Lute Project, Lent 2011

The School was very fortunate to receive a visit from lutenist Lynda Sayce this week.  She brought an array of wonderful instruments – from small lutes to giant-sized theorbos.

In the afternoon Lynda held a ‘drop-in’ session for singers and guitarists, and pupils were able to try singing with a lute as many composers originally intended, rather than with a 9 foot Steinway grand piano!

It was a revelation to many.  The acoustics of the Beldam Hall suited the intimate sound world the pupils entered, and the music was able to be free in a way that perhaps had not been possible for these performers before.  Guitarist Mark Harrison (U6L) was able to work on a Bach lute piece, and many singers had solos and duets to work on.

In the evening Lynda gave a presentation to all academic musicians, tracing the origins of the lute from a simple 4-coursed instrument to the elaborate many stringed instruments of the early baroque period.  Then together with harpsichord, various pupils and staff performed music by Dowland, Monteverdi, Campion amongst others.  Highlights of the performances included Kiki Betts-Dean (U6M) and Amelia Anderson's (L6F) performance of a Monteverdi duet from the 1610 Vespers, and Emily White's (L6F) performance of Dowland’s signature piece Flow my tears.

Singing teacher Nicki Kennedy, who has performed with Lynda Sayce in the past, had worked with the singers in the afternoon, and coordinated the performance part of the evening.  We hope to invite Lynda back next year, as it was a stimulating evening, and introduced ‘early music’ with its appropriate instrumentation to many for the first time.