“Being a Windham Hill fan, it certainly takes me back to those days, where a simple guitar album, played with endearing quality and attention to detail, has become a delight”.
MICK WORDLEY
FINGERSTYLE GUITARIST
RafaelArden
Renaissance lutenist
.Rafael.
Arden.
‘One of the finest musicians to be heard anywhere”
MULTICULTURAL ARTS FORUM
Welcome to the website of
The Rowallan Manuscript is the oldest surviving collection of Scottish lute music in existence. Dating from 1612 (although quite possibly earlier) to approximately 1628, it was discovered in the ancestral home of Sir William Mure of Rowallan. Mure was a poet and an amateur musician, and a great supporter of the arts. He was also a politician, and the manuscript therefore reflects somewhat, the changes that were taking place in Scotland, not just musically but also politically.
Compiled just a short time after James VI of Scotland, became King James I of Great Britain, the Rowallan Manuscript reflects this change in politics, which brought with it, a great change in music. Prior to this, Scottish lute music, was heavily influenced by the Royal Court, but when James VI, left for England, lutenists began to embrace native folk music instead.
The Scottish lute
- The Rowallan and The Straloch Manuscripts -
The Rowallan Manuscript
The Music
Thus, the Rowallan Manuscript contains both Scottish lute pieces, as well as French. It features many dance tunes which are decidedly French, and a number of delightful, lilting melodies, so typically Scottish, as well as some hauntingly beautiful pieces, conjuring up images of the mist shrouded Scottish highlands, and times gone by.
the scottish lute concerts by rafael arden
‘This is what knowledgs really is’
New Age Gardian
“A musicial Guru”
Mixmasters
Come and take a journey into the Music of Antiquity and experience the Renaissance lute known in its day as the king of instruments.
The night will feature ancient dance tunes and floating Airs that will take the listener on a magical journey of intrigue and mystery.
Rafael will perform excerpts from these ancient Scottish manuscripts under the atmospheric present of candlelight making the evening a fun and relaxing occasion.
Rafael Arden-About
Rafael Arden grew up in the entertainment industry. He has appeared live on telavision and radio and has performed exstenivly both on stage and in various thearte productions both as a musician in the orchestra and an actor. He has also had favourable reviews in various magazines and has appeared on radio as a gueat artist. Rafael was also the host foe a full featured documentry ,We love live music.
Mr Arden was principle guitar teacher at the Yamaha school of music at the young age of 16. He has since taught at the Sydney school of music and the School of contempory arts of modern music.
In his later yrs rafael became a studio musician and record producer as well as performiong on the electric guitar. Rafael has has a firm knowledge of all styles of music dating back to the early medivial period to the modern rock music of today.He is now devoting all his time studying the lute music of the Renaissance. His latest project is the Rowallan and stralock lute books. The scottish and french music from the late 16 century. He is studying these manuscripts with English lutenist Elizabeth Pallett.