John Dowland[1] (1563 – buried 20 February 1626) was an English composer, singer, and

lutenist. He is best known today for his melancholy songs such as "Come, heavy sleep" (the
basis for Benjamin Britten's Nocturnal), "Come again", "Flow my tears", "I saw my Lady
weepe" and "In darkness let me dwell", but his instrumental music has undergone a major
revival, and has been a source of repertoire for classical guitarists during the twentieth
century.

Career and compositions

Very little is known of Dowland's early life, but it is generally thought he was born in
London. Irish historian W. H. Grattan Flood claimed that he was born in Dalkey, near Dublin,
but no corroborating evidence has ever been found either for that statement or for Thomas
Fuller's claim that he was born in Westminster.[2] In 1580 Dowland went to Paris, where he
was in service to Sir Henry Cobham, the ambassador to the French court, and his successor,
Sir Edward Stafford.[3] He became a Roman Catholic at this time.[4] In 1594 a vacancy for a
lutenist came up at the English court, but Dowland's application was unsuccessful - he
claimed his religion led to his not being offered a post at Elizabeth I's Protestant court.
However, his conversion was not publicized, and being Catholic did not prevent some other
important musicians (such as William Byrd) from having a court career in England.[3]

From 1598 Dowland worked at the court of Christian IV of Denmark,[5] though he continued
to publish in London.[6] King Christian was very interested in music[7] and paid Dowland
astronomical sums; his salary was 500 daler a year, making him one of the highest-paid
servants of the Danish court.[8] Though Dowland was highly regarded by King Christian, he
was not the ideal servant, often overstaying his leave when he went to England on publishing
business or for other reasons.[7] Dowland was dismissed in 1606[7] and returned to England;[9]
in early 1612 he secured a post as one of James I's lutenists.[10] There are few compositions
dating from the moment of his royal appointment until his death in London in 1626.[11] While
the date of his burial is recorded, the exact date of his death is not known.[12]

Two major influences on Dowland's music were the popular consort songs, and the dance
music of the day.[13] Most of Dowland's music is for his own instrument, the lute.[14] It includes
several books of solo lute works, lute songs (for one voice and lute), part-songs with lute
accompaniment, and several pieces for viol consort with lute.[15] The poet Richard Barnfield
wrote that Dowland's "heavenly touch upon the lute doth ravish human sense."

One of his better known works is the lute song "Flow my tears", the first verse of which runs;

Flow my tears, fall from your springs,

“ ”
Exil'd for ever let me mourn;
 Where night's black bird her sad infamy sings,

There let me live forlorn.

He later wrote what is probably his best known instrumental work, Lachrimae, or Seaven
Teares, Figured in Seaven Passionate Pavans, a set of seven pavanes for five viols and lute,
each based on the theme derived from the lute song "Flow my tears".[17] It became one of the
best known collections of consort music in his time. His pavane, "Lachrymae antiquae", was
also popular in the seventeenth century, and was arranged and used as a theme for variations
by many composers.

Dowland's music often displays the melancholia that was so fashionable in music at that time.
[18]
He wrote a consort piece with the punning title "Semper Dowland, semper dolens" (always
Dowland, always doleful), which may be said to sum up much of his work.[19]

Dowland's song, "Come Heavy Sleepe, the Image of True Death", was the inspiration for
Benjamin Britten's "Nocturnal after John Dowland for guitar", written in 1964 for the guitarist
Julian Bream. This work consists of 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.[20]

Publications

In 1597 Dowland published his "First Book of Songs" in London. It was one of the most
influential and important musical publications of the history of the lute.[3] This collection of
lute-songs was set out in a way that allows performance by a soloist with lute accompaniment
or various combinations of singers and instrumentalists.[21]

Dowland published two books of songs after the "First Book of Songes", in 1600 and 1603, as
well as the Lachrymae in 1604.[17] He also published in 1609 a translation of the Micrologus
of Andreas Ornithoparcus, originally printed in Leipzig 1517, a rather stiff and medieval
treatise, but nonetheless occasionally entertaining.[22]

Dowland's last, and in the opinion of most scholars, best, work, A Pilgrimes Solace, was
published in 1612,[23] and seems to have been conceived more as a collection of contrapuntal
music than as solo works.[24

Suspicions of treason

There is an unsubstantiated rumour that Dowland performed a number of espionage

assignments for Sir Robert Cecil in France and Denmark; his high rate of pay
notwithstanding, Dowland seems to have been only a court musician.[7] However, we have in
his own words the fact that he was for a time embroiled in treasonous Catholic intrigue in
Italy,[25] whither he had travelled in the hopes of meeting and studying with Luca Marenzio, a
famed madrigal composer.[3] Whatever his religion, however, he was still intensely loyal to
the Queen, though he seems to have had something of a grudge against her for her remark that
he, Dowland, "was a man to serve any prince in the world, but [he] was an obstinate
Papist."[26] But in spite of this, and though the plotters offered him a large sum of money from
the Pope, as well as safe passage for his wife and children to come to him from England,[27] in
the end he declined to have anything further to do with their plans and begged pardon from
Sir Robert Cecil and from the Queen.[28

