Lachrimae - for string quartet

'Lachrimae' is partly a tribute to John Dowland’s famous Lachrimae, or ‘Seven Teares’, for lute and viol consort (published in London in 1605), as well as their legacy in works of later British composers – Benjamin Britten and Harrison Birtwistle among them. The work seeks to draw on key features of Dowland’s ‘seaven passionate pavans’, including the character of the slow pavane dance and the maintaining of a single, emotional focus or ‘passion’ throughout, an important aspect of sixteenth and seventeenth century music generally. The piece was commissioned by the 'Carpe Diem Quartet' based in Ohio, USA, and premiered by them in Columbus, Ohio, on 22 October 2022.