One of the era’s I find to be filled with incredibly and beautifully written music is also one that is usually disliked by guitarists to play the most. The Renaissance is filled with dense music that can be blocky and awkward feeling to play at times due to the fact it was not written to be played on the guitar, however a CD by one of my favorite guitarists, David Russell, proves that when played correctly the music is rewarding and wonderful to listen too. As a bonus, the CD Renaissance Favorites for Guitar, lives up to it’s name and does indeed have a recording of some of my favorite pieces by my favorite composers.
John Dowland has long been a notable composer due to his poignant tunes and trademark melancholy themes in both lyrics that he writes for singers as well as inside the music itself. Dowland has always been a source of amusement to me in stories I have been told of him, or even just the title of his pieces such as “Semper Dowland, Semper Dolens” which translates to Always Dowland, always doleful. This pun-filled title just about sums up Dowland’s writings, humor-filled once you look past the depression that is usually the outer-casing.
Geographical boundaries were a big part of how music spread and while England was still entering the Renaissance, Italy was beginning to transition to Baroque. I enjoy thinking of Dowland’s reaction to the music when he arrived in Italy with the objective of studying with Luca Marenzio in 1595. No matter how adept he was at composing, there is no doubt that Dowland was a conservative composer and going to a country that was on the brink of transitioning to the Baroque period was probably quite a shock, not to mention he was accused of treason on top of all this. However I believe that the music written in this period are some of the most interesting and beautiful, so his journey there must have had some influence.
Francesco Da Milano is another composer that I find especially amazing and he’s perhaps not quite as famous as Dowland, but he definitely deserves to be. The reason behind this is that he didn’t write songs for lute and voice so his repertoire was never expanded as much to different circles, however his compositions are thick and filled with contrapuntal treasures that are a joy to listen too (just as much as they are to discover and pander too as a performer).
Overall the Renaissance is a period of time ripe with opportunity for guitarists, however many of them get discouraged by the thick textures involved. They should view these less as a reason to shy away from this period and more of an opportunity to broaden their technical skills and overcome new obstacles. The beauty that the music of the Renaissance period can hold will make the journey worth it.
the music corner 