Dowland and Purcell: The Sounds of the Seventeenth Century – Performance in the Soane Stable Yard (England and the Wider World, 1600–1700)

Join us for an intimate performance of powerful storytelling through music in the Soane Stable Yard with countertenor Tom Lilburn and theorbo player Daniel Murphy.

About the event

As England looked outward to the wider world, music captured the excitement, uncertainty, and upheaval of a changing nation. From the intimate melancholy of John Dowland to the theatrical brilliance of Henry Purcell, this programme traces a century shaped by sea voyages, royal courts, emerging colonies, and the rise of London as an international city. Against a backdrop of political turmoil and cultural transformation, songs of love, longing, power, and pleasure reveal how music reflected England’s journey onto the world stage.

Speaker/Performer

• Artist ; Tom Lilburn – Counter Tenor
• Theorbo – Daniel Murphy

Repertoire;

Dowland

• Come Again
• Flow My Tears
• Can She Excuse My Wrongs
• In Darkness Let Me Dwell

Purcell

• Music for a While
• If Music Be the Food of Love
• Sweeter Than Roses
• Strike the Viol
• excerpts from The Fairy Queen or King Arthur

Chairs will be provided for all audience members. Please note this performance is outside in our courtyard at the Soane Stable Yard.

Heidi Bakery for Food & Drink: Feel free to pick up food and drinks from Heidi Bakery in the Soane Stable Yard, where you’ll find a lovely selection of refreshments, including alcoholic drinks. Please note that picnics and outside alcohol cannot be brought into the performance area.

Additional information

This event is eligible for our 20% ticket bundle discount.

Book tickets to three or more different events across the festival and you can save 20%. Tickets must be purchased in the same transaction and the discount will automatically be applied within the basket.