Tom O'Bedlam (Chamber Ensemble Version) (Score)

The anonymously-penned 'Tom O'Bedlam' is one of the best known examples of c.17th mad-song poetry. Part saga, part stream-of-consciousness, Tom recounts his descent to madness by virtue of his libidinous lifestyle and speaks of his life begging on the streets of London. The text conveys wit, anger, sexual bravado, fear and boastfulness but each strophe is capped with the shameful, pitiful refrain of Tom's begging call “Any food, any feeding?”. These contrasting moods lend themselves wonderfully to a musical setting, offering both singer and chamber orchestra the opportunity to express the whole gamut of musical coloring, from the most intimate utterances of Tom's begging call, to his rage all, illustrated richly by the chamber orchestra within which each player plays a 'solo', active part in the storytelling.