This is an Italian lute piece that starts with a solemn theme and develops in subtle polyphony with a question/answer game between the voices. I first heard this piece when I was seventeen and I had just started to learn to play guitar.
Mr. Niek Verkruisen, the musical teacher on the Sweelinck High School in Amsterdam (where I attended the Grammar School) used to organise a song festival for and by the students. On that occasion you could hear amateur performances of numerous pop songs like Streets of London, Killing me Softly and various Dutch protest songs by the Dutch Bob Dylan Boudewijn de Groot and many other songs that were popular in the seventies.
This music teacher -originally a classical pianist who also liked symphonic rock (Like Close to the Edge by Yes)- at a certain moment wanted to organise a classical festival as well. No sooner said than done and within a short time it appeared that there was a tremendous potential of amateur flautists, pianists, violists, guitarists and players of other instruments who would like to perform if nerves did not get too bad.
The bravest amongst them ventured to play a piece. I remember my class mates Els Grotendorst and Carol van Wieren who played Entr’ Acte by Jaques Ibert for flute and guitar very meritoriously. Another class mate -Arjen Mos- surprised friend and enemy with his Black Keys Study by Frederick Chopin on the piano. And there was Jan Belmer on guitar who perfectly imitated the saying of his great idol -the rock guitarist Jan Akkerman- (“No, Sorry, I don’t want to play today” in front of a huge audience), so that we never heard the piece he had studied for this occasion.
Finally, Gabrielle Verbeek played Se Lo M’Accorgo. The poor girl was extremely bad lucky. She encountered the nightmare of each guitarist, her high e-string snapped and she did not have e fresh one. But she went on bravely, even without melody.