"The luthier of Delft" (Spanish version), by Ramón Andrés

An essential book for all those who enjoy comparative literature or, incidentally, the interrelationship of different arts with each other. The book is based on a painting by Fabricius, precisely titled "The Luthier of Delft". There are many aspects that Ramón Andrés analyzes, focusing on the Netherlands of the Golden Age, the 17th century. 

The relationship between science and art is addressed in the use of the camera obscura and other techniques to paint more faithfully. But science is also fundamental to understanding music, the physics behind a harpsichord or a viola da gamba. The Pythagoreans and the evolution of musical temperament are also discussed. 

The plot continues through the interrelationship between philosophy, music and painting. Spinoza, Vermeer, Sweelinck, are the three great artists that the book deals with. I found the analysis of the interrelationship and the relationship of painting with music particularly interesting. Ramón Andrés analyzes the main paintings by Dutch artists in which musical instruments are represented. This gives rise to review many other issues and, above all, to talk about many painters that I did not know. 

The Dutch bourgeoisie had enough money and power to be able to dedicate themselves to art collecting and to play virginals and spinets in domestic settings. These were years of patriotic pride because the Netherlands had achieved independence from the Spanish empire. The Netherlands had become a great maritime power, and the arrival of precious woods and materials from Africa and Asia allowed luthiers to become artists, as well as craftsmen. The review of the different types of wood and the different parts of musical instruments is anthological. Andrés always emphasizes that life was slower, that there was a delicacy when it came to making a musical instrument. Building a violin could take weeks. 

The luthiers would fight on the docks whenever a ship from the East India Company docked to see who could get the best woods for their workshops. This is the context. The dawn of modern music, leaving the Renaissance behind. Given my love of music, I found the chapter dedicated to Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, the greatest Dutch musician of all time, particularly interesting. It explains very well how Sweelinck created a great musical school, and trained disciples who would later become the teachers of Johann Sebastian Bach. Perhaps Sweelinck's importance in the history of Western music is greater than we think. 

What is surprising about Sweelinck is that prodigious language that emancipates itself from the corsets of the music of the time. Listening to some of Sweelinck's variations can take you back a century. He was ahead of his time. The Netherlands is, without a doubt, the great protagonist of the book. The newly formed country was quickly prosperous and cultivated. From the point of view of thought, the coexistence between Catholics, Lutherans and Calvinists fostered a climate of tolerance in a country that welcomed exiles such as John Bull, who had to move to the Netherlands, where he met Sweelinck. Music, thought, painting and even urban planning are analyzed in the book, which is a true compendium of erudition and wisdom.