A most interesting glimpse into the musical life of the 17th century is afforded by the illustration on this page, which is a reproduction of an oil painting in the DeWit Museum at Leipzig. Before a table upon which are lying note books, we see one of the party playing a Gamba, that is, a viol played between the “knees,” superseded by the violoncello today; the small instrument played by the man at the right of the picture is a Pochette, or pocket fiddle; the other instruments are of the Lute family, the larger one being a Theorbo. The painting is a model of fidelity as to the shape of the instruments, strings, etc., and the costumes of the period.
