David Gorton: Variations on John Dowland
John Dowland’s pavan Lachrimae was one of the hits of the early 1600s: musicians all over Europe made their own versions of it. The English composer David Gorton (b. 1978) proves that Dowland’s fascination endures, with this album of music that has its points of departure in Dowland, linking his time and ours over a span of 400 years – with a dig at some contemporary politicians along the way.
Longbow (Tracks 1,2-12, 21)
Stefan Östersjö, eleven-string alto guitar (Tracks 13-20)
Listen To This Recording:
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John Dowland arr. Gorton: Flow my teares fall from your springs (1600, arr. 2013)
- Flow my teares fall from your springs
- Introduction
- Theme
- Variation I
- Variation II
- Refrain
- Variation III
- Variation IV
- Refrain
- Variation V
- Pavana
- Galiarda
- Forlorn Hope Fancy
- Contrapuntal Fantasia
- Dr Cable’s Pavan
- Fantasia on 1 to 4
- Mr Hunt’s Thing, Almain
- Fantasia on 10 and 11
- The Right Honourable David, Minister 3:36 of State for Universities and Science 2:26 (attending Cabinet), his Galliard
- Harmonic Fantasia
- Pavana Lachrymae
David Gorton: Lachrymae Variations (2014)
Thomas Morley arr. Gorton: Pavana and Galiarda (c. 1590, arr. 2015)
John Dowland arr. Stefan Östersjö: Forlorn Hope Fancy (c. 1590, arr. 2010)
David Gorton: Forlorn Hope (2011)
John Dowland, set William Byrd arr. David Gorton: Pavana Lachrymae (c. 1600, arr. 2013)
First Recordings
MusicWeb International :
‘The performances of the string pieces by Longbow and of the guitar pieces by Stefan Östersjö make a very good case for the music, none of it easier to play than it is to absorb. The recording is good, too, and the notes are helpful and informative.’
—Brian Wilson, MusicWEeb International
MusicWeb International :
‘There are variations both rich and strange in this collection, from intensely contrapuntal elaborations to atmospheric developments which hint at the original through gesture and the blurred boundaries of dissonance and chance, though always resolving or stretching towards resolution. […] there are enough jaw-dropping moments of strange beauty to make this something rather special. […]
Well recorded and presented with the Toccata label’s usual good standards, this is an intriguing programme that is worthy of investigation – certainly for the Lachrymae Variations. Peter Sheppard Skærved’s Longbow is a very fine band, both in this marvellous swirl of modernity and the more or less straight arrangements.’
—Dominy Clements, MusicWeb International