Two scented flowers
As part of my attempts to find and post post more accessible pieces, I have been trawling the Margaret Board Lute Book (c. 1620).
Judging from the difficulty of the music, the original owner must have been a skilful player - indeed, she was taught by John Dowland. Fortunately, some pieces are relatively easy and I include arrangements of two short ones here.
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| Facsimile of f. 25v in The Margaret Board Lute Book, published online here |
It is difficult to find much information about the pieces, but you can find performances by excellent lutenists of the second ("The Gillyflower") on YouTube.
Botanical information: "Woodbind" = a climbing plant such as Honeysuckle, and "Gilliflower" = a clove-scented flower such as Pink, Stock or Wallflower.
You can freely download two versions of the pieces:
1. A full version, as close as possible to the original, here:
2. An easier version transposed to G here.
I will be posting an arrangement of the third piece on the page, an Almain by Daniel Bacheler, soon.
