a complete introduction to the art of playing the mandoline

22
Leone 1 A Complete Introduction to the Art of Playing the Mandoline Containing the most essential rules and examples for learners to obtain a proficiency. To which are added a pleasing variety of Airs, Lessons, Duets & Sonatas composed, and judiciously arranged for that instrument By Sigr. Leoni of Naples Master of the Mandoline to the Duke de Chartres London Printed by Longman and Broderip No. 26 Cheapside and No. 13 Hay Market [Transcribed (2017) by mandogio from a print edition held in the Library of Congress. This transcription may be shared electronically or in hard copy but may not be sold in any fashion.]

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Page 1: A Complete Introduction to the Art of Playing the Mandoline

Leone 1

ACompleteIntroductiontotheArtofPlayingtheMandoline

Containingthemostessentialrulesandexamplesforlearnerstoobtaina

proficiency.TowhichareaddedapleasingvarietyofAirs,Lessons,Duets&Sonatascomposed,andjudiciouslyarrangedforthatinstrument

By

Sigr.LeoniofNaplesMasteroftheMandolinetotheDukedeChartres

London

PrintedbyLongmanandBroderipNo.26CheapsideandNo.13HayMarket

[Transcribed(2017)bymandogiofromaprinteditionheldintheLibraryofCongress.Thistranscriptionmaybesharedelectronicallyorinhardcopybutmaynotbesoldinanyfashion.]

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PrefaceHavingbeenstronglysolicited,byseveralpersonswhohavebeendiscouragedbythedifficultythatattendsonthelearningdifferentinstruments,togivesomerulesforplayingonthemandoline,Iatlastcametoaresolutiontodoit,firstbecauseIthoughttherewasawantofmasterscapableofteachingthatinstrumentproperlyinthecountrieswhereitisbutlittleknown,butmoreespeciallybecauseIthoughtitnecessarytoremedyaverydefectivetreatisealreadywrittenonthatsubject.IfmylaboursgivesatisfactiontotheloversofmusicIshallthinkmyselfhappy.AtleastIwillventuretoflattermyself,thattheywillfindIhavediscoveredtothemasureandeasymethodtoenablethemtomakeaveryquickprogressbythemselves,providedonlythattheyknowthefirstprinciplesofmusic.TherulesthatIhavegivenareinfallible,anditisabsolutelynecessarytoexecutethepassages&givethestrokesofthequillasIhaveshownbydashes(thus )asalsotousethefingersofthelefthandasIhavedirectedbythenumbers,therebeingnothinglefttothechoiceoftheperformeronthemandoline,asthereisintheviolin,whenitbecomesoftennecessarytochangethepositionofthehandandthemotionofthebowaccordingtothedifferenttasteofdifferentmasters.Themandolineistunedexactlyliketheviolinbyfifths.Thereisanotherinstrumentthatresemblesamandolinealittleinthemakeofit,whichtheItalianscallamandola,andwhichstrangersoftenmistakeforthatofwhichwearenowspeaking;themandoline,however,isbyfarthemostperfectinstrument,andjustlydeservestopartakeoftheprerogativesoftheviolinwhichisacknowledgedtobethemostextensiveinstrumentinuse.Thisinstrument,notbeingplayedonwithabow,isnotcapableofprolongingsoundsastheviolinis;norcanit,likethatinstrument,executeanumberofnoteswithonestroke.Thisdefectithasincommonwiththeharpsichordandallinstrumentsthatarestruckwithaquill.Theadvantagesthatthisinstrumentenjoysarethese:Itisplayedonwithmoderation;theperformerneverrunstheriskofstoppingoutoftune;everythingthatisexecutedonitisclearandharmonious;andbypayingalittleattentiontotheharmonyofthedifferentpassages,commontunesmaybeplayeduponitinaverypleasingmannerwithoutanyaccompaniment;thestrokesgivenbythequillareeasierandneaterthanthosegivenbythebowoftheviolinbecausetheyareproducedbytheeasymotionofthetwofingersthatholdthequill;inaword,theharmonyofthisinstrumentisveryrichasitfrequentlyadmitsofavarietyofchords.Theuseofthemandolinewillhabituatethefingerstostoptheviolinintune,forthemandolinehavingfretsbetweenwhichthefingersmustnecessarilybeplaced,theywillnaturallyfallinthesamedirectionsontheviolin.

