John Dowlands gifts as an exceptional melodist are evident throughout Lachrimae or Seven Tears, an artistic achievement which has cast a remarkable spell on early music. Summing up the Renaissance preoccupation with melancholy, this extraordinary collection of dance music for viols and lute includes Dowlands signature piece, Semper Dowland semper Dolens. Dowland reveals a personal world of sublime sadness, grief, anger and melancholy mollified by moments of joy and gladness. A skilled lutenist, Dowlands intricately-worked parts demand perfect synchronicity between Phantasm and Elizabeth Kenny, who rise to the technical and tempi challenges of marrying their instruments. The popularity of Dowlands music in his own lifetime continued through the centuries with Lawes, Jenkins and Gibbons all paying homage to Dowlands Tears. Although freed from lyric constraints poetic images linger prompting Phantasms Laurence Dreyfus to describe this as the most sensuously tuneful hour of music ever written. Phantasm has been widely acclaimed for its previous recordings: its 2015 recording of Lawes was named Limelights Chamber Recording of the Year, its 2011 recording of Byrd was named Disc of the Month by BBC Music, and it won a 2004 Gramophone Award for its recording of Viol Consorts by Gibbons. Critics have described the ensemble and its recordings as intoxicating, revelatory, electrifying and interpretations pervaded by a truly burning spirit. The award-winning ensemble has been applauded across the globe for its moving performances and is recognised as the most exciting viol consort active on the world scene today. Phantasms international members (from Britain, Finland and the US) have toured extensively across Europe, North America and East Asia.