Renaissance Madrigal Triptych

This is a collection of 3 works by Thomas Weelkes, taken from his collection "Madrigals to three, four, five or six voices" published in 1597. Each individual work - "Lo! Country Sport", "Our Country Swains" and "Now Every Tree" is used her to form a musical imagery of a renaissance triptych, hence the title. As such, although the individual movements may be performed separately, they are envisioned to be performed as a collection. As with most madrigals, this collection relies heavily on counterpoint, and the concept that all voices are essentially equal. While the madrigal was original for voice without instrumental accompaniment, this collection replaces this concept with flexible instrumentation, allowing the string players to mix and match parts without the traditional balance demands of a string orchestra.