bout the Baryton

Baryton by Kurt Hoyer The Baryton is a stringed instrument and a close relative of the bass viol da gamba. Like the bass viol, it typically has six gut strings that are primarily played with a bow. Some later instruments have fewer strings, and some were converted into cellos. Some barytons have seven strings, although this is much less common than on the bass viol. The vast majority of barytons have a flat back, like a viol, as opposed to an arched back, like a cello. As with viols, there is considerable variation in the shape of the body of the baryton. In general the instruments do not have the full c shaped bout in the middle section that is common on viol da gambas. Rather, they have the angular top part of the c, which then slopes inward, and then gradually widens. The shape is suggestive of statues with truncated arms, narrow waists, and curved hips. Some barytons are similar to the festooned viols of John Rose, such as the one that is currently housed in the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. Baryton bodies are usually somewhat smaller than those of the consort bass viola da gamba, and are more comparable in size to a large tenor viol. The typical body of an early baryton is slightly longer than two feet in length. The lower part of the body is approximately 1 foot three inches wide. The ribs are approximately 4 inches deep. The feature that distinguishes barytons from viols and other instruments is the set of metal strings that run behind the fingerboard and neck, and underneath the bowed strings. These were not just aliquot strings, vibrating sympathetically, they were designed to be plucked with the thumb of the left hand. They can be used to play a bass line while the bowed strings are tacet. Skilled performers can play a melody on the bowed strings, and accompany themselves with a bass line on the plucked strings. Some instruments had as few as 9 plucked strings, while others had as many as 25. To accommodate these strings, the necks of barytons are usually fairly wide. There is a flat piece of wood that runs parallel to the strings, as well as a somewhat more traditional neck on which the fingerboard is attached.

The development of the Baryton

From a modern vantage point the baryton seems to have developed from the viol, through the lyra viol, and into the baryton. However, as is commonly the case, there is a paucity of historical records of sufficient detail, and its development is not wholly clear. The following paragraphs will consider some of the common features of the instruments.

Let us first consider some of the physical characteristics of the instruments. The mid to late sixteenth century was a time of great innovation in the creation of stringed instruments. The violin was in its early development during this period. Luthiers were experimenting with the size and shape of instruments. An example of the latter are the festooned viols of John Rose. In England they were creating small bass viola da gambas, which were known as lyra viols. The small size of the lyra viol is something that it has in common with the baryton, and is one reason to believe that the lyra viol influenced the development of the baryton. There were many experiments with size and shape during this period. For example, violins were created that were the size of cellos. The common size and shape of lyra viols and barytons should be regarded as significant. If they were unrelated, barytons could have assumed a wildly different size or shape from lyra viols.

In addition to these physical similarities, lyra viols and baryton are characterized by literature that features polyphonic writing for the instruments. This is another reason to believe that the lyra viol influenced the development of the baryton. The term lyra has a long and rich history dating back to ancient Greece. During the late fifteenth and early sixteenth century the term had many meanings. From Johannes Tinctoris' De Inventione et Usu Musice we know that a lyra is popularly called a lute. The term was also used to refer to other instruments. Sebastian Virdung in his treatise Musica getuscht of 1511, uses the term to refer to a hurdy gurdy, a stringed instrument that is characterized by a drone. There was also the lira da braccio and lira da gamba / lirone. The former was akin to a large violin and typically had seven strings, two of which were dones. The latter was larger in size, more akin to a viol da gamba. Some surviving instruments had as many as sixteen strings. All of these instruments were associated with polyphonic music, and so the term lyra itself became associated with polyphony. In this respect the lyra viol was aptly named. The lyra viols smaller size, and flatter bridge (as noted by Christopher Simpson in his book The Division-Violist of 1659) made them more suitable to play polyphonic music than traditional viols. (You can imagine the difficulty of trying to play chords on a guitar that has the string length of a cello, and thus the desire to have a viol with a shorter string length. This is not to say that it is not possible and people do play polyphony on bass viol da gambas. However, the smaller size of the lyra viol just makes it easier.) In 1542, Sylvestro Ganassi published Regola Rubertina and Lettione Seconda, the first extant works on the technique of playing the viol da gamba. In addition to technique, the books includes several ricercar that have some simple polyphonic passages. Thus we see a desire to play polyphonic music on bowed instruments, and changes in the design of the instruments to facilitate such playing. It is not surprising to find that over the course of the next century and a half, volumes of polyphonic music were written for the lyra viol. The literature for the baryton was also characterized by polyphony.

