Lucas Harris on the unique characteristics of the theorbo, or chitarrone | EMV

Theorbist Lucas Harris demonstrates the unique characteristics of theorbo, and reveals how the instrument is most commonly used in Renaissance and Baroque music.

Toronto-based Lucas Harris discovered the lute during his undergraduate studies at Pomona College, and went on to study the lute and early music at the Civica scuola di musica di Milano and at the Hochschule für Künste Bremen. He is a founding member of the Toronto Continuo Collective, the Vesuvius Ensemble and the Lute Legends Collective (an association of specialists in ancient plucked-string traditions from diverse cultures) and is the regular lutenist for Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra. Lucas plays with many other ensembles in Canada and the USA and has worked with the Smithsonian Chamber Players, Atalante, and Jordi Savall / Le Concert des Nations amongst others.

EMV acquired a beautifully crafted theorbo made by Ray Nurse in the year 2000 for Festival Vancouver’s production of Orfeo. Ray Nurse is a true Renaissance man who helped found EMV in 1970 and is a lutenist, builder, restorer of period string instruments, among many other talents.

His theorbo was crafted from a model by Vendelio Venere from 1607. The body of the instrument is made of 27 ribs of “Amourette” (unfigured Snakewood) separated by boxwood lines. The soundboard is fine European spruce and has a carved triple rosette. The necks are all veneered with ebony, and the pegs are made of African blackwood. All the materials are of exceptional quality. Ray’s instrument has been featured in many concerts in Vancouver and is now part of the EMV instrument collection.

Featuring 'Milton in Love: The Birth of Opera in the Eternal City' with Atalante: Nadine Balbeisi, Myriam Leblanc and Ellen Torrie, sopranos; Adrienne Hyde, viola da gamba and lirone; Antoine Malette-Chénier, triple harp; Christina Hutten, harpsichord Lucas Harris, theorbo (chitarrone) and music director. Filmed August 3, 2023.

Grant Rowledge, Recording Engineer

Filmed by Collide Entertainment:
Mike Southworth, Director
Joanna Dundas, Producer
Adam PW Smith & Mike Southworth, Camera Operators
Joanna Dundas & Mike Southworth, Editors