European Lutes (Renaissance, Baroque)

Styles Baroque Lutes, Renaissance Lutes, Theorbo, early guitars
Skill Level All levels - Beginner to Professional (and Beyond!)
Pricing flexible

Lessons via zoom or in your home.

Learn to play well, at your level, with one of Australia's most experienced, qualified, and knowledgeable tutors who will help you to access the charmed world of this beautiful, ancient, and complex instrument, that lies at the very heart of the evolution of Western music.

I have lectured in historic lute performance, producing graduates in lute performance at both Sydney and Melbourne Conservatoriums of Music, and designed successful and comprehensive tertiary performance courses for each of Renaissance Lute, Baroque Lute, and Theorbo.

I have helped students from the level of absolute beginner through to skilled professional, from amateur hobbyist to elite virtuoso, from casual dabbler to seasoned sage, and all combinations of these!

Instruments covered:

-renaissance lutes of 6 to 10 courses;
-archlutes and liuti attiorbati;
-Baroque lutes of 11, 13, and 14 courses;
-chitarrone, theorbo, tiorbino, French solo theorbo;
-baroque guitar, renaissance guitar; vihuela / viola da mano.

I have played ancient plucked instruments since the mid-1990s, at first self-taught before completing historic Lute performance studies under Tommie Andersson at Sydney Conservatorium in 2001, then receiving both Italian and Spanish scholarships for postgraduate performance studies in Europe between 2002 and 2004, where I learned with many of the world's best, including Eduardo Egüez, Hopkinson Smith, and Paul O'Dette.

Since then, I have performed throughout Australia in solo recitals of virtuoso solo repertoire for baroque and renaissance lutes, plus theorbo; as well as basso continuo and obbligato with renowned groups such as Ensemble La Chimera, Ensemble Elyma, Concerto Romano; and as accompanist with singers of the calibre of Furio Zanasi, Yvonne Kenny and Julian Podger, and many others.

You will learn:

  • comfortable, effective, healthy, historically-informed posture, and playing techniques, as relevant to your instrument, for the music concerned;

  • literacy in music notation and tablature

  • style, expression, interpretation of ancient sources

  • written and unwritten ornaments, improvisation, growing your musical language

  • basso-continuo, counterpoint, figured bass, in practice and theory

  • instruments and their maintenance

As well as personal tuition, I have convened fun lute ensemble workshops (eg. at Tasmanian Festivals of the Lute, Jurassic Pluck!, etc.), presented recitals for international academic symposia, and designed "live renaissance multimedia" events inaugurating the International Year of Astronomy.

Sydney, NSW
Travelling in the local area

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Details last updated: September 10, 2022