Robert Barto is an American lutenist specializing in the music of the Baroque

Baroque

The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...

 and Empfindsamkeit

Sensitive style

The Empfindsamer Stil is a style of musical composition developed in 18th century Germany, intended to express "true and natural" feelings, and featuring sudden contrasts of mood. It was developed as a contrast to the Baroque Affektenlehre The Empfindsamer Stil (literally sensitive style) is a...

 periods, in particular the oeuvres of Sylvius Leopold Weiss

Sylvius Leopold Weiss

Silvius Leopold Weiss was a German composer and lutenist.Born in Grottkau near Breslau, the son of Johann Jacob Weiss, also a lutenist, he served at courts in Breslau, Rome, and Dresden, where he died...

 and Bernhard Joachim Hagen

Bernhard Joachim Hagen

Bernhard Joachim Hagen was a German composer, violinist and lutenist. He was the last important composer of lute music in 18th century Germany.-Life:...

. He is a graduate of the University of California, San Diego, having majored in historical lute performance. The recipient of a Fulbright scholarship, he continued his studies in Cologne

Cologne

Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...

, Germany and at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis

Schola Cantorum Basiliensis

Schola Cantorum Basiliensis is a music academy and research institution located in Basel, Switzerland, and focusing on early music and historically informed performance....

 in Switzerland, with Michael Schaeffer and Eugen Müller-Dombois, respectively. Having made Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 his home for many years, he travels and performs throughout the world.

In 1984, Barto took top honors at the "International Lute Competition" in Toronto and the "Musica Antiqua Competition" in Bruges, Belgium. His performances of note have included solo recitals at the Festival of Flanders, London's Purcell Room

Purcell Room

The Purcell Room is a concert and performance venue which forms part of the Southbank Centre, one of central London's leading cultural complexes. It is named after the 17th century English composer Henry Purcell and has 370 seats....

, the Utrecht Festival, and in New York City's "Music Before 1800" event. In 2000, Barto performed a tribute to Sylvius Leopold Weiss

Sylvius Leopold Weiss

Silvius Leopold Weiss was a German composer and lutenist.Born in Grottkau near Breslau, the son of Johann Jacob Weiss, also a lutenist, he served at courts in Breslau, Rome, and Dresden, where he died...

 in Dresden

Dresden

Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....

. He also gave solo recitals for Bavarian Radio's "Bach Night" in Munich

Munich

Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...

 as well as the "Lufthansa

Lufthansa

Deutsche Lufthansa AG is the flag carrier of Germany and the largest airline in Europe in terms of overall passengers carried. The name of the company is derived from Luft , and Hansa .The airline is the world's fourth-largest airline in terms of overall passengers carried, operating...

Baroque Festival" also held in London.

He is greatly sought after as a teacher, having given master classes in Spain, Sweden, Germany, Italy and Japan. He has regularly been on the faculty of the Lute Society of America's Summer Seminar series.

Barto has recorded ten volumes of lute sonatas by baroque lutenist-composer Sylvius Leopold Weiss and two CDs of the solo works of Bernhard Joachim Hagen for the Naxos and Symphonia labels.