Musicians in the Middle Ages were strolling minstrels; lutenists play mediaeval music on a mediaeval instrument, so all lutenists must be strolling minstrels, who wander around when they play.
When faced with this sort of thinking, I don't bother giving a potted history of the lute. Instead I explain that strolling minstrels strolled from one gig to the next, but when they got there, they actually sat down to play. I then ask for a chair without arms, a socket to plug in my amplifier, and free beer for the duration of the gig. It's important to give an authentic performance. Dressing up in daft outfits is a pain, and should be avoided at all costs. Charging extra for a performance in costume is a useful deterrent. You can be sure that anyone who wants you to dress up, is not interested in listening to the music. Always start with Greensleeves. Best wishes, Stewart McCoy. -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Ron Andrico Sent: 06 June 2011 11:44 To: [email protected]; [email protected] Subject: [LUTE] Re: streaming lute gig Chris: There is some pictorial evidence of strolling lutenists from the English masque and French ballet de cour. I'm only venturing a guess about this but perhaps the cinematic idea of the strolling lutenist came from the influence of German directors like Fritz Lang in the early days of Hollywood, incorporating echos of the Wandervogel aesthetic. Best wishes, Ron Andrico > Date: Sun, 5 Jun 2011 23:23:08 -0400 > To: [email protected] > From: [email protected] > Subject: [LUTE] Re: streaming lute gig > However, I'm wondering where the idea of the strolling lutenist comes > from. I'm not an expert, and I don't play one on TV, but I can't > recall any original pictorial or written sources indicating anyone > playing the lute and walking. Is it a 19th century romanticisation? > A pre-Raphaelite fantasy? Anyone know, or have an opinion? -- To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