In the late sixteenth or early seventeenth century sympathetic strings were added to some lyra viols. These would run underneath the fretboard, and would ring when the other strings were bowed. John Playford cites Daniel Farrant as the luthier who first added these strings to the lyra viol. Farrant worked in the late sixteenth century. Peter Edney and George Gill were granted a petition in 1609 for sympathetic strings on a viol. In the law of that time, this petition was similar to what we now call a patent. Michael Praetorius writes of an English viol with sympathetic strings. In 1627 Francis Bacon wrote in his Sylva Sylvarum of viols with sympathetic strings. Similarly, in 1635, Marin Mersene wrote of them as well. (It is notable that many of these sources are English or reference music in England.) Thus we see in the lyra viol many of the aspects of the baryton, including its size, polyphonic music, and sympathetic strings.

Despite all the aforementioned similarities, there is still the crucial difference between lyra viols and barytons, the plucked strings. In 1644, Mersene wrote in his Cogitata Physico-Mathematica that there was a viol or lyre with strings that were made of metal that ran underneath the fingerboard and were plucked with the thumb. This is considered the first document to describe the baryton. Mersene specifically mentions that King James of England admired this instrument. This places in the instrument in England prior to 1625, the end of his reign. From his text, we see that at that time, the baryton as a type of instrument was not designated by a name. One may surmise that the categories were not particularly rigid or well defined. However, the description did mention the plucked strings, setting it apart from other instruments and defining it.

Before we leave the topic of the lyra viol, it should be noted that the baryton did not supersede the lyra viol. In addition, other instruments that were similar to the lyra viol, such as the viola d'amore, were used in the Baroque period. (The viola d'amore was something akin to a small lyra viol. It had six strings, and sometimes had sympathetic strings. It was played somewhat like a violin, but held against the breast, as it was larger than a violin. It did not have frets. The instruments commonly had a head carved at the top of the pegbox that was blindfolded. This represented the blindness of love, and again references its name amore.) Thus, the baryton should not be seen as an evolution of the lyra viol, but rather a distinct type of instrument, and coexisted with instruments with sympathetic strings.

The term Baryton

The origin of the name baryton is not known. As is very common of the time, there are multiple spellings of its name. Some of them include barytone, baritono, baritone, and barretone. The instrument was also known by various similar names, one of which was the viola da pardon (paredon, paradon, paridon, pariton) There is a legend that it was so named after a condemned prisoner invented it. He was pardoned on account of the beauty of the instrument. Thus, the instrument became known as the viola da pardon. In Italy the baryton was known as the viola da burdone or bordone. Bordone means pilgrim's staff. In French it is known as bourdone. In English it is called burden, or burthen. Bordone has several musical meanings the first of which is drone. Thus, its name could be descriptive of the drone of the sympathetic strings. Its second meaning is a low pitched string, particularly ones that were not fretted, such as the bass strings on a lute. Again, this is very fitting of the baryton, as it has low pitched metal strings. Other definitions relate to polyphony, and the sound of a bumblebee both of which are relevant to the baryton.

Of Sympathetic Strings and Rustic Music

The addition of sympathetic strings brings to mind Medieval instruments, such as the vielle, and the organistrum, which could play drones and whose open strings could sound sympathetically. Sympathetic strings and drones stand apart from truly polyphonic music, as they sound constantly and do not change pitches to obey rules of consonance. Sometimes sympathetic strings and drones become part of the gestalt sound and function more as a part of the overall timbre, than as an individual voice. An example of this is the quinte flute organ stop which existed in the sixteenth century. It sounds two pitches that are a fifth apart. These are usually not heard as two separate voices, but rather merge into one single voice. Other times, drones and sympathetic strings are treated more like a voice, such as in a pedal point. With regard to these two functions, the metal strings on the baryton severed both functions. Leopold Mozart wrote in his text Versuch einer gründlichen Violinschule that the term bordone means drone and also references the humming of bees. He states that its name is descriptive of its tone. The metal strings on the baryton were of course used to play melodies and thus also served the role of a separate voice.

