The Lute in Britain: A History of the Instrument and Its Music

by Matthew Spring

Overview

The lute was one of the most important instruments in use in Europe from late medieval times up to the eighteenth century. Despite its acknowledged importance, this study is the first ever comprehensive work on the instrument and its music, apart from performance studies or bibliographical and reference publications. The book focuses on the lute's history, but also contains chapters on the lute in concert, lute song accompaniment, the thearbo, and the lute in Scotland. Written for the music student, the serious listener, the player, maker, and lute enthusiast, Spring makes available for the first time over 40 years of musical scholarship previously the preserve of academic journals.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780195188387
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	10/19/2006
Series:	Early Music Series
Pages:	568
Product dimensions:	0.10(w) x 0.10(h) x 0.10(d)

About the Author

Bath Spa University College and Birmingham University

Table of Contents

Note to the Reader1. Introduction2. The Lute in England before 15003. From Medieval to Renaissance: A Continental Excursus, 1480-15304. The Early and Mid-Renaissance Periods (1500-1580)5. The Golden Age, Part I (1580-1603)6. The Lute in Consort7. The Golden Age, Part II (1603-1625)8. The Lute in Song Accompaniment9. From Renaissance to Baroque: A Continental Excursus, 1600-165010. The Caroline and the Commonwealth Periods (1625-1660)11. The Theorbo12. The Decline of the Lute in England after 166013. Scottish Lute MusicBibliographyManuscriptsPrinted MusicBook, Theses, and ArticlesIndex

Editorial Reviews

"The Lute in Britain has been beautifully produced by Oxford University Press. The vast amount of information it contains, its presentation, the extremely useful tables of music sources and iconography, and the wonderful selection of illustrations make it will worth the price. A 'must' for scholars of English and Scottish music and the ever-growing number of players in the international lute community, it should also be of interest to instrument makers and researchers for the wealth of information it provides on the physical nature of the instruments, which is meticulously documented by a combination of iconography, music sources, and contemporary writings. Undoubtedly, this book will become a standard reference work and should be found in every music library in the world."—Journal of the American Musical Instrument Society

"Spring's book is the first attempt to trace a history of the lute in Britain (including Scotland) from the earliest known documents of about 1285 to its decline in the early eighteenth century...A formidable task considering its long and complex history."—Renaissance Quarterly

From the Publisher