[page currently under construction, June 2026]
This page mainly focuses on the Scottish and French lute manuscripts, my recordings, videos, and academic writing. Mel Bay editions also publish my Method for the Renaissance lute: https://robmackillop.net/introduction-to-the-lute/ .
Currently – June 2026 – I have played lute for some 35 years, from Medieval through Renaissance, Baroque and Contemporary. During that time I recorded several CDs, many videos for YouTube, and a method book published by Mel Bay for Renaissance lute. Also played many concerts, including a tour of Japan. Three of my CDs went to the No.1 position in the Scottish Classical Music Chart. Now that I have retired from playing and teaching (formally at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama in Glasgow, and Napier University in Edinburgh), I include below some things you might find interesting.
Here is is an academic book chapter I contributed to ‘Defining Strains – The Musical Life of Scots in the Seventeenth Century’, published by Peter Lang, 2007, which gives an overview of the Scottish lute manuscripts, their contents, and discusses interpretive questions:
A very brief outline of the main manuscripts:
Rowallan – From 7 to 10 courses. Includes music from the final years of James VI’s court, through to the 1620s. A mixture of Scottish, English and Continental airs and dances.
Straloch – 10c required. Robert Gordon of Straloch. Only a 19th-century partial copy survives. Mainly Scots tunes.
Skene – for the 5c mandore/mandour. Tom Knight is currently submitting a thesis on the manuscript. Details to follow.
Wemyss – Mainly 10c, but some later pieces are notated for 12 courses. Scottish and French repertoire. Harp Sharp and Harp Flat tunings feature throughout.
Panmure – Three interesting manuscripts: Pan 4 – 12c required. 21 pieces by mainly Vinsan (Vincente) (five pieces) and Pinel (ten pieces), Bouvié (one piece), Gaultier d’angleterre (three pieces), and one piece by Jeunne Gaultier Pan 5 – 10c. Mainly French but a good selection of Scottish pieces too, all untitled and unattributed, though music associated with René Mesangeau features. Harp Sharp and Harp Flat tunings feature throughout. Pan 8 – many untitled and unattributed pieces in four tunings, all for 12c. “Goutier” is mentioned for one piece.
Ruthwen – 11c. Scottish provenance, yet only one Scottish piece (The Lass of Kilmarnock) is included, the remainder being French. From 1656: “The 10 of october in the year 1656 I have begoon agaien to learn to play on the Leut” (penultimate page). The Ruthwen family travelled through France and Germany, for which this manuscript provides a kind of musical diary.
Balcarres – 11c mainly in Dm tuning, other tunings employed latterly. Mainly Scottish, quite a number of French, and a few English pieces. The most professional of the manuscripts. Although seemingly notated in Balcarres House, Fife, much of the music seems to have been sent there for copying from Edinburgh.
MUCH more on all the above in the Defining Strains chapter linked to above.
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WHICH LUTE do I need to play this music?
10c: Rowallan, Straloch, Wemyss, Pan 5.
11c: Balcarres, Ruthwen.
12c: Pan 4, Pan 8, Wemyss – Balcarres and Ruthwen also possible
…oh, and a wee mandour for the Skene MS!
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Sound Examples and Free Soundfiles
TUNINGS
As the Scottish lute manuscripts cover the whole of the 17th century – a period of experimentation and discovery for the lute – there are quite a number of tunings to contend with. Here’s a rough guide:
Standard Renaissance for the 10c lute: g’ d’ a f c G F E D C – but that is an agreed nominal pitch for transcriptions. In reality, the string lengths were generally much longer than they had been in earlier decades, and the lower French pitch of 392hz might have been making headway – for instance, there were a number of French musicians in Scotland teaching the owners of the manuscripts. So, we could take the pitch down a tone to f’ c g eb Bb F Eb D C Bb or A. On a 67cms lute you could go down a step further to e for the first string, and so on.
Harp Sharp for the 10c or 12c lute: This was a very common alternate tuning. From Standard Renaissance Tuning it involves lowering the first string a minor third, and also the second course down a tone. A minor third is a long way down, and should really involve a change of string, perhaps also for the second course. Obviously this is not something you could do mid concert, but there is a solution found in the Balcarres MS.