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ArticleI.OfthemarksmadeuseofinthefollowingrulesItisnecessarytohavecertainmarksorsignsfordirectionplacedovermusiccomposedforthemandolinewithoutwhichtheexecutionwouldbeexceedingdifficult,withoutorderorexpression.Theviolinhasdirectionsforuseofthebow,andwemustalsousethemtoexpressthestrokesofthequill.Seepage17[i.e.,20]onthenecessityofsuchsigns.Thenotesmarkedwith“T”aretobestoppedwiththethumbofthelefthand.Thenotesmarkedwithoneofthesefigures“1,2,3,4”mustbestoppedwiththefingerdirectedbythefigure.Themark denotesthatthestrokeofthequillmustbegivenfromtheupperpartoftheinstrumentdownwards,thatistosay,fromthelargeststringstowardsthesmallest.Themark

showsthatthestrokeofthequillmustbefrombelowupwards.Themark showsthatthetwofingerswhichholdthequillmustbeshortened.Themark

showsthatthetwofingerswhichholdthequillmustbelengthened.Theslurmarkedthus showsthattwoorthreenotesmstbestruckatoncewiththesamestrokeofthequill,inthesamemannerastheyarewiththebowoftheviolin.Themark showsthatyoumustbringtwosoundsoutofthesamestring.Themark showsthatyoumustgiveasmartstroketothenote.Themark showsthatyoumusttrill.Themark showsthatyoumustmakeacadenceorshake(seepage14[i.e.,17],“OftheCandenceorShake”).ArticleII.OfthemannerofholdingthemandolineTheinstrumentmustbesupportedbythebellyandheldtherebytherightarmwithintwoinchesofthewrist,withthehandelevatedthesamedistancefromthetable,theelbowkeptin,butinsuchamannerasthatthewristmaybekeptquiteatliberty,asallthemotionproceedsfromthence.ArticleIII.(videArticleXI,page10[i.e.,14])OfthemannerofholdingthelefthandThelefthandmustbeplacedinsuchamannerasthatthepalmofthehandmaynottouchtheneckoftheinstrument,thethumbmustbeheldoppositetothepalmofthehand,andthefourfingersmustbecurvedthattheymaybealwaysinreadinesstostopthestrings.ArticleIV.Ofthequalityofthequill,andthemannerofcuttingitThequilloughttobethatofanostrich’sfeather,andshouldbecutinsuchamannerastobealittleconcaveattheplacewhereitisheld,butflatandroundedattheendwhichstrikesthestrings.Itshouldbeelastic,thatistosayneithertooweaknortoo

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strong,otherwiseitwillbeimpossibletogiveeitherstrengthorsweetnesstotheperformance.Itiswrongtocutthequillwhentheendisalittleworn,asalittletuftisalwaysofservicetorenderthetonesmoreseriousandsoft.ArticleV.OfthemannerofholdingthequillThequillshouldbeheldbetweenthethumbandforefingerwithoutbeingturnedeithertotherightorleft,butsothatitmayalwaysstrikethestringshorizontally,andthatitsextremitymaynotbeabovethreelinesdistantfromtheendofthethumb.Itisalsonecessarythatthemiddleandringfingersbeelevatedalittleanddetachedfromthosewhichholdthequill,andthatthelittlefingerbehidundertheothers.ArticleVI.OfthemannerofusingthequillThequillmustbeheldtightbetweenthefingerstoproducestrongtones,andleftasitweretoitselftoproducethosewhicharesoft.Thatistosay,forthestrongtones,thefingersoughttodirectandcommandthequill,whereasforthesoftonesthequillmustcommandthefingers.ArticleVII.OfthestrokesofthequillTherearetwoprinciplestrokesofthequillonwhichalltheothers,ofwhichIshallspeakhereafter,depend.ThefirstIcallthesuperiorstrokebecauseitisricherandoftenerusedthantheother.Itismadebypassingthequillfromthesuperiorpartoftheinstrument,thatistosay,fromthesidewherethelargeststringsare,totheinferiorpart,orthesidewherethesmallestortreblestringsare.ThesecondIcalltheinferiorstroke,itisexactlythereverseofthefirst,thatistosay,itismadebypassingthequillfromthetrebleorinferiorpartoftheinstrumenttowardsthebassorsuperiorpart.Thefirstorsuperiorstroke,asbeingthemostrichandproducingthefinesttone,ismadeuseoftoexpressallsinglenotesandparticularlythoseinaslowmovement.Singlenotes,orcrotchets,withsomesmallones:

