As I continue to work on my lute technique, I have started to increase tempo:
Working on “Come Away” by the great Renaissance composer & luteninst, John Dowland. In particular is the challenge of changing the right hand technique to the complete opposite to that of the classical guitar. The thumb goes “under” the fingers rather than “over” as in classical guitar. The fingers strike the strings in a gentler and more subtle way. The goal is for a ‘bell-like’ sound from the strings.
It’s fascinating to hear Mozart played on period instruments. The harpsichord is the most striking aspect in the piano concertos. I have to admit that the piano was a great improvement but this is how it would have sounded in Mozart’s time.
I never knew much about Beethoven’s life. They really need to make more features about the great composers. This is a great story. He was quite the rock star!
https://youtu.be/YueD9vB51hk
Never realised what a great melodist he was!
One of my students is singing this beautiful Eva Cassidy version of John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’. With the imminent re-release of the ‘Imagine’ album with various extras and what would have been John Lennon’s 78th birthday yesterday, I thought this to be a fitting tribute.
My new lute arrived today!
With my tutor book and lute there are happy days ahead! Going to keep me out of trouble that’s for sure!
This just arrived in the post!
Happy days ahead!
New lute is coming too!
When I was studying my undergraduate Bachelor of Music degree at UNSW we studied the history of music via the Norton Anthology of Western Music: http://books.wwnorton.com/books/webad.aspx?id=4294978515
It was an enlightening journey through the history of music literature from Ancient Greece to current times. I have found the audio tracks in a playlist on spoitfy which is simply glorious listening: https://open.spotify.com/user/1242266039/playlist/0kzL1piVxw8ECKYdUgN5s9?si=cSxmUniaTtmFp3m4XMzPcA
Enjoy!