Bol, Hans | La basse de viole du temps de Marin Marais & d'Antoine Forqueray (Livre I)

"Bol has assembled a tremendous repository of source material, presented in a well-organized form, from which he then draws numerous practical conclusions. He has succeeded in clarifying many technical points, especially those concerning the bow arm and hand." [Source: Book review by Julie Ann Vertrees, Ann Arbor, Mich., 1974]

"This book cannot be too highly recommended to viola da gamba players. Hans Bol has brought together and collated a wealth of evidence on the technique and musical literature of the instrument from treatises by writers of various countries and periods. The subjects of interpretation and ornamentation are dealt with in numerous musical examples, charts, plates and diagrams. He has also classified the music, the methods of teaching and the rules of performance. If he appears to have a slight slant towards the French writers, this is natural, as the French were in general more detailed in their instructions, and precise in marking their compositions with the required bowings, slurs, ornamentation and style, than were the English masters, as can be seen in the many examples given in the book." [Source: Book review by Nathalie Dolmetsch, JSTOR, 1974]