Tom Harrison    Sat, 15 Jan 2000 00:23:34 EST
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Dear All,

I never post to the lutenet and have only contacted one or two lutenetters 
privately for information but I do enjoy lurking about.  It's a good way to 
pick up the odd bit of information and lute trivia, and, of course, there is 
a certain kind of humor to be found here.  Anyway --

My name is Tom Harrison.  I live in Laguna Hills, California.  That's about 
45 minutes on the freeway south of Los Angeles.  I am 35, have been married 
13 years and have 2 grade school age daughters.  I'm a 6th grade world 
history teacher.  My formal education lies in political science, foreign
languages and linguistics.  My hobbies include painting, calligraphy, jogging 
and lute.

I don't have a music background and aside from playing the flute in the 
elementary school orchestra for a couple of years, I had never picked up an 
instrument.  I like a wide variety of music (popular, ethnic, classical,
whatever) but until 7 or 8 years ago, I had no desire to study, play or 
concern myself with music in any serious way at all.  That is until a good 
friend of mine put on an old Julian Bream LP.  I loved the music at once and 
the romantic notion of the instrument itself I thought pleasant.  My wife
looked into buying a lute from a local music shop for me as a present but at 
2 to 3 thousand dollars, we thought this prohibitive for a growing family so 
we forbore.  My CD collection grew instead and the fascination never faded.  
2 years ago I started taking lessons from a local college grad. with a degree 
in guitar/lute. At first I had to use a borrowed guitar.

By this time I was ready to save the $.  So that Summer, while my wife and 
kids enjoyed their vacation with my mother-in-law in Utzenstorf, Switzerland 
(The wife's family is Swiss), I worked a month in a drinking fountain factory 
in nearby Burgdorf to save up the money.  Through an internet search I found 
EMS in Bradford, England.  I bought a used 7 course after Hieber by 
MacLeod-Coupe.  Actually I had never used e-mail before and I was very 
nervous as getting ripped off from a place so far away.  About that same time 
I found out about this list.  Lute and internet have been packaged for me I 
guess all along.

I practice just about every day from 15 minutes to 2 hours, varying greatly 
according to the availabilty of time.  I play (such as I can) for my school 
kids from time to time as they come into my class.  I listen to my CDs and of 
course, I read the mail (e).  Thanks.