STING STEPS BACK IN TIME TO ELIZABETHAN ERA.

Byline: Rob Lowman Entertainment Editor

These songs, Sting told a sold-out audience at the Walt Disney Concert Hall on Thursday, require ``silence more than applause.''

The rock artist was presenting the music of John Dowland (1563-1626), an Elizabethean lutist, who he says he has had an interest in for more than 20 years. Sting recently recorded ``Songs From the Labyrinth'' (Deutsche Grammophon), which juxtaposes the (mostly) melancholy tunes of the composer with his writings of the era.

The spiffily attired Sting -- black vested suit and a white shirt with a turned-up collar -- was joined on the carpeted Disney stage by Bosnian lutenist Edin Karamazov, who played on the album.

With his ``unschooled tenor,'' Sting sang the archaic lyrics while accompanied by Karamazov, who played a number of different lutes throughout the evening. They began with a slow number, ``Walsingham,'' and when they finished, the audience was hesitant at first -- giving the song an appropriate bit of silence -- before bursting into applause.

For those of us unfamiliar with Dowland's work -- or Elizabethan music in general -- it's hard to judge how well the pop star fared. As Sting has argued, Dowland's music was the pop music of its day and was often performed by nonprofessionals, which would seem to allow a pop artist of today some leeway.

Early on, there seemed a bit of choppiness to the songs, but as the evening progressed the pair seemed more comfortable. Sting also took up a lute himself on a few tunes, leaving the more difficult runs to Karamozov.

Fairly early in the set, the pair was joined by the Concord Ensemble, an eight-member male vocal group. Their addition gave the concert a more festive feel and a sense of how the songs might have come across in a social setting back in the day.

As it was, the concert was probably a learning experience for most of the audience, as Sting not only read Dowland excerpts but also tried to put the music in context by relating bits of history of the time.

It's too bad that during the tight 75-minute presentation he didn't relate more about the lute, which seems a fascinatingly complicated instrument. Alas, no, but give Sting credit for exploring and bringing different forms of music to audiences instead of simply doing an oldies concert.

Sting also performed songs by others in the Elizabethan era, including some by Robert Johnson, the son of his chief rival. So when he came out for the encore and announced he was doing a song by Robert Johnson, no one expected him to launch into a ``howling'' version of ``Hellhound on My Trail'' by Mississippi Delta bluesman Robert Johnson.

Admittedly, as odd as it may seem, it sounded pretty decent on the lute, as did Sting's own ``Field of Gold,'' which seemed made for the instrument. The rocker then dug further back in his career to the Police with a reflective, restless version of ``Message in a Bottle.'' (There are rumors of a Police reunion, by the way, and there was an interesting though obtuse dedication before the song.)

He then brought the Concord Ensemble back to end the evening with a reprise of the lively ``Fine Knacks for Ladies,'' which, if it did not completely win the audience over to Elizabethan music, at least left them in a good mood.

Rob Lowman [phone]

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