Viola pomposa


The viola pomposa is a five-stringed Viola developed around 1725. There are no exact dimensions applicable to all instruments used under this name, although in general the pomposa is slightly wider than a standard viola. It uses four viola strings, tuned conventionally, with the addition of a high E string, giving it a greater range than the orchestral viola; the trade-off comes in a sound which is slightly more resonant than a violin. The viola pomposa is played on the arm and has a range from C3 to A6 with fingered notes. Using harmonics, the range can be extended to C8 depending on the quality of the strings.
The viola pomposa should not be confused with the viola da spalla, the violoncello, or the violoncello piccolo, although they did fulfill similar roles in Baroque ensembles. There is extensive debate about the origins of this instrument. Its invention is often attributed to Johann Sebastian Bach, as written about by several musicologists, such as Philipp Spitta. However, others such as Charles Sanford Terry and Dmitry Badiarov have argued that there is insufficient evidence to make that claim, with Badiarov referring to Bach's invention of the viola pomposa as a myth..
Among the late Baroque and early Classical composers who used the instrument are Georg Philipp Telemann, Johann Gottlieb Graun, and Christian Joseph Lidarti.
By 1800, the instrument was used by principals of major orchestras, although no written scores were published in that century, apart from antiquarian or modernized editions.
Late in the twentieth century, several contemporary composers independently rediscovered its potential because of the development of the new synthetic & steel strings, more stable and cheaper than the gut ones. Recent music for the instrument includes works by Justin E.A. Busch, Harry Crowl, Rudolf Haken, and Zoltan Paulinyi.

Video

Crowl, Harry. 2008. "Antíteses, Concert for viola pomposa and full orchestra". .

Listening

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Compositions