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The Viola da Gamba (the violin of the leg)

 

First played at the end of the 15th century, the viola da gamba became one of the most popular instruments of the Renaissance and the Baroque, finally disappearing from use in the middle of the 18th century.

Played at court and at home, and used by amateur and professional musicians alike, it was played in consorts, with other instruments, with voices, and as a vistuoso solo instrument.

The viola da gamba family is made up of many different sizes of instruments, from the smallest pardessus de viole, which is the size of a violin, to the violone, which is as big as a contrabass. The instrument played in Ensemble Galilei is the bass viola da gamba which looks a lot like a 'cello. The differences between the violin family and the viola da gamba family are that most of these instruments have six strings (the violin family has four) and all of them are held between the legs instead of under the chin.

Violin image


The bow is also held differently from the violin, and the viola da gamba has frets like a guitar, but these frets are moveable. So, while it is a bowed string instrument, it is more related to the guitar family than the violin. For instance, guitars have six strings and so does the gamba. Guitars have frets and so does the gamba, and the tuning is very similar.

In the Renaissance and Baroque the women and men of court were well versed in all of the arts and sciences including music and dance so when someone played a piece that was extremely difficult, everyone knew exactly how amazing it was because they too could play. Because musicianship was a road to higher social standing, there were many "how to play" books available and these were called treatises. Published in Spain, in Italy, England, and France, these books not only could tell us about how to hold the instrument and the bow, but also tell us about the music of the day and how to improvise and play ornaments.

The viola da gamba was particularly well suited for small ensembles. It's quality of sound and resonance lent richness to both vocal and instrumental groups. When larger ensembles became the rage (when Mozart and Haydn started writing symphonies) the viola da gamba went out of style and all but disappeared. There has been a resurgence in the popularity of this instrument in this century, as people have tried to recreate music as it may once have been heard, long ago.

 

Bagpipe • Celtic Harp • Fiddle • Oboe, Recorder and Pennywhistle

Percussion • Viola da Gamba • Useful Terms