The Concert

Ter Borch's Concert from around 1675, in the Gemäldegalerie Berlin, depicts a small musical gathering in an elegant interior, one of the last works by the master of Dutch genre painting's most refined social world. Musical scenes in Dutch art typically carried associations with harmony—both musical and social—and with the cultivated leisure of the upper classes. Ter Borch's late works maintain the psychological subtlety and technical refinement of his earlier paintings while showing a slightly broader handling.

The intimate composition groups the musicians in a characteristically restrained arrangement, with ter Borch's legendary satin-painting technique creating luminous reflections on the figures' clothing. The warm, focused lighting and quiet atmosphere create a scene of refined domestic culture.