Matthew Jones 
tiorba.eu BerlinWelcome to www.tiorba.eu ! I play the baroque guitar and theorbo in old and new music, and other guitars too. My baroque guitar - italian: chitarra spagnola, and theorbo - italian: tiorba were both made by Ivo Magherini, Matthew Cellan Jones.
photo: Yvette Thormann
2012
12 May
1 - 8 June Tour with the Stuttgarter Hymnus-Chorknaben - Gransee, Berlin, Prenzlau, Helsingör, Kopenhagen, Lübeck
7 Juli Motzen Follia, Ciaconna, Passacaglia Matt Jones - Theorbo, Baroque guitar Popular songs and dances in popular form, variation and fantasy - Anon., Foscarini, Castaldi, Piccinini, Bartolotti
May - October
Juli. Opera in Potsdam
13 Mar. 2010 Tiorba Sola - Nachtmusik im Radial System V
" O wie schön. Das Liegen entführt uns in den Bereich zwischen Wachen und Schlafen, die musikalischen Figuren auf der Theorbe schrauben sich virtuos immer weiter in den Himmel hoch. Wir mögen das. "
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Alcina | Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater Schwerin 2009 / 2010
" Matthew Jones begleitete Rezitative und Arien mit virtuoser Phantasie auf der Theorbe "
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12 / 13 Apr. 2010 Affekt Heischerei - Zeitfenster im Radial System V
" Mit einem soave, weich, zu spielenden Theorbenstück von Bellerofonte Castaldi (1580–1649) begann der Abend und bot sogleich den Reiz, das ewige basso-continuo-Instrument einmal virtuos solistisch zu hören...
Nadja Zwiener spielte schier genial auf der Barockvioline, ebenso Matthew Cellan Jones auf den Zupfinstrumenten... "
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Il Chittarron, ò Tiorba, che dire la vogliamo deve suonarsi in conserto con piene, & soavi consonanze..Agazzari, Siena 1607
Size | Strings | Posture | Piccinini - technique | Agazzari - accompanying and ornamentingAn instrument of the right size Italian Theorboes, Tiorbi, were big - mine is 88cm + 167.5cm. It could have been a bit bigger - 91cm but 88cm is in the right range. Small theorboes are not big enough to sound rich and bright, however they are lighter to carry around.
Holding the instrument The majority of paintings and engravings of lute instruments being played show the corpus of the instrument to be over the right leg - not resting inside the right leg. Playing with a strap tied tight enables the corpus to be further to the right which has many benefits: it brings the left arm closer to the body, opens up the chest, enables the shoulders to be open and the arms relaxed, produces a freer vibration from the whole corpus and the open dancer-like torso enables better energy flow.
Strings I do not like the sound of wound strings! A big Tiorba needs no wound strings, (indeed they were designed in the absence of this technology) and it seems that there is no evidence to support their use on lutes. I use NG and gut - though sadly today's gut strings are often not good enough, and in experimenting with Toro strings (in my opinion the best of the gut strings available) the new fingerboard NG from Aquila sounds almost identical, the new NGE stretches way too much. In the past the strings were immersed in olive oil for a long time before being sold. I tried this with my diapasons (6 months in oil): the result - a hard and flexible string that stays in tune for the duration of a concert and lasted a good 5 years. Playing on gut taught me to treat the strings with the care, especially as I play with nails. I have particularly taken inspiration from Piccinini's instructions:
Piccinini and the Right Hand Technique
The beginning position (1) is halfway between the bridge and the rose when we play with this stroke: the nails on the right hand are certainly long but not too long so that when playing in this position the fingertip flesh can push the string or course (string pair) into the belly and upon release the 2 strings of the course will leave the nail at the same time. I interperet this to mean that the string or course is depressed first with the flesh and then glides over the nail for release. This is not the only stroke or position for the right hand! When the hand is very close to the bridge then the string /course is struck with the tip of the nail creating a sound that is argentine.
