I just found out that a theorbo I made for Gunther Schuller at the New England Conservatory of Music will be auctioned at Sothebys next month(I think). This composer died in 2009. He was president of the Conservatory for some years.
The theorbo ,otherwise called an arch lute,is a complicated instrument to play. It has many extra bass strings that are plucked open to add to the bass line of the music being played on the fretted portion of the instrument.
The neck is canted at an angle in order to make the bridge at least NEARLY in the center of the soundboard. This was a fun instrument to build! I only have the picture shown. IIRC,I made the back of the body from maple
As was customary for theorbos(in many cases) the neck was painted black. I think I had
made the neck and the extended peg box from pearwood,for lightness. Otherwise,the instrument would always want to roll downwards. Especially with the rounded body.
I made the unstained tuning pegs from pearwood as well.