Viola da Gamba Beginner Classes
I’ve finished a week of viola da gamba beginner lessons. They were given at the annual conclave of the Viola da Gamba Society of America, which was in Chicago this year. (http://www.vdgsa.org/pgs/conclave-2009/conclave.shtml#CLASSES)
I learned quite a bit I think, and I’m going to see if I can rent an instrument for a while and learn a bit more. I haven’t decided yet if I want to start adding strings to my instrument repertoire. The fingers on my left hand are already developing tough spots from the strings. Gut is a lot more forgiving than wire, though, and the frets make it a lot easier to find a note and play it in tune than on a violin.
I am pretty tired of the commute. 75 miles a day to go from home to lessons on the south side of Chicago, then to work, then home again. And an extra hour and a half in the car. I’m glad that part is over, even if I did have a lot of fun in class.