Reflective Christmas interlude

In his Capriol Suite for string orchestra of 1926, musicologis and composer Philip Heseltine (writing under his pen name Peter Warlock) freely arranged dance melodies from Thoinot Arbeau’s sixteenth-century Orchésographie.

This beautiful andante forms the fifth movement of the suite and its original title, ‘Pieds-en-L’air’, takes its name from a figure of the Galliard – a popular fifthteenth-century dance form. The music has grace, charm, and a simple purity which aptly portrays Christ’s Nativity.