Catalogue

Summary:

About Shakespeare’s use of music

English novelist and biographer Peter Ackroyd says of the Shakespearean theatre: ‘Words were not the only theatrical reality. There was much music.’ In Shakespeare’s lifetime, there would have been a small band of six or seven musicians, including a trumpet, drums, lutes and recorders, at the Globe Theatre. Many of the actors would have been trained in music, have played an instrument, or at the very least have been able to carry a tune. Stage directions even called for characters like Ophelia to enter the stage with a lute. His characters frequently burst into song. Not only fools such as Feste and Touchstone, but unlikely characters such as Hamlet and Iago were required to sing. ‘It can be argued that Shakespeare was the first dramatist to make song an integral part of the drama and can thus be seen as the begetter of the musical theatre’ (Ackroyd).

Foreign visitors frequently commented on the inseparable relationship between music and London’s stage performances, further emphasizing its significance. While Shakespeare composed many of the lyrics within his plays, none of the published works included musical notation or indications of the specific tunes to be used for the songs.

Shakespeare’s manuscripts and folio editions lack musical notation, but his plays are rich with references and quotations from the popular songs of his time. These ballads, widely known and cherished, were the soundtrack of daily life – sung in homes, hummed on the streets and enjoyed by all walks of life. Poets often penned new lyrics for these familiar tunes, while composers crafted variations, breathing new life into well-loved melodies. This practice has allowed ‘lost’ songs to be rediscovered within the text of Shakespeare’s works.

Popular songs were not only used, they were woven into his plays to add layers of meaning and emotion. This use wasn’t arbitrary – Shakespeare knew his audience would recognize the song’s implications, deepening the impact of a scene. His use of song demonstrates his deep understanding of music’s power to evoke emotion and enrich narrative.

Tracklist:

Play, Music!
Songs from Shakespeare’s Plays

1. FOR I THE BALLAD All’s Well That Ends Well 0.21
Brian Kay, tenor
William Shakespeare 1564–1616 (text) · arr. Ross W. Duffin

2. AH ROBIN Twelfth Night 3.48
Damian Wilson, tenor · Brian Kay, tenor · Peter Walker, bass
King Henry VIII 1491–1547 · arr. B. Kay

3. WOODYCOCK 1.58
Robert Eisenstein, viola da gamba
Anon. · arr. R. Eisenstein, B. Kay

4. MY LORD CHAMBERLAINE, HIS GALLIARD 0.44
Brian Kay, lutes
John Dowland c.1563–1626

5. PLEASE ONE AND PLEASE ALL / TARLETON’S JIG Twelfth Night 4.35
Richard Tarleton d.1588, John Dowland · arr. B. Kay

6. PASTIME WITH GOOD COMPANY Henry VIII 2.59
Ashlee Foreman, soprano · Brian Kay, tenor
Henry VIII · arr. B. Kay

7. GREEN GROW’TH THE HOLLY Henry VIII 2.34
Ashlee Foreman soprano
Henry VIII · arr. B. Kay

8. LADY CAREY’S DANCE 3.55
Tina Bergmann, hammered dulcimer
Anon. · arr. T. Bergmann

9. I CANNOT COME EV’RY DAY TO WOO Taming of the Shrew 3.14
Damian Wilson, tenor · Ashlee Foreman, soprano
arr. R.W. Duffin, Joseph Trapanese, B. Kay

10. THE KING OF DENMARK’S GALLIARD Hamlet 2.57
Brian Kay, lute
John Dowland

11. BONNY SWEET ROBIN Hamlet 2.32
Anna O’Connell soprano, harp
Anon. · arr. A. O’Connell

12. WHY LET THE STRUCKEN DEER GO WEEP Hamlet 1.19
Damian Wilson, tenor
William Shakespeare · arr. R.W. Duffin, B. Kay

13. AND WILL HE NOT COME AGAIN/ GO FROM MY WINDOW Hamlet 0.50
Anna O’Connell, soprano
William Shakespeare · arr. R.W. Duffin, B. Kay

14. TARLETON’S RISERRECTIONE Hamlet 1.09
Brian Kay, lute
John Dowland

15. LIGHTE OF LOVE Two Gentlemen of Verona 0.31
Brian Kay, lute
Anon.

16. SIGH NO MORE LADIES / LILLIBURLERO Much Ado About Nothing 1.44
Peter Walker, bass
William Shakespeare · arr. B. Kay

17. JIG DIVIDED TWELVE WAYS 2.27
Tina Chancey Renaissance, violin
John Playford 1623–c.1687 · arr. T. Chancey

18. BLOW, BLOW THOU WINTER WIND/ GODDESSES As You Like It 2.27
Brian Kay, tenor · Tina Chancey, Renaissance violin
William Shakespeare · arr. R.W. Duffin, B. Kay

19. CHI PASSA Two Noble Kinsmen 1.37
Ryan Tyndall, colascione
Anon. · arr. R. Tyndall, B. Kay

20. ORSINO’S REQUEST Twelfth Night 0.39
Brian Kay reading, lute
William Shakespeare

21. COME AWAY, DEATH Twelfth Night 3.46
Brian Kay tenor, lute
William Shakespeare · arr. R.W. Duffin, B. Kay

22. O MISTRESS MINE Twelfth Night 1.27
Mark Cudek, cittern · Ronn McFarlane, lute · Jeffrey Grabelle, treble viol
William Shakespeare, Thomas Morley c.1557–1602
arr. M. Cudek, R. McFarlane, B. Kay

23. IF MUSIC BE THE FOOD OF LOVE Twelfth Night 0.39
Brian Kay reading, lute
William Shakespeare

24. FORTUNE, MY FOE Merry Wives of Windsor 3.23
Peter Walker bass · Brian Kay lute
John Dowland · arr. B. Kay

25. WHERE SHOULD THIS MUSIC BE?/LA ROSSIGNOL Tempest 1.07
Damian Wilson, reading · Brandon Acker, lute · Brian Kay, lute
William Shakespeare · arr. B. Kay

26. O DEATH, ROCK ME ASLEEP Henry IV 3.43
Brian Kay tenor, lute
?Anne Boleyn c.1501–1536 · arr. B. Kay

27. MY LORD WILLOUGHBY’S WELCOME HOME As You Like It 1.39
Brandon Acker lute · Brian Kay lute
John Dowland

28. WALSINGHAM Hamlet 1.20
Anna O’Connell, soprano, harp
Anon. · arr. A. O’Connell

29. PARDON GODDESS OF THE NIGHT/ REST AWHILE, YOU CRUEL CARES Much Ado About Nothing 1.59
Ashlee Foreman, soprano · Tina Chancey, viol consort
William Shakespeare, John Dowland · arr. B. Kay

30. MRS. WHITE’S NOTHING 0.47
Brian Kay lute
John Dowland

31. WILLOW SONG Othello 2.58
Damian Wilson, tenor · Brian Kay, lute
William Shakespeare, Anon. · arr. B. Kay

32. WEDDING IS GREAT JUNO’S CROWN / LORD STRANG’S MARCH As You Like It 2.31
Brian Kay, tenor, lute, percussion
William Shakespeare · arr. B. Kay

33. YOU SPOTTED SNAKES/ ROBIN GOODFELLOW Midsummer Night’s Dream 3.04
William Shakespeare · arr. R.W. Duffin, J. Trapanese, B. Kay

Total duration: 70.53