Writing from a Small Country

Writing from a Small Country is a collection of fresh literature written by members of the Creative Writing Consortium of Luxembourg. From such diverse origins as the UK, the US, Canada, Italy, India, Germany and Mozambique, these expatriate lovers of literature gathered in the evenings in Luxembourg to mutually inspire one another. This anthology is a first offering of their formidable talent, including poetry, essays, short stories and extracts from novels in progress.

I am Viola da Gamba of the singing building

The Conservatory of Luxembourg City houses a small collection of historical musical instruments. One of these instruments is a viola da gamba that was crafted in the first or second decade of the twentieth century. It is an ordinary looking viola da gamba, with the character-
istically decorated end piece carved in the shape of a blindfolded -- and aesthetically unattractive -- woman’s head.
This instrument has been constructed to nestle in the arms and between the legs of a musician. This (any) viola da gamba becomes functional when it is fused to -- a necessary part of -- the musician’s body. Its bow is a necessary extension of the musician’s hand. The viola da gamba was brought into existence to be played upon, and yet it does not lose its corporeality if it is not played. The instrument is also an object.
Dana Rufolo desired to uncover the facts about this particular viola da gamba both as an object in itself and as the object of musical intervention. When her research yielded only the name of the instrument maker and that it was purchased by the Conservatory of Luxembourg City in the 1950s, she decided to personify it by inventing its life history. This story was written in the form of a long narrative poem.