Welcome!

The Dutch Lute Society is open for everyone, amateur or professional, who plays the lute or is interested in lute music. Our aim is to provide you with information on every aspect of lutes and lute music. We do this not only by means of our website, but also through the digital newsletter for our members and the magazine De Tabulatuur.

Our society is not only for those who play instruments belonging to the large European "lute family". Do you play, for instance, vihuela, baroque guitar, ud or cittern? Do join us!

At least once a year a member activity is organised and it is our ambition to hold a major event covering several days once every few years. To achieve this we cooperate with our international sister societies. A further aim is to publish books to provide international access to important music and historical information.

On our website information can be found on, amongst other subjects, lute makers, lute teachers and concerts. Members are offered the opportunity to advertise.

On this page in English we ask your attention for two interesting and especially attractive items on the page PUBLICATIES (Publications).

Membership of the Dutch Lute Society is the preferred way to establish contacts with other lute players and find out about the news from the world of the lute!

Ciska Mertens

The Thysius Lute Book (1622)

Dimensions: 33 cm x 23 cm
Facsimile edition, bound, hard cover, three volumes
800 pages, French tablature
Introduction by Jan Burgers and Louis Peter Grijp
Members: € 75,00 , non-members: € 90,00

The Thysius MS is the most extensive source of hand-written lute music known today. The manuscript, fully written in French tabulature, has been compiled around 1600 by the illustrious reverend Adriaen Smout (1580-1646). After Smout’s death the Leiden librarian and book collector Johannes Thysius (1622-1651) bought the book in an auction of Smout’s possessions. The manuscript, as well as the rest of Thysius’ library, known as the Bibliotheca Thysiana, is still intact today.

The book contains over 800 pages of music for 5/6/7 course lute and comprises a large variety of pieces collected from all over Europe, including chanson- and madrigal intabulations, dance settings, fantasia’s, and songs. The new NLV/KVNM edition of the book contains three hard-backed volumes, neatly collected in a stylish box. The first volume, written and compiled by Jan Burgers, Louis Peter Grijp, Simon Groot and John Robinson, gives a thorough introduction into the history and background of the book, as well as an extensive list of concordances. The other two volumes represent the actual facsimile of the manuscript itself. You find some example pages of the manuscript here.

You can order the book by sending your contact details (address, telephone number, email address) to publicaties@nederlandseluitvereniging.nl.

Collected Works for Lute by Nicolas Vallet

Dimensions: 25 cm x 19 cm
Facsimile edition in color, in cassette, French tablature
Introduction by Simon de Groot, 32 pages

Volume 1, bound, hard cover, 167 pages
Paradisus Musicus Testudinis

Volume 2, bound, hard cover, 188 pages
Regia Pietas

Members: € 70,00, non-members: € 85,00

The complete extant music for the lute by Nicolas Vallet appears in a new facsimile edition of the highest standard. One book includes the Secretum Musarum I, Secretum Musarum II and 21 Psalms (after the copy of Museum Flehite in Amersfoort), while the other will be devoted to the Regia Pietas (after the copy of the National Library of St. Petersburg).

The facsimile’s have been produced as a faithful reproduction (as they will have left the presses in the early seventeenth century). They come together in a cassette with a separate scientific explanation.

These editions are appropriate for scientific study as well as practical use.

You can order the book by sending your contact details (address, telephone number, email address) to publicaties@nederlandseluitvereniging.nl.

Executive committee of the Dutch Lute Society

President: Ciska Mertens voorzitter@nederlandseluitvereniging.nl
Secretary: Cora Cannemeijer secretaris@nederlandseluitvereniging.nl
Treasurer: Wouter van Geene penningmeester@nederlandseluitvereniging.nl
Members: Joost van Poppel, Wouter Lucassen

Editorial staff De Tabulatuur

Lex Horst, Jack Scholten, John van der Tol & Wouter Lucassen redactie@nederlandseluitvereniging.nl Graphic designer: Jan van Delft

Publications

Joost van Poppel publicaties@nederlandseluitvereniging.nl

Webmaster

Wouter Lucassen & Wouter van Geene webmaster@nederlandseluitvereniging.nl

Membership NLV and De Tabulatuur

Please contact the Secretary if you would like to become a member of the Dutch Lute Society
Normal membership: € 35,00
Below 16 years old: € 15,00
Subscription to De Tabulatuur € 25,00

Payment can be done via the bank using the following information.
Beneficiary: De Nederlandse Luitvereniging
IBAN: NL25 INGB 0005 5351 66
BIC: INGBNL2A
City: Amstelveen
Country: The Netherlands
Please mention the desired membership option.

Cancelation of membership can only be announced in writing and at least two months before the end of the year.

Appeal to all our members: would you please send us your email address, if you have one. You can send it to secretaris@nederlandseluitvereniging.nl.

If lute players, ensemble musicians, teachers or lute makers would like to establish a link on our website, please forward your data to webmaster@nederlandseluitvereniging.nl.