A practical exploration of the historical fingerings of Baroque Recorders in England, France and Germany
(2016)
author(s): Koske Nozaki
Limited publication. Only visible to members of the portal : KC Research Portal
Name: Koske Nozaki
Main Subject: Recorder
Research Supervisors: Inês de Avena Braga and Peter Van Heyghen
Title of Research:
A practical exploration of the historical fingerings of Baroque Recorders in England, France and Germany
Research Question:
What is “historical fingering” for Baroque recorders, and how does it work and affect our modern recorder performance practice.
Summary of Results:
The recorder was an important instrument in the Early Music revival, partly due to its large repertoire of Baroque music. However, most recorder players today do not use the instruments that were most commonly used in the Baroque period, i.e. those with historical fingering systems. Instead, we normally use instruments with “modern fingering,” a slight modification that simplifies fingerings and homogenizes notes. With our modern instruments and their different fingering systems, several notes and trills do not work with the existing fingering charts for Baroque recorders. The Investigation of this research, on 7 actual original 18th century recorders from England, Germany, and France, and 40 fingering charts from historical methods shows us; it is a very logical system. The people at the time were playing the recorders in a different way, with differently tuned instruments. Fingerings on the recorder have always been found by trial and error, by players, with their own comfort and ease in mind. Though it is clearly not possible to know how the people in the Baroque period were choosing their fingerings; the best approximation is to have the same instrument tuned in the same system from the time. Historical tutors allow us to realize how their system of thought was different, which helps us to get closer to them. A bit of effort to accept the valuable tips from centuries past, with a taste for authenticity on the Baroque-fingered recorder, is a necessity.
Biography:
Koske Nozaki (Tokyo, 1988) began playing recorder at the age of 9. He loved the friendliness of such a simple flute with so many possibilities, and had a lot of curiosity for repertoire and the instrument itself. His school life at a beautiful seaside was focused on the recorder ensemble with his friends, which taught him a lot of basic musical knowledge. In his high school life, on a mountain this time, he learned not only recorder, but cello in the school orchestra as well. He studied recorder and Early Music performance at The National Tokyo University of Fine Arts and Music, where he obtained his Bachelor degree. After three years of working as a recorder player and teacher in Japan, he moved to The Netherlands in 2014. He is currently completing his Master’s degree at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague, where he studies recorder and baroque flute.
The violin-type fingering and oblique left hand position in the history of cello technique
(2015)
author(s): Paulina Ptak
published in: KC Research Portal
Name: Paulina Ptak
Main Subject: Baroque Cello
Research Coaches: Maggie Urquhart, Job ter Haar
Title of Research: The violin-type fingering and oblique left hand position in the history
of cello technique
Research Question: what were the possible reasons for the application of diatonic
fingerings and violin-like left hand position in the history of the cello technique?
Summary of Results:
Before 1800, cellists did not have a consistent manner for fingering scales with the left
hand. From the origins of the instrument till the beginning of the nineteenth century
different systems were used. One of the styles seemed to be more identified with the
violin than with the cello technique. It was represented by fingering and left hand
position, different than used today. By looking at the history of development of the cello
fingering I will try to answer questions about possible reasons of applying violin-like
fingering on the cello. I will examine methods employed on early bass instruments, much
debated system proposed by Corrette, and Lanzetti’s and Baumgartner’s approach which
transitions the diatonic and chromatic systems. I will see how Romberg and others, even
though fingering had evolved to the final level, applied oblique violin-like, left hand
position until the beginnings of twentieth century. Finally I will look at the examples
from cello repertoire which contain fingerings, and I will analyze them in terms of the
system used and possible ways of execution.
Biography:
Paulina Ptak embarked upon her musical education in two of the most important Polish
musical centres – the city of Cracow and Wroclaw. After completing her Master’s
degree, she decided to specialise in baroque, classical and early romantic repertoire
performed on authentic instruments. Her motivation to a historically informed approach
was inspired by the unique timbre of period instruments. Currently she studies baroque
cello for a Master’s degree with Jaap ter Linden. Paulina is interested in the history of
cello technique from eighteenth until twentieth century.