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Simpleconcords,orchords,withsomesmallnotes:

Quaversinaslowmovement:

Two3&4notesunitedbyslurs:

Notesofsyncopation:

NB.Itsometimeshappensthatcrotchetsmustbestruckfrombelowupwards orwiththeinferiorstroke.ArticleVIII.Ofthestrokeofthequillfrombelowupwards Thisstrokewhichislessagreeablethantheformercomesinonlytotheassistanceofit,andoughtonlytobemadeuseofwhenthequicknessofthepassagerequiresit.Itshouldbeparticularlyavoidedinpassageswherethenotespassfromaninferiorstringtoasuperiorone,becausetheuseofitinthatcaseisattendedwiththegreatestdifficulty,andparticularlywhenthestrokesaretobefrequentlyrepeated.Ishallgivesomeexamplesofthemethodofsupplyingthisdefect(seeArticle10andtheremarksuponit).

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ArticleIX.Ofthemannerofusingthequillinthediatonicandsemitonicpassages,thatistosayofgraduationIngeneral,inalldiatonicandsemitonicpassages,thefirstnoteshouldbestruckfromabovedownwards,andalltherestalternately.Example:

Inlikemanner,alsothefollowing:

Remark:Theorderofthesuperiorstrokeofthequillisreversedinthefollowingexample,aswellasinallcaseswherethedifficultyofpassingfromaninferiortoasuperiorstringoftenoccurs,aswillbeseeninthiswork.Example:

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Exampleofsixnotestogetherthatoughttobestruckinthesamemanner:

Remark:Thefirstofanynumberofunequalnotes,whether3,5,or7,precededbyapause,oraslur,shouldbestruckfrombelowupwards.Observealsothatallnotesprecededbyadot,orthatarebythemselvesattheendofameasure,shouldbestruckinthesamemanner.Example(withoutregardtomeasure):

Animportantobservation:Itisbecomecustomarytomakeuseofunslurednotesforthemandolinebecausetheyarethoughttobetheeasiest,butthosethatusethemarenotawarethattheyoftenneglecttherebythemeansofsofteningtheinstrument,andtherebyrenderingtheperformancemorebrilliantandagreeable.AproperjudgmentofthismattermaybeformedbyobservingthedifferentmethodsIamgoingtogive,eitherofdetachingthenotes,orunitingthembyslidingthestrokesofthequill.

Differentmethodsofexecutingthenotesaccordingtothedifferentdistributionofthestrings

Doubleexampleofthenotesby2’s:

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Doubleexampleofthenotesby2’swiththestrokeofthequillreversed:

Exampleofthedifferentmethodsofexecutingnotesby3’s:Thelearneroughttopracticeeachofthesepassagesslowly,inorderthatintheendhemayattaintothequickexecutionofthem.Fromabovedownwards:

Frombelowupwards:

Threenoteseitherascendingordescendinggraduallymaybemadetosoundverydistinctlywithasinglestrokeofthequill:

Exampleofnotesby4’s:Derivedfromabovedownward:

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Frombelowupward:Whenithappensthatthelittlenotesaremarkedwithanacuteaccentthestrokeofthequillmustbegivenfrombelowupwards.

