Writing for the theorbo in the 21st century
A portfolio of compositions and supporting materials, comprising scores, recordings, films, text files, and images.
- Submitting institution
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The University of Surrey
- Unit of assessment
- 33 - Music, Drama, Dance, Performing Arts, Film and Screen Studies
- Output identifier
- 9002505_1
- Type
- J - Composition
- Month
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- Year
- 2020
- URL
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https://ref2021uoa33portfolios_9002505_1.surrey.ac.uk/
- Supplementary information
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- Request cross-referral to
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- Output has been delayed by COVID-19
- No
- COVID-19 affected output statement
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- Forensic science
- No
- Criminology
- No
- Interdisciplinary
- No
- Number of additional authors
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- Research group(s)
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- Proposed double-weighted
- No
- Reserve for an output with double weighting
- No
- Additional information
- This portfolio demonstrates new ways to write for the theorbo, in solo, chamber, and concerto settings. Removed from its historical and geographical context, the theorbo can be freed to explore plural styles and genres, and extend its technical and musical horizons. Goss’s research draws on body-instrument interaction, here treating the instrument as a creative prosthesis at the intersection of technique and technology (De Souza, 2017).
For ‘The Miller’s Tale’, Goss developed techniques, gestures, chord shapes, and campanella patterns that significantly extended the soundworld of the theorbo. The concerto (the first written for the instrument) advanced the medium further through the use of mandolin-like plectrum tremolandi, bottleneck slides, harmonics, and strumming patterns. Goss exploited the full pitch range, inventing resonant textures in higher positions. In order to make these new techniques practicable, Goss and Wadsworth collaborated with Luthier Tony Johnson to design a more flexible set-up for the bridge, action, and fretboard of the theorbo. This considerably enhanced the instrument’s idiomatic possibilities. In order for the theorbo to be heard over a string orchestra, an innovative system for amplifying the theorbo was designed by Matthew Wadsworth and guitarist John Williams.
The collaborative process had to accommodate the fact that theorbist Wadsworth is blind. This involved writing software to translate music files into Braille tablature notation and finding new ways to share musical information via audio. This aspect of collaboration was developed further when working on ‘The Lake of Time’ with Dame Evelyn Glennie, who is deaf. ‘The Lake of Time’ is the first composition ever written for marimba and theorbo. It initiates a project to extend the role of the theorbo in a modern chamber music setting.
Jonathan Leathwood’s essay ‘Theorbo Concerto No.1’ and the series of short films included in the supporting material provide insight into the research process.
- Author contribution statement
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- Non-English
- No
- English abstract
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