The viola da gamba

The Viola da Gamba was born at the beginning of the 16th Century from the union of two families, both of Arab extraction-the lute (plucked) and the rebec (bowed instrument and precursor of the violin). It first appeared in Renaissance Italy and Spain and was immediately very popular.

Viola da gamba means literally ‘leg viol’, describing the way it is held. Sometimes it is simply referred to as the ‘gamba’ or ‘viol’.

Like the guitar or lute, the gamba has frets which help the player position the fingers to accurately stop the notes. Sometimes you will see the gambist adjusting the frets to improve the tuning.

Most viols have six or seven strings, so they can play chords, like a lute. The gamba can also play beautiful melodies in imitation of the human voice, which was the ideal sound in baroque music.

The more bold and brilliant character of the violin eventually won out over the poignantly expressive and plaintive tones of the gamba, and by late 18th century it had become obsolete. If you enjoy these sounds, look out for the French film Tous les Matins du Monde, which is a very moving story about the 17th-18th century French gambist Marin Marais and his teacher Colombe. It is beautifully filmed and contains much music played on the gamba.

The viola da gamba played by Asako Morikawa was made in England around 1650.