Withasinglestrokeofthequill:

Exampleofnotesby6’sderivedfromabovedownwards:

Notesby6’sderivedfrombelowupwards:

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Notesby6’sbywayofchutesandtirades:

Observations.Itmustbeobservedthequaversbythrees,fours,orsixes,inaquickmovementaresubjecttotherulesIhavealreadylaiddownforsemiquavers,andmustbeperformedinthesamemanner.Everyfigureinmusictakesitsvalueinproportiontothemovementmadeuseofbythecomposer,viz.,Allegro,Andante,Andantino,Cantabile,Largo,Larghetto,&c.,whenceitoftenhappensthatinaveryslowmovementthesemiquaversarealwaysstruckfromabovedownwards,asontheotherhandthecrotchetsinaquickmovementarestruckalternatelyoneaftertheother,particularlyinveryquickfugues.Whennotesrunbythreesinaslowmovement,thefirstmustalwaysbestruckfromabovedownwards.Example:

ArticleX.OfbatteriesBatteriesarenotesoftenrepeatedbetweentwostrings.Therearetwosortsofbatteries:oneismadebyjumpingfromthesuperiortotheinferiorstring;andtheotherbyjumpingfromtheinferiortothesuperiorone.Inthefirst,thestrokeofthequillisfromabovedownwards;inthesecond,frombelowupwards.Exampleofthe1st:

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Ex.ofthesecond:

Therearealsootherkindsofbatteriesofsixnoteswhicharemadebythestrokesofthequillasabove(seethepassagesbythreesofthevariations).Othersortsofeasybatteriesthataremostinuse:

Remarkonthesamebatteriesprecededbysemiquavers:Whentheperformerperceivesabatteryapproachingwhichistobemadebythestrokeofthequillfrombelowupwards,itisessentiallynecessarytopreventtheconfusionwhichwillnaturallyoccurbychangingthestrokeofthequill,inordertodowhich,twoofthenotesinthemeasureimmediatelyprecedingitmustbestruckwiththestrokethesameway,makingusereadilyofthemethodscallbyguitarplayers“coulé”,“chute”,and“tirade”.(NB:“Chute”isthesameastheascendingappoggiatura;“tirade”isthedescendingappoggiatura–seepage11[i.e.,15].)Coulé:

Chute:

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Tirade:

ArticleXI.OfthemotionofthetwofingersthatholdthequillIhavealreadyspokeofthemotionofthewristoftherighthandasbeingnecessarytotheplayinguponthemandoline.Thereislikewiseanothermotionproducedbythelengtheningandshorteningofthetwofingerswhichholdthequill.Iconsiderthelatterassoessentialincertainpassagesthatwhoeverneglectsitwillneverbeableeithertoplaysoftortoexecutedifficultpassages;theymayperhapsattainamediocrityofexcellencebymeredintofpractice,buttheynevercanarriveatperfection.ThisisatruthwhichIhavefoundoutbylonglabour,andwithwhichIpresenttheloversofmusicinthiswork.Whenonesetsaboutgivingrules,oneoughttodoitcompletely;anabridgementofthemisoftenerowingtoawantofknowledgethantothedesireofbrevity.Themarkwhenthetwofingerswhichholdthequillaretobelengthened: .Themarkwhentheyaretobeshortened: .1.Inalldiatonicandsemitonicpassageswherethereisnodifficultyinpassingthequillfromaninferiortoasuperiorstring: 2.Inallstrokeswherethenotepassesfromaninferiortoasuperiorstring: 3.Inalldetachedpassageswherethenotesaredispersedamongseveralstrings:

4.Inallpassageswhichareuponthesamestring: 5.Inallsimplebatteries: 6.Inallcompoundbatteries: 7.Inallpassageswherethereareslurrednotes: 8.Inthehammeringpassages(seepage14[i.e.,17])orturnedshakes,inthecadence,inthetrill,inallnotesthataremadewithasinglestrokeofthequill:

