Thomas Ravenscroft

Rounds, Canons And Songs From Printed Sources

Edited by John Morehen and David Mateer

This is the first complete edition of the rounds, canons and songs from Ravenscroft's four principal publications: Pammelia, Deuteromelia, Melismata and A Briefe Discourse. Thomas Ravenscroft (c.1582-c.1635) was a collector, editor and theorist as well as a composer, whose work was esteemed in his own lifetime and is valued today for its insights into the popular music of the period. Rounds and canons in this collection are all presented in resolved form, and the variety of subjects includes drinking songs, hunting songs and four songs in West Country dialect, as well as Latin-texted material. It is hoped that performers may be inspired to breathe new life into a repertoire that sheds fascinating light on a hitherto neglected area of Elizabethan music-making.