Dowland 400 celebrations in Norwich

Performers at the Dowland 400 festival in Norwich

This year marks the 400th anniversary of the death of John Dowland. Numerous concerts, festivals and special projects are being held throughout the country to commemorate his legacy with Norwich at the forefront of the celebrations.  

The famous English Renaissance composer, lutenist and singer, John Dowland, is being honoured and remembered in Norwich on the 400th anniversary of his death with a four-day festival in July featuring concerts, masterclasses, talks and workshops curated by two renowned Dowland experts - lutenist Daniel Murphy and lute-maker David Van Edwards. Therefore, Dowland’s melancholic and beautiful music - either for solo lute, singer or ensemble - will be laid bare in all its ravishing beauty at Norwich’s historic Octagon Chapel in Colegate with the festival running from Thursday 23 July to Sunday 26 July.

Not only does Dowland 400 salute John Dowland - considered one of the defining and most famous musicians of the Elizabethan era - it also brings to life the lasting impact this pioneering musician had on music of the Renaissance period (circa 1400-1600) defined by a transition from single-line chanting to complex intertwining melodies. Driven by a cultural rebirth, this era saw the rise of music printing, secular courtly songs and expanded instrument families particularly the lute and harpsichord.

James Sillett: The Octagon Chapel, Norwich (Norfolk Museums Collections)

Now widely recognised as one of the most pre-eminent and influential composers of this period, Dowland’s legacy has spread extensively through music of many styles over the last 400 years and he’s best known today for his melancholy songs such as ‘Come, heavy sleep’, ‘Come again’, ‘Flow my tears’, ‘I saw my Lady weepe’, ‘Now o now I needs must part’ and ‘In darkness let me dwell’ while his instrumental music has undergone a major revival and has been a continuing source of repertoire for lutenists and classical guitarists the world over.

However, his influence over the last four centuries is well illustrated by the many modern pop and rock artists who have taken on elements of his music either in straight versions of his songs or deconstructed pieces based on his melody and harmony.

For instance, Elvis Costello included a heartfelt recording of Dowland’s ‘Can she excuse my wrongs’ as a bonus track on the 2006 re-release of ‘The Juliet Letters’ while Patrick Doyle adapted Dowland’s ‘Weep You No More Sad Fountains’ featuring soprano Jane Eaglen in the 1995 film adaptation of Jane Austen’s much-loved novel, Sense and Sensibility.

Science-fiction writer, Philip K. Dick, greatly admired Dowland, too, referencing him in many of his works including the 1974 novel Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said and even used the pseudonym ‘Jack Dowland’ on one occasion.

Sting equally admired Dowland and got into the act by releasing an album entitled ‘Songs from the Labyrinth’ in collaboration with Edin Karamazov on lute and archlute for Deutsche Grammophon in 2006. Throughout the album Sting recites parts of a fascinating letter from Sir Robert Cecil, Queen Elizabeth I’s spymaster.

In fact, Dowland’s life was fascinating and one of considerable interest, too, therefore the letter to Sir Robert Cecil (written in 1595) can be seen as proof that he was acting as a spy on the growing Catholic plot in Italy and Germany to usurp the Protestant Queen Elizabeth I of England.

As a Roman Catholic, Dowland often came under suspicion of being a traitor. He knew only too well that his job and life depended on the grace and favour of royal patronage. As a greatly respected and admired musician, he was able to gain access to many of the most influential people of the time in Europe including monarchs and those in government. He learnt to conduct himself as a type of double agent becoming ensconced with high-profile Catholics whilst reporting back to his ‘spymaster’.

Born in 1563, little is known of his early life but come 1580 Dowland travelled to Paris where he was in service as a lutenist and composer to Sir Henry Cobham, the ambassador to the French court and subsequently his successor, Sir Edward Stafford. Becoming a Roman Catholic around 1584, he returned to England and married. The specific identity of his wife remains unknown. They had children including Robert Dowland (lutenist and a composer of 90 songs) but no surviving documents or records reveal her name.

It’s highly probable that he thought by ingratiating himself with the monarchy he would be in line for a prominent position at the English court. Unfortunately, this did not happen most probably due to his Catholicism. He remained an ‘outsider’ therefore spent much of his early career pursuing positions abroad. However, it didn’t prevent other important musicians such as fellow Catholic, William Byrd, enjoying a handsome career at court.

Snubbed at court, Dowland took off travelling the Continent from 1595 to 1597 which included a monumental journey from Germany to Italy over the Alps to reach Venice. One of the curators of the Dowland 400 (Daniel Murphy) is hoping to recreate this epic trek although walking with a lute and one’s belongings is not totally straightforward so rather than writing to his ‘spymaster’, Mr Murphy plans to give concerts and film some of the journey and the people he meets enroute.

By 1598, Dowland worked at the court of Christian IV of Denmark though he continued to publish his compositions in London. King Christian was very interested in music and paid Dowland a handsome fee (500 daler a year) making him one of the highest-paid servants of the Danish court.