The little finger stays down at all times: when in position (1) the little finger rests on the belly where it falls. When the hand is closer to the bridge we can reason that the little finger can be on the other side of the bridge. (This can be seen often in the iconography and is the beginner's position for the 13 course lute (Baron)). Inference: as the hand moves towards the bridge the string becomes stiffer therefore more nail can be safely employed. The advanced player is able to use a gradation of flesh / nail on the string over this continuum creating a variety of colours. The right hand thumb is very stretched out and should not have a long nail, "in my opinion." If the thumb ought not have a long nail then the angle at which the thumb touches the string needs to be one where it would, if it were long (as long as that of the fingers). Piccinini says "in my opinion" this implies that there were those who did use a long nail and that he did not reccomend it.
Thumb outside technique is taught (as with all other modern (as of c. 1600) tutors for the lute.) This means that the sinews that connect the thumb to the hand need to be stretched even more so as to allow the thumb to reach the low basses and always plays rest-stroke when playing the bass. The thumb should stretch well outside the index finger when playing p i scales. One should endeavour to match the strokes so that they sound even and it should be used where ever possible ! The playing of scales p i was still reccomended (it works well and is fast.) But i m sounds so good that one should use it where ever possible. Piccinini is recommending a hybrid technique ! There are many places in his, Castaldi's and Kapsperger's music where this is the only sensible option, and there are some telling passages where they have notated where one should switch from the old p i to the new i m technique.
Gruppi sound best when played with one finger! the index - with the nail (like spanish dedillo) but no one does it well up till now (1623) ! So Castaldi and Kapsperger didn't do it that way! They often slurred on one string or plucked (p i) across strings (campanella). Piccinini says that to do it p i goes very fast, but he is proud of one finger technique and says that all the other ways sound insipid ! vivi contento mcj
Agazzari
The theorbo, along with the harp and lute are „perfect“ instruments (ie. capable of playing complete counterpoint) suitable for providing the fundament „in occasion di poche e soli voci“. A theorbo alone is a fine accompaniment for songs, duets, violin sonatas with one or two canti etc.
When playing the fundament the function is the „keep the tenor and the harmony firm“ (the tenor is what we today call the bassline) with good clear counterpoint „sonorous and continuous, not resounding the strings too much while the voice makes a passeggio or some affect so as not to interrupt it.” The advice to keep the accompaniment “low” so as not to interfere with the voices is almost always ensured on the theorbo because of its low tessitura in contrast to the cembalo, harp and lute. In my opinion this means it is good to use the entire range of the theorbo in its fundament role – it is good to allow one's voice-leading to climb up and down the fingerboard as Castaldi's examples show.
In an ornamental role, “to season the concert” the theorbo may do all that the lute does and more. Agazzari complains that some do too much, pleasing only their hands with “diminutions from beginning to end”! The list of desired ornaments: “...hora con botte, e ripercosse dolci; hor con passagio largo, et hora stretto, e raddoppiate, poi con qualche sbordonata, con belle gare e perfidie, repetendo, e cavando le medesime fuge in diverse corde, e luoghi; in somma con lunghi gruppi e trilli, et accenti à suo tempo, intrecciare le voci, che dia vaghezza al conserto, e gusto, e diletto all'uditori...” Quite a list! Chords, echoes, fast and slow diminutions with self-similar imitations, trills, gruppi... all interlaced to give delight to the listener. Added to this the theorbist should take advantage of the basses – restriking them and playing passeggi on them lightly – and with an active left hand, “con trilli, et accenti muti”. The mutedness in my opinion is a reference to the sound of these effects being slurred with the left hand (the lower hand) as opposed to plucked out with the right.
Aggazari is particulary concerned however that all of this is done with intelligence and art. He does not wish to hear just a "mix and confusion"!
