Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site alice.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!alice!ark
From: ark@alice.UucP (Andrew Koenig)
Newsgroups: net.music.classical
Subject: Re: question on string bass
Message-ID: <4454@alice.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 17-Oct-85 17:15:55 EDT
Article-I.D.: alice.4454
Posted: Thu Oct 17 17:15:55 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 19-Oct-85 04:25:31 EDT
References: <21021@mgweed.UUCP>
Organization: Bell Labs, Murray Hill
Lines: 19

> At a recent concert performed by the Chicago Symphony, I noticed that about
> half of the Bass instruments had an "attachment" on them. It was at the
> top of the bass, on one side. It looked like perhaps its purpose was to
> extend one of the strings (I assume to lower the frequency). It also looked
> like there might have been some "keys" on it. Does anyone know anything
> about this???

I believe the strings of a bass viol are normally tuned to E, A, D, G.
If so, the attachment would lengthen the E string to allow the
instrument to go as low as C.  This would enable it to double the
low C of a cello at the octave.  The key-like mechanisms are there
to make it easier for people without abnormally long arms to play
those low notes: there would be one for C#, D, D#, and E with a
lock on the E key so you can pretend the whole extension gadget
isn't there.

All this is inferential and based on observation, not certain knowledge,
but I'm more confident about this than I am about most of my educated
guesses.