Discover the rich sound of the Viola da Gamba, a bowed seven-stringed instrument (child of the violin and the guitar), described by Marin Mersenne in 1636 as being the instrument most able to imitate the human voice “in all its modulations, even in its most intimate nuances: that of grief and joy.” The instrument reached the pinnacle of its artistic expression in France during the reign of Louis XIV. This program explores music for solo viol from five generations of French Ba

Embark on a musical journey with the viola da gamba, a seven-stringed, bowed, fretted instrument that once graced the courts of royalty. A musical "prelude" is a brief, quasi-improvisatory work that sets up and introduces a larger piece - the prelude can be viewed as a metaphor for life, in which each action, improvised in the moment, leads consequentially to the next, intertwined event. Join renowned virtuoso Brady Lanier, professor of viola da gamba at William & Mary, as h