Great Performances

Sting: Songs From The Labyrinth

Born in 1563 into an age of religious and political strife, English composer and court musician John Dowland has for centuries captivated performers and listeners alike with his serene and introspective music. Composed primarily for lute, but also for small ensembles, Dowland's music remains arresting in its simplicity, spellbinding with melancholy and joy. It is perhaps inevitable that Sting - one of today's most acclaimed troubadours - would be drawn to revisit Dowland's work from a contemporary perspective, some 400 years after the composer's death. "The songs of John Dowland have been gently haunting me for over 20 years," says the Grammy Award-winning Sting, who had little knowledge of Dowland until the gift of an exquisitely manufactured lute rekindled his interest in the Elizabethan musician. This one-hour program features Sting's yearning tenor accompanied by acclaimed Bosnian lute player Edin Karamazov in performances of Dowland's timeless songs, interspersed with recitations from Dowland's personal correspondence, offering insight into his life and times.