John Dowland - Biography
John Dowland the great Elizabethan Lutenist and Composer was born in London probably in 1563 and died there February 23rd 1626. Nothing is known of his family, background or education he first emerges as a historical figure 1580 as being in the service of Sir Henry Cobham a British diplomat in Paris. While in Paris Dowland converted to Catholicism an unusual move for a citizen of Elizabethan England to make. In 1585 Dowland returned to England where he attended Christ College Oxford where he was to graduate as a Bachelor of Music. In 1594 he was rejected to become Lutenist at the court of Elizabeth, in a letter he ascribed the rejection to prejudice against his religion in any case he then settled in Germany. He became a court musician to the powerful Duke of Brunswick. Around 1697 to important events occurred the composition of his First Book of Ayres and Songs and a journey to Italy for further study and the hope of a position in the papal court. Evidently while in Italy he fell in with a group of British ex-patriots whom he was to discover had treasonous intent on the government of Queen Elizabeth and Dowland decided to leave Italy and returned to Germany this time stationed in Nuremberg. Dowland left a wife and children England and wanted to come back. To help in his future return Dowland became something of a double agent reporting to England about plots by Catholic English nobleman in Europe against the British government.
In 1596 we see the first publication of the lute songs upon which a great deal of Dowland’s fame rests. The Second Book of Ayres and Songs appear in 1600, by this time Dowland is appointed as Lutenist to the Danish Court. By 1603 he publishes the Third Book of Songs and Ayres and finally returns to England for a period and composes his Larcrymae (Seven Tears). His prolonged absence from Denmark angers the Danish court and he is dismissed in i606.Dowland now permanently relocates to England. Besides composing he pursues scholarly works on the art of lute playing and general music topics. He is evidently well placed politically because he has established correspondence with such figures as the Royal Minister Sir Robert Cecil and he Earl of Salisbury. Dowland by this time now lives a comfortable life in his home at Fetter Lane and by this time his son was an accomplished Lutenist and became a musical assistant. Dowland’s last published work was A Pilgrims Solace for voice, lutes and viols. At this time he was finally to receive official recognition and was to become an official Lutenist at court. Not much is known of Dowland’s final years. We do know that a few years before his death he had a short appointment in the court of Pomerania in Eastern Germany he evidently returned home and died in London on or around February 23rd 1626 (since there was no public notice of his death it had to be deduced by church records and a payment voucher a month so later to his son that refers to the late Dr. Dowland).
Until well into the 20th century Dowland was a name known mostly to English musical and Elizabethan scholars. This was to change when in the 1920’s there was a revival of early English music particularly Vaughan Williams and the celebrated Australian pianist/composer Percy Grainger. By the 1950’s composer Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears performed his music at joint recitals. The key to the revival came in 1950’s with superb performances by English Guitarist and Lutenist Julian Bream through his concerts and many best selling recordings. Many individual lute sings that were not part of the published books emerged and were widely performed. Such early music specialists like Christopher Hogwood, David Monrow and Anthony Rooley and Soprano Emma Kirkby became superb interpreters. Rooley in particular recorded most of Dowland’s instrumental and concerted music for the L’Oiseau Lyre label. The Lutenist Paul O’Dette has made an excellent recording of the complete Lute Music on Harmonia Mundi. Pop Music icons Elvis Costello and Sting are fans of Dowland and have made recordings of his songs.
