Multiple iconographical examples hint that the flute and drum were played indoors for background mood music, providing the vibey soundtrack for drinking and dining that later became known as Tafelmusik. This is somewhat surprising: the piercing flute and booming drum were obviously effective tools for coordinating collective movement in the 16th century, whether it was mobilizing regiments of foot soldiers on battlefields or providing the beat and melody necessary for dancing. But when the setting shifted to casual activities, what was the musical aesthetic and repertoire?

Zweigulden’s programme gathers German popular melodies that circulated widely in the 1550’s, whether used as a cantus firmus in Mass settings, parodied in contrafacta, or sung with new texts in broadsheets (Liedflugschriften). The title pays tribute to Georg Forster’s remarkable collection, which he advertised as “a selection of good old and new German songs in the true German style, carefully chosen for use on all kinds of instruments” (Ein außzug guter alter und newer Teutscher liedlein einer rechten Teutschen art auff allerley Instrumenten zubrauchen außerlesen). By performing this kind of repertoire monophonically, the current boundaries dividing sacred and secular, vocal and instrumental, and classical and pop music become blurred. What emerges instead is a testament to the transcendent musical vocabulary of melody that was shared and understood in the early modern era.