside the hand). The nail of the forefinger pointing (in a straight line) to the base of the mandolin. The palm of the hand does not thouch the bridge or the strings between the bridge and string holder. This is done to allow the sound waves, produced when a tone is hit, to carry on through the wood of the sound table as good as possible without being damped by the hand.4) The plectrum that is used for playing on this type of mandolin is made of thick rubber or (nowadays) a medium hard plastic. To prevent it from slipping away between the thumb and forefinger a big hole is made to have a better grip on the plectrum. Later examples have a hole that is surrounded by a circle of smaller holes to have an even better grip. For those who are interested and want to have a better understanding of the 'new technique' there is a detailed description explained by Mrs. 
Marga Wilden-Hüsgen in her 'Mandolinen Schule', published by Schott (ED 7268). 
Greetings, Alex Timmerman c. 
Edited by Alex on Nov. 28 2002, 22:00

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## Sean103

This is a great article. Very informative on the Italian style of playing and some of the differences of the German school. Thank you very much.

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