Before we leave the topic of sympathetic strings we should consider their social context. Drones and sympathetic strings are commonly associated with rustic music. Drones are common on bagpipes and have been used on such instruments since the 13th century. Bagpipes in particular were associated with pastoral settings. Vielles were used in secular music. In the early seventeenth century, rustic elements were en vogue in the courts of France. This begs to question, how strong the association of the baryton with rustic culture actually was? Viols were commonly used by the nobility, whereas the new class of instruments, violins, were more closely associated with working class that played music.

The History of the Baryton

Let us now return to the history of the baryton. Despite the fact that there are many sources of English origin that reference the lyra viol, we find that the earliest surviving barytons were made in Germany. The earliest extant Baryton resides in the Royal College of Music in London. However, it was made by Magnus Feldlen of Vienna in 1647. None of the extant instruments were made in England. In fact, most of the surviving barytons, not just the early ones, are of German origin. The historical significance of this is not clear. Is this an indication that the baryton was not popular in England, despite the use of lyra viols and the comment that King James liked the instrument? Was there a change of taste after the civil war? It is an indication that the English instruments were destroyed? Is it an indication of the wealth of the German region, to support the manufacture of such instruments? Was there something about the instrument that made it particularly appealing to Germans, and less so to people from other countries?

Fewer than fifty baryton that were made prior to the twentieth century are known to have survived to this day. The earliest baryton had concave lower boughs, the bottom of the instrument that points toward the floor when it is being played. During the early eighteenth century, the typical shape of the bottom bough became convex with two lobes. The soundholes on barytons take a variety of shapes. A few have the old fashioned c shape, as were typical on English viols. An example is the early eighteenth century instrument by Paulus Alletse of Munich, which now resides in the Musikhistopisna Musset in Copenhagen. Many instruments have soundholes that look like commas. There are usually four such soundholes, two on each side of the instrument. The upper two comma shaped holes are inverted. These comma shaped holes are sometimes referred to as being flame shaped. Some instruments have holes that are in the shape of a single flame, such as the one by Joachim Tielke of 1686. This shape has also been called the sword of Islam, as it has has a small handle like hole pointing down, and a larger sword like hole pointing up.

The surviving barytons vary in construction. Some are very plain, while others are highly ornate. One particularly ornate instrument was made by Jacob Steiner, and another was made by Jacques Sanprae. The Steiner instrument was made in the town of Absam in 1647. It is now in Germanishes Nationalmuseum Nuremberg. It has purfling of alternating colors, a rosette which is placed underneath the fingerboard, and a finial with two heads. The instrument by Jaques Sanprae dates from circa 1720. Despite his name, he was working in Berlin. It has inlay on the fingerboard and tailpiece, and a finial of figure with a lyre. The instrument is now in Victoria and Albert Museum.

Some makers are represented by several instruments. There are two by Magnus Feldlen, the one mentioned above from 1647, and another one from approximately 1650 which resides in the knusthistorishes Museum in Vienna. Both Daniel Achatius Stadlmann and his son Johann Josef Stadlmann have serveral instruments that survive. This is not surprising, as the family were prominent violin makers in Vienna. Johann was appointed as the violin maker of the imperial court in Vienna. One of Daniel's barytons was destroyed in world war two, while two others survived. One was made in 1715 and is now in the collection of Leipzig University. The other was made in 1732 and is on loan from Gesellshaft Musicfreund Vienna. Three of Johann's barytons survive. One from 1750, which was owned by Prince Esterházy, and is in the Magyar Nemzeti Museum in Budapest. The second is from 1767(9) and is in the Narodni Museum in Prague. The last is from 1779 and is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

By all accounts the baryton was never a very popular instrument. It would in all likelihood be relegated to the list of obscure instruments if it was not for Prince Nikolaus Esterházy, who played the instrument. He employed numerous musicians in his court, one of whom was Franz Joseph Haydn. Haydn composed a set of trios for the instrument, known as the Baryton trios, and are the most famous works for the instrument. The majority are scored for viola, baryton, and cello. The remainder exchange the viola for a violin. He also composed various other duets and other chamber music for the baryton.

