Lutefest 2023 – Tuesday Schedule

With our world’s increasing demands upon our attention and time, it’s often difficult to commit to a regular practice routine. When we do get time alone with our lutes, our practice can easily become unfocused and inefficient such that we continue to practice our mistakes. Using the class’s participants as a supportive community, we’ll inspire each other to overcome our personal barriers to regular and effective practice, whether they be logistical or psychological. We’ll encourage each other to slow down, isolate technical & musical challenges, and create optimal practice strategies that will lead to cumulative improvement. Players of all experience levels are welcome, and a few willing participants are invited to screen-share a short passage of music we can use to discuss possible practice strategies.

In an article about right hand position for the lute that I wrote at the tender age of 24, and that was published in the LSA Journal in 1979, I discussed right hand position on the lute. Now, after nearly a half century of experience as a lute player, I would like to return to this subject, especially as it concerns the baroque lute. I will present historical evidence about right hand position in the baroque era, and I would like to have a discussion with participants of the class who play the baroque lute about their own experience—how and why their choice of hand position may differ from what might be gathered from historical records.

Masterclasses are open to performers and auditors. If you wish to apply to perform in this masterclass, please be sure to check the box on the first page of this form. You will need to send an audition video to the Festival Director. More information will provided after registration.

After a brief narrative describing the path which started with the question, “Do the titles really have nothing much to do with the piece to which they’ve been given,” we will explore the increasingly tantalizing congruences which lead to important aspects of understanding and performing this repertoire.

This class offers beginners an overview of important elements necessary for learning the lute and offers tips for developing good practices and work routine right from the beginning.