The lira da braccio is frequently depicted in paintings and drawings of the Italian Renaissance, yet until now it has been little studied. Only a few fragments of music written for it have been found, and very few instruments have survived.

The very lack of concrete knowledge about the lira da braccio and its technical difficulties challenged Sterling Scott Jones to discover more about this sixteenth-century string instrument, which may be the missing link between the medieval fiddle and the modern violin.

In Chapter 1, a short history of the lira da braccio, Jones cites early written references to it and includes photographs of extant instruments and reproductions of works of art showing the lira da braccio. By analyzing a wide selection of iconographical representations and surviving instruments in museums, he is able to identify several categories of design and shape, which he delineates in many delightful drawings.

For the modern performer Jones has provided a useful section on chords and fingerings, his own arrangements of several pieces that can be performed on the lira da braccio, and a list of modern instrument makers who have built liras da braccio. An Appendix contains facsimiles and transcriptions of several pages from the Pesaro Manuscript (a fragment of music written for the lira da braccio) and a heretofore unpublished violin piece by Biagio Marini.