...shadows that in darkness dwell...
Timothy Cooper
I imagine the character of John Dowland, a reclusive and private man with a mysterious past: as a musician in the court of the Danish King, Dowland was also working as an English spy. Dark, shadowy and melancholic the ensemble inhabit a labyrinthine sound world that explores the mood and feeling of Dowland’s sombre set of seven Pavanes. This isn’t a piece about subterfuge but one that explores the very darkest depths present in Dowland’s work through a heightened approach to performing on early instruments. Each verse of Dowland’s work is represented in an extended exploration of the mood and sentiment of the text in three main passages titled Flow, Fled and Darkness.
Pitch: A415
Instrumentation notes:
Recorder - Renaissance Treble and Tenor Recorders
Composed for Baroque Cello with baroque bow
Instrumentation Genre Ensemble and electronics
Tag orchestra
Duration 18 minutes
Instrumentation Tenor recorder [1 player]; Countertenor [1 player]; Theorbo [1 player]; Cello [1 player]
Performances of this work
Date | Venue | Performer | Link |
10/12/2019 (*premiére) | Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK | ||
11/12/2019 | Hug and Pint, Glasgow, Scotland, UK | ||
12/12/2019 | Belmont Film House, Aberdeen, Scotland, UK |
Upcoming events
- 09 May 2024, 18:00
[opensound: composing for text and working with a librettist with Laura Bowler and Sam Redway] - 09 May 2024, 19:30
[Cryptic Nights: I've Always Lived Beside Screens // The Invisible Hand] - 09 May 2024, 19:30
[Cryptic Nights: I've Always Lived Beside Screens // The Invisible Hand] - 09 May 2024, 19:30
[Associate Artist: Colin Currie with RCS Percussion] - 15 May 2024, 14:00
[Composers' Helpline]
Recent updates
Works
- Expanse, by Erin Thomson
- New works by Royal Conservatoire of Scotland students, by None The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
- new work - world premiere, by Aileen Sweeney
Events
- UN:TITLED 2024
- opensound: writing for harpsichord with Tiffany Vong
- opensound: writing for brass instruments with Gavin Higgins
Projects
- Unusual Music Exchange w/ Ailie Ormston
- Elsewhere, Elsewhen - CD and Digital Album from Nordic Viola
- On a Wing and a Prayer
Opportunities
- phoning it in
- Legato: Call for Early-Career Composers
- Echoes - Connections Crafting Eco-systems through Soundscapes Interactions: a participatory Sound-walk experience and Art conversation