COVE

In 2009, Pole Slawomir Zubryzycki begins work on the first known viola organista based directly on da Vinci’s designs. Zubryzycki synthesized this design with the descriptions of Michael Praetorius, a sixteenth century German organist. Praetorius released a series of volumes under the title Syntagma Musicum, where he illustrated and described various musical instruments from the time, including the Geigenwerk made by Hans Heyden. Zubryzycki was also inspired by the viola de gamba contained in the drawings, a seven-stringed chordophone similar in appearance to the cello. The goal was to create an instrument that was mechanically similar to da Vinci’s organista, with the timbre of the viola de gamba.

In 2012, the instrument was completed. Zubryzycki would perform on the organista for the first time on October 18^th, 2013, at the International Royal Cracow Piano Festival, in his hometown. The next three years were spent touring the instrument in seventeen countries. During this time, he would record a solo album entitled “Viola Organista – The da Vinci Sound,” released in 2015.

Zubryzycki, S. (2015). Reconstruction. Retrieved from www.violaorganista.com/en/abou…

Jobson, C. (2013, November 18). Polish Concert Pianist Builds a 'Viola Organista' Based on a 500-Year-Old Leonardo Da Vinci Sketch. Retrieved from www.thisiscolossal.com/2013/11…

Icelandic singer Bjork releases her eighth studio album in 2015, entitled Vulnicura. Combining electronic music and EDM with robust string orchestration, the album was well-reviewed by critics. In October of that year, she would announce Vulnicura Strings (fully titled “Vulnicura: The Acoustic Version – Strings, Voice and Viola Organista Only"), with reworked instrumentation that kept only the vocal recordings of the original pieces. In a statement, Bjork said her goal was to “simply have the acoustics stand on their own for the folks who wanna (sic) indulge even further into the wooden timeless side of this music. With no techno."

Bjork had emailed Zubryzycki in 2013 soon after his organista was completed, but did not have an opportunity to call upon the instrument until the Vulnicura Strings project. The two did not meet in-person throughout the recording process, as Zubryzycki recorded his parts in Cracow. Bjork would send him flowers several days later in return. The organista is featured most prominently on the track “Black Lake,” where it is the only accompaniment to Bjork’s vocals. She stated that performing the song was “always like going back to the Middle Ages. So I thought, OK, this is a little ancient song that would probably have a good relationship with the Viola Organista."

 Gzyl, P. (2015, October 13). Krakowianin zagra razem z Björk. Retrieved from gazetakrakowska.pl/krakowianin…

Bjork: Vulnicura Strings, Available For Pre-Order. (2015, October 06). Retrieved from www.indian.co.uk/site/news/bjr…...