I believe that the 17th century guitarists played with nails. We know from Corbetta that he had to cancel a concert due to a broken fingernail. Historical rasguedo only sounds well with fingernails as almost all the work is done with the right index finger - it's downward stroke sounds better with a nail. This micro rasguedo allows the hand to simulanteously pluck out the melody. Other patterns involve the thumb and index - ↑ = index strumming towards the floor, ⇓= thumb coming up.
Here is a battery: ↑ ⇑ ⇓ ↓ performed by rotating the forearm - the finger and thumb can remain still.
This pattern can be elongated in 3: ↑ ⇑ ⇓ ↓ ↑ ↓
These patterns can be decorated with double-time i and m bursts m↑ i↑ m↓ i↓
I believe that delicacy was aimed for in strumming, varying the speed and depth of stroke. It seems to me that we must remember that it should be gut strings, and that hacking into them is not something that a 17th century guitar player would do - there goes a set in the rubbish bin! I believe we should take care to pluck and strum in a non-destructive way! I most enjoy the 1st book of Bartolotti for its full use of chords with melodies - here the top note of the chord that connects the melody is marked in the tab. All the voices that can held should be, aiming for a complete voicing.
Bartolotti's music is intensely passionate and rich in variety. His second book, c. 1655 is in a new style. Bartolotti manages to be at the vanguard of Musical style, he seems to be inventing the Baroque - synthesising the french and italian styles - brilliant!
This is a most personal, innovative and engaging music, combining rasgueado and melody in a new and exciting way. We have to wonder how he came up with this in Florence in 1640. It would seem that those guitarists, theorbists and lutenists of italy that were at the top of their class developed their own way of composition and technique in order to distinguish themselves in competition for work. This competition of virtuosi created a hot-house of musical innovation driving the evolution of musical styles in the 17th century.
Matthew Cellan Jones was born in Perth, Australia and grew up in an artistic family with a musical bent. His first tuition in the classical guitar began at age 9 with John Casey. His precociousness lead to a private stipend at age 10. He received numerous awards for solo peformance as a child, then played in national and international competitions before he was drawn to the lute. Whilst studying composition, musicology and analysis at UWA he taught himself the baroque lute and played continuo in Alcina in the Festival of Perth. The Music School then purchased a theorbo for him to learn, autodidactically.
He also played electric guitar in bands, impro and contemporary music and music for dance. He painted. In 1999 he was invited to the festival les femmes s'en mêlent with Sophie Moleta in Paris. He then moved to London and worked to buy a theorbo for one year as a bartender. He was invited to record on Andreas Scholl's Vivaldi - Nisi Dominus album with the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra. Later he decided to study and was fortunate to gain an exceptional comprehensive scholarship to study at the GSMD with William Carter. In 2001, Matthew worked closely with composer Jonathan Dove on writing for the theorbo for Dove's opera L'altra Euridice, and performed in the premiere, in the Musica Nel Chiostro opera festival in Batignano, Italy in 2002. Completing his Master's Degree in 2002, he then moved to Germany. His instruments are made by Ivo Magherini - it was with them that the work of learning to play fine instruments true to the organology of the 17th century began!
Matthew now lives in Berlin and specialises in the italian Tiorba, french Théorbe and the 17th century guitar. Matt likes to quietly observe nature, and he finds pleasure in the observation of music and the possibility of bringing back to life the way of the old masters on their theorboes and guitars. He regularly performs solo concerts - Botanical Gardens in Berlin, RADIAL SYSTEM V, Schweriner Dom etc. He performs with Capella Vitalis Berlin and played with diverse period orchestras. He accompanies Nadja Zwiener - baroque violin, leader of The English Concert in duo - specialising in the intimate violin sonatas of 17th century Italy, Bohemia and Germany. He enjoys working with countertenor Valer Barna-Sabadus and various collaborations with composers and crossover projects. He collaborated with Sven-Ingo Koch on how to set music to the theorbo premiered Koch's Zwei Kleine Szenen for obligato theorbo and ensemble in Festival Zeitfenster, Berlin 2010. His love of the classical guitar continues in the form of compositions with Superfreud and teaching children and the Berlin International School.