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Inthemagazineaswellasinseveralexamplescontainedinthisworkallthesesignswillbefoundmarked.ImustoncemoreobservetoalllearnersthatthoughitispossibletheymayexecuteslowmovementstolerablywelleveniftheyneglecttherulesIhavelaiddown,yetitisabsolutelyimpossibletheycaneverexecutequickoneswithoutanexactattentiontothem.ObservationsonthelittlenotesorappoggiaturasTherearetwokindsoflittlenotes:onerisestothenote,theotherdescendstoit.Thefirstwhichrisestothenoteismadebystrikingstronglywiththequillfromabovedownwards,andlettingfallthenextfingerimmediatelyafterthestroke,sothatthetwonotesareheardwithasinglestroke.Thisiswhatiscalled“chute”upontheguitar.Example:

Thesecondwhichfallstothenoteismadebythefingerbeingheldweakerthanthefirst,andthisiswhatiscalled“Tirade”upontheguitar.Example:

Itmayalsobemadeanoteofbystrikingitstrongerthantheprinciplenote.Example:

Whenithappensthatthelittlenote,beiteithertiradeorchute,isacutelyaccented,itmustbemadebyastrongstrokeofthequillfrombelowupwards.

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AMagazineOfdifferentmotionsofthequill,wherethefingersremaininginthesamesituationobligeittomoveindifferentmanners,itwillbeofgreatusetothelearnertomakehimselfmasterofallthesemovementsuponwhichthedifficultyofexecutiondepends.AndIwouldadviseallwhowouldprofitbythisruletopracticeoneofthesearpeggiostillitisbecomeveryfamiliartothembeforetheygotoanother,andwhentheycanexecutethemall,theymaythinkthemselvesveryclever.Notethecasesmarked resembleoneanotherastothestrokesofthequill.NotethatIdonotspeakofarpeggiosonfourstringsbecausetheyareincludedinthestrokesofthequillmarkedabove.

Whentheperformerwouldarpeggioachord,whetheritbeincommonortripletime,twodifferentmethodsmaybemadeuseofforperformingiteveninthesamemeasure–itbeinginthepoweroftheperformertounitehalfofoneoftheexamplesintheprecedingtablewithhalfofanother,andsomakeawholeonebetweenthem;andinthesamemanner,aquarterofonemaybejoinedwiththreequartersofanother.Sothat,thismethodfurnishesameansofcomposingagreatvarietyofarpeggiosaccordingtothetasteoftheperformer.

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OfInterruptedArpeggiosTomakeaninterruptedarpeggio,oneofthefollowingpassagesmustbeborrowedandplaced,accordingtoyourtaste,inthefirstorlastquarterofthepassagethatyouwouldarpeggio.Example:

ExamplesoffamiliararpeggiosthatmaybeeasilyperformedafterthedifferentmethodscontainedintheMagazine:

OftheHammeringorTurnedShakeByhammeringonthemandolin,Imeantheunionofthreelittlenotesbeforeaprincipalone.Forexample,supposeGtobetheprincipalnote:thefirstofthethreelittlenotesisthenoteaboveit,or,A;thesecondistheprinciplenote,G;thethirdisthenotebelowit,or,F–afterwhichtheprincipalnoteisfoundedagain.Example:

OftheCadenceorShakeThecadenceorshakeisarepercussionoftwoneighboringnotesoneaftertheother.Itisdifficultforlearnerstoexecute.Toacquireityoumust,asitwere,playwiththequillbetweenthetwofingers,andmoveitexactlyatthesametimewiththefingersofthelefthand.Itisnecessarytoknowthattoshakeanote,forinstanceA,thenoteaboveit,B,mustbestruckverystronglywiththestrokeofthequillfromabovedownwards.