Though Dowland was highly regarded by King Christian, he was not the ideal servant, often overstaying his leave when spending time in England on publishing business or for other reasons. Therefore, Dowland was dismissed around 1606 and returned to England to work as a freelance composer and lutenist. In 1612, he secured a long sought-after post as one of the lutenists of King James I.

Dowland’s music often display a melancholia rare in music of his time and his contemporaries were greatly influenced by this - some even mimicked his style. For instance, Johann Froberger composed a consort piece with the punning title ‘Semper Dowland, semper dolens’ (Always Dowland, always doleful) which could well be said sums up much of Dowland’s output.

After Dowland published his First Booke of Songes or Ayres in London in 1597 (a set of 21 lute songs) it turned out to be one of the most influential collections in the history of the lute and the music historian, Brian Robins, wrote: ‘Many of the songs were composed long before the publication date. However, far from being immature, the songs of Book I reveal Dowland as a fully-fledged master and one of the defining masters of the Renaissance.’ His last work ‘A Pilgrimes Solace’, published in 1612, was highly praised by the English musicologist and Church of England clergyman, Edmund Fellowes, who became well known for his work in promoting the revival of 16th- and 17th-century English music. He described ‘A Pilgrimes Solace’ as ‘the last masterpiece in the English school of lute songs’.

One of the first 20th-century musicians who successfully helped reclaim Dowland from the history books was the singer-songwriter, Frederick Keel, who included 15 pieces by Dowland in his two sets of Elizabethan love-songs published in 1909 and 1913 which achieved huge popularity in their day. These free arrangements for piano and low or high voice were intended to fit the tastes and musical practices associated with art-songs of the time.

In 1935, Australian-born composer, Percy Grainger, who had a deep interest in music of the Renaissance, arranged Dowland’s lovely song ‘Now, O now I needs must part’ for piano. Perhaps the greatest use of his work came from another song ‘Come Heavy Sleepe’ which inspired Britten’s ‘Nocturnal After John Dowland’ written in 1963 for guitarist, Julian Bream. The piece comprises eight variations all based on musical themes drawn from the song or its lute accompaniment finally resolving into a guitar setting of the song itself.

Dowland’s music became part of the repertoire of the Early Music Revival in the 1960s and 1970s with Julian Bream, Alfred Deller and Peter Pears and then later with musicians and groups such as David Munrow and the Early Music Consort, Emma Kirkby, Fretwork, Jacob Lindberg and Nigel North.

Amongst hundreds of recordings made of Dowland’s music since the 1980s some have influenced the jazz world. For instance, in 1999, ECM Records produced an innovative new recording entitled ‘In Darkness Let Me Dwell’ featuring new interpretations of Dowland’s songs performed by tenor John Potter, lutenist Stephen Stubbs and baroque violinist Maya Homburger in collaboration with English jazz musicians, John Surman (saxophone) and Barry Guy (double bass).

While the exact date of Dowland’s death is not known, his last payment from the English court was on 20 January 1626. He was buried at St Ann’s Church, Blackfriars, in the city of London, on 20 February 1626. Destroyed in the Great Fire of London of 1666, St Ann’s was never rebuilt therefore the exact location of Dowland’s grave has been lost.

However, the historic churchyard - now believed to be in or near the Ireland Yard/Ireland Lane area - still exists as a site where one can visit. Following the Great Fire, the parish of St Ann’s was absorbed by the neighbouring St Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe on St Andrew’s Hill where a memorial to the pioneering lutenist and composer is maintained today. Such is history!

The Norwich Dowland 400 celebrations promise a host of interesting concerts, talks, etc. especially on the opening day of the festival (Thursday, 23 July, 7.00pm) which sees acclaimed British lutenist, Nigel North, perform his celebrated programme ‘John Dowland, Mirth and Melancholy’ focusing on the composer’s solo lute music with the programme exploring the two contrasting emotional poles of Dowland's compositions.

The closing concert (Sunday, 26 July, 7.00pm) falls to the renowned English viol consort, Fretwork, who’ll include in their programme Dowland’s most famous composition ‘Lachrimae’ published by John Windet in 1604. In this well-loved work, Dowland pours his heart and soul into an extended cycle of viol consorts built round its themes. Comprising a set of seven slow pieces which the composer calls ‘tears’ (‘teares’ in Early English spelling) ‘Lachrimae’ is one of the first great cycles in the history of instrumental music which Fretwork recorded for Richard Branson’s label, Virgin Classics, in 1993. For their Norwich concert they’ll be joined by the celebrated lutenist, Elizabeth Kenny, working alongside Emilia Benjamin, Emily Ashton, Jonathan Rees, Joanna Levine, Sam Stadlen and Richard Boothby who founded Fretwork in 1985 with Richard Campbell together with other early music specialists. 

Full details from the Dowland 400 website. 

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