Jozef van Wissem

Dutch Lutenist Jozef Van Wissem is renowned for his experimental approach to Renaissance and Baroque forms of lute music. By cutting-and-pasting classical pieces, constructing palindromic melodies, or adding electronics and processed field recordings, he manages to seamlessly bridge the musical languages of 17th and 21st centuries. If this approach seems coldly academic on paper, the results are anything but: his music is uncluttered and direct, with a viscerally hypnotic and emotional impact, and delivered with an ascetic intensity reflected both in his Biblical titles and his No Wave influences. He has collaborated with James Blackshaw, Smegma, Keiji Haino and Jim Jarmusch among others.. Van Wissem studied lute in New york with Pat O'Brien and released a classical lute CD " A Rose By Any Other Name" consisting of anonymous lute pieces. He lectures on 'the liberation of the lute' ( At Harvard, Wesleyan University, Mills College amongst others) and was commissioned by London's National Gallery to compose a sound piece to Hans Holbein's painting "The Ambassadors". His work is featured more and more in documentaries and feature films, Van Wissem composed and performed lute and voice pieces for the new Sims Medieval video game.