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Example:

OftheTrillThetrill(thoughimproperlysocalled)isarepercussionofthestrokesofthequillfromabovedownwardsonthesamenote,bywhichmeansthedurationofthesoundofthenoteisprolonged,andthewantofthebowinsomemeasuremadeamendsfor.Itisofnootherusethantorenderthemotionofthewristeasy,whenceIconcludethatitoughtnottoberepeatedoften.Whentheperformerhasmadeatolerableproficiency,Iratheradvicehimtoplaytheprecedingnotewithaturnedshake,orsomeothergrace,ashistasteshalldirecthim.(Seethefollowingobservationonminims.)

OftheMannerofPlayingMinimsInsteadofusingthetrilltoexpressminims,Ithinkitismoreagreeabletoplaythemwithacadenceorshake,ortodividethemintotwocrotchetsandplayeachwithaturnedshake.Someothergracesmaylikewisebeadded–eitheroflittlenotes,oroftheproperaccompanimentbelongingtotheminims–allwhichmaybeintroducedaccordingtotheknowledgeandabilitiesoftheperformer.Note:itmaybealsoplayedwiththeoctavebelow.Examples:

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OftheMannerofBringingTwoDifferentSoundsOutoftheSameStringThestringsofthemandolinebeingdoubledwithunisons,itispossibletobringtwodifferentnotesfromthesamestringatthesametime–toaccomplishwhichthefingersbelongingtotheinferiornotemustbeplacedperpendicularlyonthetwounisonstrings;thenthefingerbelongingtothesuperiornotemustbeplacedinsuchamannerasthatitmayonlytouchthestringsituateonthelowerpartoftheinstrument.Example:

ArticleXII.OfFingeringInordertoproducedistinctsounds,itisnecessarytopressthefingershardonthestringbetweenthefretsandtoraisethemexactlyatthepropertime.Itiswrongnottoaccustomthefingerstogooutoftheirordinarypositionsinceeveryoneofthem,bybeingcrossedasitwere,mayveryproperlyfillthespaceappointedforitsneighbor,asIshallshowbyseveralexamples,afterwhichothersmaybemade.Itispropertoaccustomthethumb,whichIcallthe“auxiliaryfinger”,tostopinsomeinstancestheG-sharp,theA,theB-flat,andBnatural,&c.Iwouldevenrecommendtheuseofitsometimesonthethirdstring.Theadvantagesofthismethodinaccompanyingthevoicewillsoonbeperceived.ThenotesD,A,&Eoughtalwaystobeplayedopenorwithoutanyfingersonthembecausetheopenstringalwayssoundsclearest.Itisnecessary,however,tousethelittlefingerinchordsandinsomeotherpassages.OftheChordoftheFifthThechordofthefifthisstoppedwiththesamefingerasontheviolin.Itisdifficulttostopitintuneontheupperpartofthefingerboardbecauseasyouascend,thetwostringsseparateinsensiblyonthefingerboardsothattheendofthefingerisnotbroadenoughtostopbothstringsatatime–andthedifficultyisincreasedonthemandolinewherethefingerhasfourstringstostopatonce.However,toremedythisinconvenience,twofingersmustbeusedinsteadofone,thoughtherearesomecaseswhereonlyonefingercanbeused.

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Example:

Iwouldrecommendittoallwhoperformmymusicnottochangeanyofthestrokesofthequillfromwhattheyaremarked;Ihavetakengreatpainstofindoutthosethathavethemostagreeableeffectontheear.Letnotthelearnerbesurprisedifhesometimesfindsanunusualmethodoffingeringintroduced.Ihavelaiditdownasarule,particularlyineveryquickpassages,nottomakeuseofthesamefingerimmediatelyinpassingfromonestringtoanother,inordertoavoidthebadeffectitproduces.Idonotpretendtodirecttheuseofotherfingerboards,beingconsciousthattheyoughttobelearnedofablemastersoftheviolin.Myinstructionswill,however,furnishideaswhichwillservetoresolvemanydifficultiesthatoccurinotherinstrumentsofthesamekind.InthemusicthatIshallgivehereafter,Ishallomitthemarksofshortening oroflengthening thetwofingerswhichholdthequill,supposingthatthescholarwillbeabletosupplyitofhimself.Ishallnotoftenrepeatthegrave andacute

