> Ok, I've been reading this list for a while now, and I'm getting  more
> interested in period music.  I play flute, piano and a little guitar and
> recorder.  I'd love to learn and play on a more period instrument (other
> than recorder)

Actually, the recorder is a quite wonderful instrument if you can play
it really well -- I'm lucky to have an instrument maker in town who
plays quite divinely. There's a lot of opportunity for improvisation
in Renaissance music, and the lack of dynamics on a recorder just brings
out all sorts of interesting possibilities for other stuff.

And best of all they're really cheap. Tabor pipes are also pretty
cheap, and are handy if you have local dancers who would like live
music.

With your background you could learn harpsichord or lute (starting,
perhaps, with a nylon strung classical guitar). But, as you know,
the price to start with these is a lot higher than a recorder -- but
not out of reach for the classical guitar starting option. I had a
friend who started that way and later decided that he wanted to
spend the $$ on a real lute. He still takes the guitar to outdoor
events because the lute is really sensitive to humidity.

You could also learn the fife, which is not that expensive, but most
inexpensive fifes out there are from the American Revolutionary War
era and aren't quite the right shape for a Renaissance fife.

-- gb

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