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Lot Essay
This rare and important bass viol or viola da gamba was made by the leading maker Barak Norman, widely recognised to be one of the best known makers of Viols in England during the seventeenth and eighteenth century. Norman is often referred to as the last of the great English viol makers and the craftsmanship demonstrated on his stringed instruments had the sophistication and excellence of distinguished furniture makers at the time. Initially he worked as an apprentice to W. Harding before establishing his own shop around 1692 in St Paul’s Churchyard (1). Norman was working during the height of the English Baroque and his viols embodied the creativity of this era. His work often features intricate and decorative marquetry and many include the carved head scroll. He also took to adding his monogram ‘BN’ on many of his pieces, a feature also used by many clock makers at the time (2).
At the time, music had a revival of importance within society and it was soon ‘at the forefront of the cultural, social and scientific growth of Britain at the time.’ (3) Stringed instruments were particularly popular among wealthy, bourgeoisie families for both solo and ensemble playing. The viola da gamba was an essential instrument as it provided the bass line, a key feature in fashionable music of the baroque era. A number of examples of viola da gamba can be seen in many genre paintings of the seventeenth century. The recent 2013 exhibition Vermeer and Music, The Art of Love and Leisure held at the National Gallery, London, explored the theme of music represented in seventeenth century genre painting. Examples from the exhibition that demonstrate the popular use of the viola da gamba include Gonzales Coques’ Portrait of a Family of Musicians, thought to be the Duarte Family, about 1644 (illustrated). Another example by Gabriel Metsu A Woman seated at a table and a man tuning a violin, 1658, depicts a viola da gamba on the table before the woman as the pair prepare for a musical duet.
The present viola da gamba is often noted in discussions of Barak Norman and is a fine example of one of his earlier pieces that remains in a good condition. Another viola da gamba by Norman from 1692, also commonly referred to in literature, is one now housed in the Royal College of Music, London. This example again shows the intricate and elegant marquetry deployed by Norman on the fingerboard and tail piece, it does not, however, have the carved head detail.
The quality of his pieces meant that Norman built up a distinguished clientele of both wealthy merchant families and important musical figures. The current viol is thought to have been commissioned in 1691 by the Bouveries, a prominent family of silk merchants, and later Earls of Radnor. The viol has remained in the family ever since at Longford Castle, the Wiltshire estate of the Pleydell-Bouverie family when they acquired the house in 1717.
1) The British Violin, the catalogue of the 1998 exhibition ‘400 years of the violin and bow making in the British Isles’, BVMA, Oxford, 2000, p. 18.
2) Benjamin Hebbert, ‘A catalogue of surviving Instruments by, or Ascribed to, Barak Norman, The Galpin Society Journal, vol. 54, May 2001, p. 286.
3) Ibid, p. 287.
At the time, music had a revival of importance within society and it was soon ‘at the forefront of the cultural, social and scientific growth of Britain at the time.’ (3) Stringed instruments were particularly popular among wealthy, bourgeoisie families for both solo and ensemble playing. The viola da gamba was an essential instrument as it provided the bass line, a key feature in fashionable music of the baroque era. A number of examples of viola da gamba can be seen in many genre paintings of the seventeenth century. The recent 2013 exhibition Vermeer and Music, The Art of Love and Leisure held at the National Gallery, London, explored the theme of music represented in seventeenth century genre painting. Examples from the exhibition that demonstrate the popular use of the viola da gamba include Gonzales Coques’ Portrait of a Family of Musicians, thought to be the Duarte Family, about 1644 (illustrated). Another example by Gabriel Metsu A Woman seated at a table and a man tuning a violin, 1658, depicts a viola da gamba on the table before the woman as the pair prepare for a musical duet.
The present viola da gamba is often noted in discussions of Barak Norman and is a fine example of one of his earlier pieces that remains in a good condition. Another viola da gamba by Norman from 1692, also commonly referred to in literature, is one now housed in the Royal College of Music, London. This example again shows the intricate and elegant marquetry deployed by Norman on the fingerboard and tail piece, it does not, however, have the carved head detail.
The quality of his pieces meant that Norman built up a distinguished clientele of both wealthy merchant families and important musical figures. The current viol is thought to have been commissioned in 1691 by the Bouveries, a prominent family of silk merchants, and later Earls of Radnor. The viol has remained in the family ever since at Longford Castle, the Wiltshire estate of the Pleydell-Bouverie family when they acquired the house in 1717.
1) The British Violin, the catalogue of the 1998 exhibition ‘400 years of the violin and bow making in the British Isles’, BVMA, Oxford, 2000, p. 18.
2) Benjamin Hebbert, ‘A catalogue of surviving Instruments by, or Ascribed to, Barak Norman, The Galpin Society Journal, vol. 54, May 2001, p. 286.
3) Ibid, p. 287.