Peter Maxwell Davies' Interpretation of Past Musical Practices in Naxos Quartet No. 8
Peter Maxwell Davies' Interpretation of Past Musical Practices in Naxos Quartet No. 8

Summary/Abstract: This study explores Davies' allusions to past practices in a contemporary context in his Naxos Quartet No. 8 (2005). The work demonstrates Davies' experiments with Renaissance polyphonic writing and Medieval practice, modifying them to make them modern in his composition. Baroque English musical elements in the composition are derived from John Dowland's Queen Elizabeth's Galliard, joined with musical styles and ideas from Henry Purcell (1659-1695). Logical structure of Classical period is also employed in the music. Listeners are certainly challenged in many ways by Davies' musical language in the composition.

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