Arpeggione

Arpeggione
Arpeggione built in 1968 by Henning Aschauer following specifications of Alfred Lessing.
String instrument
Classification Bowed string instrument
Hornbostel–Sachs classification321.322-71
(Composite chordophone sounded by a bow)
Developed1823
Related instruments

The arpeggione is a six-stringed musical instrument fretted and tuned like a guitar, but with a curved bridge so it can be bowed like a cello, and thus similar to the bass viola da gamba. The instrument is sometimes also called a guitar violoncello.[1] The body shape of the arpeggione is, however, more similar to a medieval fiddle than either the guitar or the bass viol. It is essentially a bass viol with a guitar-type tuning, E–A–d–g–b–e' . The arpeggione is especially suited to playing runs in thirds, double stops, and arpeggios.[1]

It enjoyed a brief period of popularity for perhaps a decade after its invention around 1823 by the Viennese instrument luthiers Johann Georg Stauffer and Peter Teufelsdorfer. The only notable extant piece for the arpeggione is a sonata with piano accompaniment by Franz Schubert, D.821, not published until 1871, when the instrument was long out of vogue. This sonata is now commonly played on the cello or viola, and many other instruments have received transcriptions as well.

In the 21st century, a revival of interest in the arpeggione has led to the composition of a number of new works either for the instrument alone or within an ensemble.

Composers who have written the largest number of works include the American Dov Joshua Rosenschein,[2] France's Grégory Guéant,[3] and René Mogensen[4] from Denmark.

Contemporary designs of viol-like instruments have similarities to the arpeggione, and at least one (the GuitarViol) was directly influenced by Stauffer's arpeggione.[5][6]

  1. ^ a b "Arpeggione]arpeggione". oxford music online. Retrieved 15 September 2016.
  2. ^ Dov Joshua Rosenschein holds a degree in composition from New York City's Mannes School of Music and is currently involved in that discipline as a major part of his professional work.[1] Accessed 17 November 2019.
  3. ^ Grégory Guéant is a French composer and pianist who graduated from the Université de Lille where he currently holds a professorial position.
  4. ^ "René Mogensen". Birmingham City University. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
  5. ^ "History of the GuitarViol". TogaMan GuitarViols. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  6. ^ "Our Story". TogaMan GuitarViols. 14 December 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2017.