Viola pomposa

The Viola pomposa is a five stringed instrument 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 C'2 to A'5 with fingered notes. Using harmonics, the range can be extended to C'7 depending on the quality of the strings. It should not be confused with the violoncello or viola da spalla. Not to be confused to violoncello piccolo. Among the late Baroque and early Classical composers who used the instrument are Johann Sebastian Bach; Suite in D Major, BWV 1012, Georg Phillip Telemann, Johann Gottlieb Graun, Christian Joseph Lidarti.