In addition to Haydn, there are surviving compositions by three composers who wrote works for Baryton for Prince Esterházy: Anton Neumann, Joseph Burgksteiner (Purksteiner), and Alois Luigi Tomasini. Neumann and Burgksteiner both wrote 24 divertimenti that are scored for viola, baryton, and cello. Anton Neumann was born in Brno in the second quarter of the 18th century. He died November 21, 1776. His divertimenti extensively utilized the plucked strings. Joseph Burgksteiner was a violinist, and also a bass singer in the Esterházy chapel until 1790. Only some of his divertimenti used the plukced strings. Alois Luigi Tomasini was employed at Esterházy, and eventually rose to become the concert master. He wrote 24 divertimenti and one Diventimenti Noctoruno. His all but 6 of his 24 divertimenti were for violin, baryton, and cello. This is not surprising as violin was his primary instrument. Tomasini's trios do not use the plucked strings on the baryton.

Karl Franz and Anton Kraft were also musicians in Esterházy's court, played the baryton, and wrote works for it. Other musicians in the Esterházy court who were identified as writing works for the baryton include Joseph Weigl, Joseph Eybler, Ferdinando Paer, Primitio Niemecz (a composition student of Haydn) and Wenzel Pichl. Sadly, no works by any of these composers survive.

In addition to the works for Esterházy, there is a small repertoire for the instrument. There is a manuscript from 1614 that now resides in the Russian Academy of Sciences in Saint Petersburg. It contains 204 works of anonymous authorship, and 27 of them are for the baryton. The remainder of the works are for the lute. This is significant, as it shows the relation between the instruments. The works include dances that were common at the time, such as allemandes, courantes, and sarabands. There are also preludes that are through composed, and that are typified by arpeggiated chords. The last type of work are variations on a theme.

Another set of works is contained in the Kassel collection. It is in the Murhardische Bibliothek der Stad Kassel. It dates from the second half of the seventeenth century. It contains 57 works, of which 53 are for the baryton. 42 of the works are anonymous. The identified composers include:

W.R.
Pierre Gautier
Germain Pinelle
John Jenkins
Dietrich Steffkens
William Young

Like the St. Petersberg manuscript, this one contains many dances including: allemande, courrante, saraband, gigue, and gavotte. There are some works that are related to dancing such as the mascarade, masque, and ballet. In addition there are preludes to precede the dances, as well as other forms that are related, such as libertars.

Johann Georg Krause wrote 9 partitas (literally a party) for solo baryton circa 1700. The dance forms present in the partitas include allemande, courante, sarabande, gavotte, bouree, minuet, and ballet.

Johan Joseph Fux's aria Non T ’Amo from II Ponte della Salute calls for a baryton.

Some of the later works are from the early nineteenth century. They include 6 canzonetti italiani and 5 notturni by Vinzenzo Hauschka.

For more information on the baryton, I direct you to the monograph on the subject, "A History of the Baryton and Its Music: King of Instruments, Instrument of Kings", by Carol A. Gartrell. She wrote her Ph.D. dissertation on the instrument, and has continued her research of it through out her career.

The following photographs of the instrument on this page were generously donated by Andreas B. The instrument itself was made by Kurt Hoyer in the 1970s.

front of pegbox of baryton by Kurt Hoyer

We have been incrediably fortunate and have acquired a baryton that was made by George Kelischek in the 1970s. It has 6 bowed strings and 9 plucked strings. The fingerboard and tailpiece have a beautiful inlayed pattern. There is a capital at the top of the instrument. The instrument was owned by one of the early members of the Viola Da Gamba Society of America. We acquired it from its second owner who was president of the organization. (We have not named either individual. If they approve, we may provide more detail regarding its history.)