accentandshallonlyusetheminsuchcasesasareexceptionstomyrules,orwherethewantofthemwouldoccasionsomedoubt,andinthefirstmeasure.Ipromisetogiveacollectionofgoodmusic,welladaptedtotheinstrumentIhavebeentreatingof,fortheuseoflearners.Note:Itisamistaketoimaginethemandolineaneasyinstrument.Thosewhoundertaketoteachitintwelvelessonsmusthavegottheirprinciples(and,inconsequence,theirmusic)ofsomefamousNeapolitanstroller;butitismucheasiertodiscoverinthemthetrueportraitofaquack,andtheloveofmoney,thanitistolearneventotunetheinstrumentinsoshortatime.ImportantObservationsOftheNecessityofMarksorSignsintheMandolineItisnotwiththeviolinasitiswiththemandoline.Withtheformer,passagesmaybeperformedafterdifferentmanners;thatistosay,withdifferentstrokesofthebow.Whereas,inthemandolinethestrokesofthequilloughttobesofixedanddeterminedasthatthescholarmayneversubstituteanotherinsteadofthatwhichis

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marked,butattendtotherulesIhavelaiddownwiththeutmostexactness.Sothatallmasterswhocomposemusicforthemandoline,especiallyatNapleswherethatinstrumentismostinuse,oughttomarktheirmusicwithpropersigns,astheydoinmusicfortheviolin,bywhichmeanstheirmusicwouldbeperformedinapropertaste,andthescholarwouldnotbesoliabletoacquirebadhabits,notobligedcontinuallytohaverecoursetomastersforeverydifficultpassagethatoccurs.ForIassuremyreaderstherearebutveryfewpassagesthatmaybeexecutedarbitrarily.Astothosewhoarenotqualifiedtomarkitproperly,Iwouldratheradvisethemnottomeddlewithitatall;theremedywillbeworsethanthedisease.IhavebutlatelythoughtofusingsoadvantageousamethodandIshalltakecareforthefuturenottoomititinallthemusicthatIshallwriteforthemandoline.Anypersonswhowouldwishtoperformthefollowingmusicontheviolinhaveonlytotakeawaythesignsandtransposesomenotemarkedwitha“P”totheoctave.Theremainderofthisworkconsistsoftunesforthemandolinwroteindifferentmanners(withadditionsandabridgementsrelativetothismethod)and,nowandthen,anassortmentofeasymusictogetherwithsomedifficultonesintermixedinordertorendertheinstrumentunderstood.

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Editorialremarksonthis2017transcriptionThepurposeofthistranscriptionisnotscholarlyanalysisbutisintendedtoprovideausefulandeasilyaccessiblewindowonto18thcenturymandolinpractice.1.Thefontusedis“Cambria(Body)”foundinMicrosoftWord.2.Somewordshavebeenitalicizedorboldedforthesakeofclarity.3.Theoriginalpunctuationhasbeenheavilyeditedforthesakeofclarity.4.WhereLeonereferstopagenumbersinhisdocument,thepagenumbersofthistranscriptionhavebeeninterpolated.5.Somespellingshavebeenupdatedforclarity.6.Thewords,grammar,andstructureusedbythetranslatorhavenotbeenchangedinanyway.7.Regardingpastedmusicalexamples,itisregrettablethattheexamplespastedfromtheoriginaldocumentarenotclearer.Becauseoftheageofthepaperandbinding,itseemedimportantnottopressthedocumentagainsttheglassofascanner.Instead,photosfromasmartphonewereusedfortheseimages.Thewavylinesofsomemusicalexamplesaretheresultofnotpressingthepagesflatastheimagesweretaken.Wherearethemusicpiecesmakingupthemajorportionoftheoriginalpublicationandreferredtointhefinalpages?ThemusicmaybefoundintheoriginalFrencheditionavailableforfreedownloadfromIMSLP:http://hz.imslp.info/files/imglnks/usimg/7/7e/IMSLP335366-PMLP541789-leone_Methode_raisonnee.pdf]