Ardal Powell, a leading authority on and maker of early flutes, offers here a translation and study of J. G. Tromlitz's tutor for the eight-keyed flute, first published in German in 1800. Powell explores the instrument's history and assesses Tromlitz's importance as a designer. The volume contains information vital to the historically informed performance of classical and Romantic music.

What sorts of processes were going through the mind of J.S. Bach as he improvised a fugue in three, four, or even six parts? And what sort of training equipped an organist of the early eighteenth century to practice the art of accompaniment and improvisation successfully? The practical method which linked keyboard technique, improvisation, performance, and composition in a continuum was the thoroughbass, the center of the Baroque musicians art. The Langloz Manuscript, originating in the era and proximity of Bach's region of activity, and containing the largest extant collection of figured...

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...