 They sang and played the lute or the harpsichord for their private amusement and occasionally retained small staffs of musicians -perhaps even including a composer – for their own entertainments.The lute and the harpsichord by their nature were sufficient unto themselves or could serve to support the player's own voice.Playing bowed string instruments was less appealing as a pastime because of the unladylike position required for playing the larger bowed string instruments.