Target reached!
If we exceed our target, we will put on a series of subsidised concerts and workshop...
Mayflower anniversary recording
London, England, United Kingdom
Aim
To record a CD of 17thC music and song to mark the 400th anniversary of the sailing of the Mayflower.
Next year marks the 400th anniversary of the sailing of the Mayflower, and we would like to record a programme of music and song to commemorate this event.
Our Mayflower programme, They that in Ships unto the Sea down go, aims to recreate the world of the 102 passengers, and the sailors on board the ship that left England in 1620. It includes psalms, lutesongs and ballads, all taken from music books owned by Elder William Brewster; music for mariners and merchants; and songs and dances describing tobacco and other wonders of the New World.
The programme includes music by: Richard Allison, Louis Bourgeois, Thomas Campion, John Dowland, Thomas Ford and Tobias Hume.
It will be a rich and varied programme, and one that is exciting for us, as we believe that much of the material in William Brewster's music books has not been transcribed or performed since the 17th Century. We hope that this recording will bring a new insight into the musical soundscape of the Mayflower.
Passamezzo is an established ensemble known for their ability to bring historical events to life through their engaging performances and programming. We specialize in English Elizabethan and Jacobean repertoire.
The ensemble delights in all aspects of musical life, from the intimacy of the lute song, to the brash raucousness of the broadside ballad, from the sacred part song, to the profane insanity of bedlamite mad songs. The programmes are carefully researched with music frequently taken from manuscript sources, unearthing pieces that have lain hidden for centuries. It is this range of material and overall spectacle, combined with the informative and accessible manner of their presentation, that makes Passamezzo such an engaging group.
Passamezzo often work with dancers and actors. They have played in a great variety of venues including the British Museum; the Victoria and Albert Museum; Shakespeare's Globe Theatre; Hampton Court Palace and in theatres, concert halls, stately homes, churches, palaces and ruins throughout England.
Our Television and Radio credits include: Danny Dyer's Right Royal Family (BBC1); Lucy Worsley's Twelve Days of Tudor Christmas; Howard Goodall's The Truth about Carols (BBC2); Big Brother (Channel 4); Henry VIII and his six wives; Elizabeth I (Channel 5); Frost Fair; King Lear and Boxing Day, (Radio 4); Early Music for the Holidays; Christmas Carols, Chant and Legend (Harmonia Early Music/PRX)
Eleanor Cramer (Soprano, Bass Viol)
Alison Kinder (Viols, Recorders)
Robin Jeffrey (Lute, Cittern)
Tamsin Lewis (Violin, Viols, Alto)
Lynda Sayce (Lute, Viols)
Richard De Winter (Actor, Baritone)
Peter Willcock (Bass)
We plan to record at the end of October, and have already engaged an excellent sound engineer and producer, and have booked St John’s Wood Church to record in.
Our budget for the whole project includes recording and rehearsal costs of producer, sound engineer, artist fees, research and rehearsal. The total budget for the recording is in the region of £20,000, and we have so far raised almost £10,000 from the generous support of Angel Early Music and two other sources. We are seeking £10,000 from this crowdfunding appeal to bring this exciting project to fruition. If we are lucky enough to exceed the total budget required for recording then we will be able to subsidise the cost of putting on concerts of this programme, so audiences can hear it at its best - live!
A huge thank you in advance for your generosity!
This project successfully funded on 30th October 2019