O Loneliness

Equivalent to the French air de cour, the ayre is the name given to the English song from the end of the 16th century, and during the first half of the 17th century. Singing while accompanying oneself on the lute or the spinet was a common practice and John Dowland, Henry Lawes, and even later Henry Purcell were probably experienced in this type of exercise. The influence of Italian musicians who settled in London during the Restoration and the Francophilia of the new king Charles II led to the evolution of the English ayre towards a more virtuoso and operatic form. The program of this concert is structured around these three major figures symbolizing three periods of English history, and honors this very specific vocal genre with instrumental pieces from the same period. Music by John Dowland, Henry Lawes, Henry Purcell, etc. La Rêveuse (artistic direction: Benjamin Perrot & Florence Bolton) Nicholas Scott, tenor Florence Bolton, treble & bass viol Benjamin Perrot, lute & theorbo