Lament for the Makers for Solo Cello

William Dunbar’s sixteenth-century poem “Lament for the Makaris” is a sombre reflection on the nature of death. Dunbar emphasizes that all are subject to death, regardless of wealth, position, or knowledge. Dunbar himself may have been ill at the time of writing and his refrain “Timor mortis conturbat me” (The fear of death confounds me), underlines the helplessness that we all experience when faced with death’s inevitability.

The piece was composed at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic as a lament for those suffering both directly from the disease and indirectly from the devastating impact on the activities of creative artists, the makers, around the world. But, despite the somber tone, the collaborative experience with cellist Felix Fan, who premiered the work, was a reminder of the positive power of making music with and for each other.