Capriccio Stravagante Renaissance Orchestra

Seven tears, seven pavanes, seven spheres. Thanks to his simple descending bass line Dowland had an instant classic. The Lachrimae theme was soon popping up everywhere, among other places in the song Flow my tears. The danced ‘tears’ – enigmatically sighing, in love, old, renewed, or true – are a subtle exercise in the art of variation. Dowland added another series of dances, named after noble friends and other public figures, including an official pirate, Digorie Piper. Together the collection is a monument of English Renaissance music.

Dowland's masterpiece can, of course, be performed by a gamba ensemble, but that is not how Skip Sempé does things. He takes Dowland's suggestion of a more flexible line-up literally and is coming to Bruges with a colourful orchestra of winds, strings and a wealth of keyboard instruments.