John Dowland (1563-1626) composed the most sophisticated and beautiful music for a fretted string instrument during the renaissance period. Performing this music on the modern classical guitar presents a number of different interpretive dilemmas and performance options. This work illuminates this process for the modern guitarist. I also discuss the life of John Dowland, renaissance ornamentation, and diminution or renaissance improvisation.

Dr. Acker-Johnson is a performer, composer, and educator active in the San Francisco bay area. He is proficient on nearly all fretted plucked string instruments. His musical interests include renaissance music, music philosophy, and 80's music.