Harp Flat for the 10c or 12c lute: As above, but lower the first string again to eb from g (or whatever starting pitch you have decided upon).
New Standard Baroque tuning for the 11c and 12c: f’ d’ a f d A G F E D C (B, Bb or A) This tuning was just one of many, but eventually became the most popular, enough perhaps to be termed the New Standard.
D Major Tuning for the 11 or 12c lute: there are a number of pieces in this tuning by French and Scottish composers, with many pieces found in Balcarres and Pan 4 and Pan 8, and also others furth (outside) of Scotland. The hazard involved is that it has all the f strings raised to f#, and a C# for the 11th course. Tuning your first string up a semitone might well result in breaking that string, though you might get away with it with modern nylon and Nylgut strings, though there the string would feel very tense. My theory is that players were generally using a lower tension on their larger lutes than had been used in Renaissance days. My workable solution, which I have used for at least three decades, is to purchase a set of strings for 415 pitch, but tune them to 392. It is then easy to tune the first string up a semitone. To my ears and hands, the tuning sounds and feels more relaxed, and suits the Scottish and French music very well.
Harp Sharp for the 11c or 12c lute: First tune to D Major (as above), then tune the 3rd string up a tone from a to b, and the 4th string up a semitone from f# to g. I used to do this in concert intervals where I had played a suite or collection of pieces in D Major tuning in the first half, without a problem.
Harp Flat for the 11c or 12c lute: First tune to Dm Standard, then raise the 3rd string up a tone from a to b, and the 4th string up a tone from f to g. This could also be done in a concert interval, from a Standard tuning suite in the first half.
More to come…
Rob MacKillop ~ Musician 
How does one best hold a lute? The guitar is conveniently shaped to sit on the lap of the player, but how does one stop the lute trying to escape?
Dear Myscha,
It is indeed a problem. Some players use a strap, others use a piece of a rubber mat between their body and the lute, which helps keep it still. They are not the easiest of instruments to hold, but don’t let that put you off playing one!
Dear Rob,
just found your new shiny website – nicely done and very well arranged.
I know this is not a Jukebox, but if you ever wonder which piece to record next, I for one would love to hear a (second) interpretation of Port Jean Lindsay, now on your M. Prior lute.
Not that your first video of it isn’t overwhelmingly beautiful already, but rather because I can’t get enough of it!
Best regards and take care,
Teja
Cheers, Teja. It is indeed a beautiful piece. I’ll return to it someday, for sure.
Rob
Great! Looking forward to it.
Furthermore I was wondering about something else. I share your opinion about short scale guitars with all their benefits. Yet I was wondering, if, regarding vihuela pieces, you actually prefer them over a “real” vihuela, and if so, why?
Teja
Good question. First of all, I enjoy playing the vihuela. It looks different, has a different feel, and I think it helps me get closer to what the composer had in mind. On the other hand, vihuela music can sound great on small guitars with gut strings – great but different.
I’m not sure which I prefer most, which is quite an admission, considering the price difference…I was genuinely surprised that vihuela music could sound so good on a cheap guitar with good-quality gut strings. And judging by all the emails I’ve had on the subject, I am not alone 🙂
Beautiful playing 🙂
Thanks, John. Appreciated.
Hi Rob,
As usual, wonderful playing. 🙂
Quite a long time ago I ran across a reference to a note in an early-to-mid 17th century lute book where the instructor advised his student to not play behind her head or do other things tavern players did to get more money. I’m fairly certain the young lady was English rather than Scottish. Unfortunately, I either didn’t write down the reference or, more likely, have managed to lose it. Do you by chance remember having ever seen such a comment in any of the early lute books? This isn’t of any real importance. It’s just one of those little things that seems to surface with annoying frequency as I get older and sends me on fruitless searches through old notes, computer files, Google searches, etc.