Private life

John Dowland was married and had children, as referenced in his letter to Sir Robert Cecil,but
family life does not seem to have been important to him, as his wife stayed in England while
he worked on the Continent.[30]

His son Robert Dowland was also a musician, working for some time in the service of the first
Earl of Devonshire,[31] and taking over his father's position of lutenist at court when John died.
[32]

His exact death date is unknown, however he was buried, 20 February 1626.[33] It is possible
that John did not actually die in January, but merely appointed his son Robert to be his deputy
at this point - whether from grave illness, or from a knowledge that death was approaching.
Either theory can be used to explain the records stating that Robert received pay beginning in
January.[32]

Dowland's melancholic lyrics and music have often been described as his attempts to develop
an "artistic persona" though he was actually a cheerful person,[34] but many of his own
personal complaints, and the tone of bitterness in many of his comments, suggest that much of
his music and his melancholy truly did come from his own personality and frustration.[35]

Modern interpretations

In 1935, Australian-born composer Percy Grainger, who had a deep interest in music made
before Bach, arranged Dowland’s Now, O now I needs must part for piano. Some years later,
in 1953, Grainger wrote a work titled Bell Piece (Ramble on John Dowland’s ‘Now, O now I
needs must part’), which was a version scored for voice and wind band, based in his
previously mentioned transcription.

Dowland's music became part of the repertoire of the early music revival with lutenist Julian
Bream and tenor Peter Pears, and later with Christopher Hogwood and David Munrow and
the Early Music Consort in the late 1960s and later with the Academy of Ancient Music from
the early 1970s.

The complete works of Dowland have been recorded in a boxed set by the Consort of
Musicke.

The 1999 ECM New Series recording In Darkness Let Me Dwell features new interpretations
of Dowland songs performed by tenor John Potter, lutenist Stephen Stubbs, and baroque
violinist Maya Homburger in collaboration with English jazz musicians John Surman and
Barry Guy.

Elvis Costello included a recording (with Fretwork and the Composers Ensemble) of
Dowland's "Can she excuse my wrongs" as a bonus track on the 2006 re-release of his The
Juliet Letters.

In October 2006, Sting, who says he has been fascinated by the music of John Dowland for 25
years, [36], released an album featuring Dowland's songs titled Songs from the Labyrinth, on
Deutsche Grammophon, in collaboration with Edin Karamazov on lute and archlute. They
described their treatment of Dowland's work in a Great Performances appearance.[37] To give
some idea of the tone and intrigues of life in late Elizabethan England, Sting also recites
throughout the album portions of a 1593 letter written by Dowland to Sir Robert Cecil.[38] The
letter describes Dowland's travels to various points of Western Europe, then breaks into a
detailed account of his activities in Italy, along with a heartfelt denial of the charges of treason
whispered against him by unknown persons. Dowland most likely was suspected of this for
traveling to the courts of various Catholic monarchs and accepting payment from them greater
than what a musician of the time would normally have received for performing.[39]

Other interpretations of Dowland's songs have been recorded by Windham Hill artist, Lisa
Lynne, (for her CD, Maiden's Prayer) and Lise Winne (for her Wing'd With Hopes, New
Interpretations of Renaissance Songs CD).

Several bands, such as Die Verbannten Kinder Evas, Aesma Daeva and Qntal, have recorded
albums featuring lyrics by John Dowland.

The countertenor Andreas Scholl sings in Crystal Tears English consort songs with Concerto
Viole of Basel (http://www.andreasschollsociety.org/discography.htm)

A rendition of Dowland's "Come again" (sung by Sting) can also be found on Joshua Bell's
2009 album, At home with Friends. (http://www.joshuabell.com/).

In popular culture

• The science fiction author Philip K. Dick was a fan of Dowland's and his lute music is
a recurring theme in Dick's novels. Dick sometimes assumed the pen-name Jack
Dowland.[40] Dick also based the title of the novel Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said
on one of Dowland's best-known compositions. In his novel The Divine Invasion, the
character Linda Fox (a thinly disguised proxy for Linda Ronstadt) is a popular singer
whose repertoire consists of remakes of John Dowland compositions.
• Rose Tremain's 1999 novel Music and Silence is set at the court of Christian IV of
Denmark some years after Dowland's departure and contains several references to the
composer's music and temperament: in the opening chapter, Christian remarks that
"the man was all ambition and hatred, yet his ayres were as delicate as rain".
• Aesma Daeva's song "Darkness" uses "Flow my Tears" as lyrics.

source:Wikipedia.