Mov. 1 - Prologue - freely develops melodies composed by troubadour Berenguier de Palazol and trobairitz Comtessa de Dia. The ancient melodies are first presented in a simplified and stripped-back way; as the movement progresses, the lines become increasingly decorative and intertwined. In this movement, the modern ensemble is allowed to emerge out of the sound of the period instruments. The solo part is written for bass recorder. 

Mov. 2 - Anonymous Toy - references and develops an anonymous composition called 'A Toy' from the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book. This is mostly hidden in the early passages, but it emerges increasingly clearly towards the end. A stylistically ‘suitable’ harmonic accompaniment for the tune only arrives very briefly at the end of the movement, as a playful conclusion. 

Mov. 3 - Deaf by Art (After John Dowland) - begins as a direct arrangement of John Dowland's song Praise Blindness, Eyes. The material is passed between the historical and modern parts of the ensemble, before a stretched and distorted version of the tune leads the music into a very different soundworld.

Mov. 4 - Caronte’s Dream (After Monteverdi) — combines and develops sections from Monteverdi's Orfeo (primarily Possente spirito, and Tu se morta). The Paetzold contrabass recorder is used to mimic, exaggerate and distort the tendencies of vocal delivery in Monteverdi's style. This was developed in close collaboration with recorder soloist Tabea Debus; in the early stages, we attempted several different approaches to capturing and distorting this style, playing directly from Monteverdi’s scores. These early improvisations were recorded, transcribed, and gradually refined into the final version. 

Mov. 5 - The English Dancing Master (Or, Introvert @ Party) - takes materials from three traditional tunes in John Playford's ‘The English Dancing Master’ (1651), a dancing manual containing tunes and instructions for English country dances. (The three referenced were Nobody’s Jigg, Opera (Or, The Ape’s Dance), and Love lies a’bleeding). The materials are processed (and distorted) through a new series of compositional rules, creating short circular melodies which are arranged in a symmetrical form, often ‘hocketing’ between instruments. 

Mov. 6 - Postlude (Brian’s Halo) is based on the melody from Johannes Ockeghem's Deo Gratias (originally a canon for 36 voices). The material is still presented as a canon, but it now appears in different keys and tempos simultaneously. An isorhythm allows the parts to gradually drift out of sync and fade away. 

Full score available on request; please use the contact page.