John Dowland — a remark

From the V2Melody quotations library — share the card, then explore the poet and poems below.

“Plato defines melody to consist of harmony, number and words: harmony naked of itself, words the ornament of harmony, number the common friend and uniter of them both.”

Reflection on the union of music and poetry · Dedication to The First Book of Songs or Ayres, 1597

About John Dowland

John Dowland

c. 1563–20 February 1626

In the twilight of the Renaissance, when the courts of Europe shimmered with velvet and candlelight, and the air hummed with lute strings and whispered sonnets, there walked a man whose music seemed spun from moonlight and sorrow. John Dowland—composer, lutenist, poet of the fretboard—was not merely a musician of his…

More by John Dowland

Poems by John Dowland

All poems by this poet

More remarks by John Dowland

All remarks by this poet

Poet page · All remarks · Quotations hub

Skip to main content