John, sorry for the delay in responding. I’ve heard of this in connection with the baroque guitar, not the lute. But I can’t remember the source. It’s a good story, anyway. Nothing is new…
In her lute book (1660 – 1672) Miss Mary Burwell writes in the 16th Chapter ‘Concerning Errors and Abuses that are committed sbout the Lute’ that ‘It is a disgrace for the lute to play Country dances, Songs or Courantes of Violins as likewise to play Tricks with ones Lute to play behind the back etc. The Lute is a noble Instrument not made for Debaucheries, Ranting or playing in the Streets, to give serenades to Signora Isabella”
Perhaps this is the reference in question?
Ay yes, I have read that. Could be, John. Thanks for that.
Burwell also writes that lutes should not be played in taverns or to make people dance or to accompany song!
I should have added that a full facsimile ‘The Burwell Lute Tutor’ was published by Boethius Press in 1974 (now out of print?). However, a full transcription of the manuscript by Thurston Dart appeared in the Galpin Society Journal Vol. 11, 1958. This article may be viewed on line by registering with JSTOR as a MyJSTOR member. This allows the reading of three articles a month from Journals such as the Galpin Society free of charge. Registration is also free.
Yes, I have the transcription somewhere in my files. Apparently it wasn’t written by Mary Burwell.
Correction – as a MyJSTOR member of JSTOR one can read, on line, up to 6 articles per month not 3. There have been a number of lute related articles published in the Galpin Society Journal over the years all now available for free viewing as a MyJSTOR member.
The transcription by Thurston Dart of the original manuscript by Burwell covers most but not all of the manuscript in modernised English. Apparently Dart for some reason transcribes the musical examples a fifth higher than originally intended.
Thanks, John.
John Downing, thank you very much. That is exactly the reference (ill-remembered though it was). And thank you, also, for the JSTOR reference. A Google search revealed that scribd.com has what appears to be the same transcription, and a couple of copies of the facsimile edition are for sale in the $100 (US) range. By the way, Mary Burwell married Colonel Robert Walpole, had 19 children (nine of whom lived past infancy), and was the mother of Sir Robert Walpole (unofficially the first English prime minister), and of Mary Walpole who married Charles Townshend (another very important early-to-mid-18th century political figure).
My pleasure.
Burwell – although English – her instructions for the 11 course ”French’ lute should also be appropriatel for the Scottish lute of the time period (?) – a consequence of the old established political connection between Scotland and France (the ‘Auld Alliance’). As a child I remember my Scottish grand mother using words of French origin such as ‘jujube’ (candy or sweet confection) and ‘pallyas’ (straw bedding – ‘paille’ French for straw), for example – that do not appear in the old Norman French vocabulary that strongly influenced the English language.
There are many French words in Scots. My wife writes Scots language dictionaries, and did her PhD thesis on the first large-scale Scots dictionary by Dr John Jamieson in the early 19th Century. A very interesting area of research. Most of the non-Scottish pieces in the Scottish lute manuscripts are French, some Dutch, and only a few English.
Dear Rob, i newly discovered your website. You refreshed my earlier dream to play the lute. Thanks for that and the beautiful music you share so warmly. You make me, a 62 year old guitarplayer (classical music, flamenco and some jazz) take the step to dive into the fascinating world of lute playing. So i decided to buy your lute book on melbay. But i could not find it. Is it out of print Maybe? Thanks for your work,
Daniël
(excuses for my crappy english, i am flemish).
Hi Daniel,
It seems to still be available, from what I
can see:
https://www.melbay.com/Products/30589M/introduction-to-the-lute.aspx
Cheers,
Wilson
Dear Daniël, Wilson is correct, just follow his link. And thanks for your story. I wish you well with the lute! Any questions, just ask. Best wishes, Rob.
PS Thanks, Wilson!
Hi Rob,
I’m an intermediate level classical guitarist, and recently, my wife and kids surprised me by giving me an 8-course Renaissance lute (a Roosebeck). It has always been a dream of mine to play lute. I’d love to take lessons, but that is just not a possibility right now. I notice you have a book called “Introduction to Lute”. Is that what you recommend I get started with, or is there something better for me as a guitarist? Any thoughts you have would be greatly appreciated.
Eric Phillips
Hi Eric. My book is exactly pointed at guitar players who want to learn the lute, so I think it will be perfect for you. Once you get it, if you have any questions, just ask.
Cheers,
Rob
Thank you so much for your thoughtful, and amazingly quick response!