Bridging vocal and instrumental

I am working on Sinfonia, a piece for large ensemble inspired by the sound of English music from c.1400-1600. Performance by the New Music Players at the Warehouse, London on Fri 28 Sept. http://nmp28sept.eventbrite.com

This is becoming an exploration of the bridge between vocal and instrumental polyphony; between the lyric impulse and the rhythmic impulse which informs all post-renaissance music. But with the peculiarities of the English sensibility to harmony thrown in. From 16/17 C you gain this sense of the importance of growing polyphonic complexity to the development of an instrumental language.