EarlyMusicNews.Org

“Since 1954, the Renaissance Society of America has been the leading organization in the Americas for the interdisciplinary study of the period 1300-1650 in Western history. The RSA brings together members from many backgrounds who are interested in a wide variety of disciplines related to this period.

The RSA actively encourages the continued spread of learning about the Renaissance. The Society organizes an annual meeting every year, which features the most distinguished Renaissance scholars in North America and beyond. The Society further encourages scholarship by offering prizes and research grants of up to $3,000 in three categories (pre-doctoral scholars, junior scholars, and senior scholars).

The RSA sponsors many publications. The Society publishes the journal Renaissance Quarterly, its electronic counterpart, the online edition of Renaissance Quarterly, and the newsletter Renaissance News & Notes. The RSA also sponsors its own text, bibliography, and special purpose series (RTS), a reprint series (RSARTS), and the program of the annual meeting with abstracts of all the papers, and subsidizes editions, translations, and research tools published outside the RSA series. The RSA's Directory of members is available on this website. Finally, through its partnership with Iter: Gateway to the Middle Ages and Renaissance, the RSA helps to make access to information about Renaissance scholarship broadly accessible.”

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: May 14, 2010 | Hits: 262

“For more than 15 years, the American Bach Soloists have presented annual performances of Summer Fest in Belvedere, San Francisco, and Davis.

Summer Fest returns this year in conjunction with the inaugural season of the American Bach Soloists ACADEMY, an elite training program for advanced conservatory-level students and emerging professionals in the field of Historically Informed Performance Practice.

All events are held in the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s exquisite new facilities, opened just a few years ago in the heart of San Francisco’s Arts District.

Join the celebrated artists of the American Bach Soloists who will perform side-by-side with the next generation of early music specialists. ..“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: May 03, 2010 | Hits: 443

“The Sixteenth Century Society and Conference (SCSC) promotes scholarship on the early modern era, broadly defined (ca. 1450 – ca. 1660). Providing opportunities for intellectual exchange among scholars of the period, the Society also actively encourages the integration of younger colleagues into the academic community. The geographical scope of the organization is as international as its membership. The SCSC welcomes scholars from all disciplines in early modern studies, including history, art history, religion, history of science, musicology, and literary and cultural studies in English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish. The Society holds one annual meeting in a different city each year, usually during the month of October, with an average of more than 700 participants.“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Feb 13, 2010 | Hits: 394

Visit the Lute Society of America website for more information re: their bi-annual Seminar and Lute Festival. (Admin)

Added on: Jan 30, 2010 | Hits: 308

“

The Over the Water Hurdy-Gurdy festival brings together hurdy-gurdy players, builders, and teachers for intensive instruction, jamming, fellowship, and good food. Classes cover melodic techniques, rhythm, repertoire, and instrument setup and maintenance, with instruction tailored for beginning through advanced players.

Evening events include instructor concerts, an open mike, and many jam sessions (including slow jams for those of us who don't learn tunes at warp speed). On Saturday evening we will gather for a dance party featuring live music by festival participants, who collectively form the largest hurdy-gurdy band in the Western Hemisphere. ..“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 29, 2009 | Hits: 367

“The fifth biennial Baroque Flute Artist Competition is for outstanding performers on baroque flute/traverso. Six semifinalists will be selected on the basis of their recorded preliminary auditions to compete at the convention. Three finalists showing the highest levels of technical proficiency, musical ability, and successful application of principles of historical performance practice will be chosen and presented in a convention recital. Cash prizes of $1,500, $750, and $400, co-sponsored by the David Hart Memorial Fund and the NFA Endowment Fund, will be awarded at the discretion of the judges. Prize of $100 will be awarded to each semifinalist not chosen as a finalist. All applicants must be age 35 or younger by the final day of the convention. ..“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 25, 2009 | Hits: 489

“The International Baroque Institute at Longy offers a comprehensive program for professional and pre-professional singers and players of Baroque violin, cello, recorder, traverso, oboe, viola da gamba, harp, lute and harpsichord, taught by an unparalleled international faculty. Other instrumentalists or continuo players are welcome to participate in chamber ensembles or the institute orchestra. The seminar features eight full days of master classes, ensembles, orchestra sessions, continuo coaching, concerts, lectures and projects, and opportunity for public performances. To provide the highest level learning experience, we select our faculty from among the finest performers and teachers in the field of Baroque music. ..“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: May 15, 2009 | Hits: 373

"Imagine a long weekend filled with music-making, camaraderie, good food, and a beautiful setting in nature,and you are already having dreams of attending the Columbia Gorge Early Music Retreat.  Located just 20 miles east of Portland, and perched o­n a bluff overlooking the spectacular Columbia River, Menucha is an idyllic retreat center.

Ensemble classes for beginning to advanced recorder players will range from renaissance consort music and baroque to contemporary works and music for double reeds and percussion.   Viola da gambas are also welcome. Five faculty members ensure small class sizes with personalized attention. Evening events will include a faculty concert, English Country Dance, and madrigal singing. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 04, 2009 | Hits: 392

The Fredericton Baroque Music Festival presents concerts and workshops with a focus on music from the 16th to 18th centuries. Held in the Christ Church Cathedral and other historic locations of downtown Fredericton, the festival features concerts by local, regional, and international perios instrument specialists. Past festivals have included performances by musicians from such locations as Fredericton, Montreal, and Boston. Students and amateur musicians are invited to participate in workshops and public master classes.

Added on: Jun 22, 2008 | Hits: 573

"The Berkeley Festival & Exhibition was conceived of and founded by Robert Cole, then Director of Cal Performances, and the late Joseph Spencer, proprietor of the Musical Offering and then SFEMS president. Over the years, the Festival has presented unique and amazing events: Mark Morris Dance Group’s interpretation of Rameau’s Platée; Le Carousel du Roi, featuring dressage horses and riders executing elaborate ballets from seventeenth-century France accompanied by shawms and sackbuts in their natural setting (outdoors); and the North American premiere of a longlost Mass by Alessandro Striggio for 40 and 60 voices. …” 

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jun 02, 2008 | Hits: 611

Visit for more details of Conference and Workshop schedule, concert listings and faculty. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 18, 2008 | Hits: 1051

"WELCOME! Musique Royale is a summertime celebration of Nova Scotia's musical heritage. A cross-province festival now in its 23rd season, Musique Royale brings performances of early and traditional music take place in settings of historic and cultural significance in communities ranging from the small fishing towns of the South Shore to the magnificent highlands of Cape Breton. Just as the french and english overtones in the festival's name refer to the presence of more than one cultural force in Nova Scotia's musical development, Musique Royale pays tribute to the province's diverse musical heritage. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 17, 2008 | Hits: 595

"MONTREAL BAROQUE is an initiative of Susie Napper, Montreal cellist and gambist who was nominated “Personality of the Year 2002” by the Conseil Québecoise de la Musique. Old Montreal’s Early Music Festival, MONTREAL BAROQUE offers a unique opportunity to hear music of the 17th and 18th centuries, performed by Canadian and international celebrities, in appropriate and unusual settings. Snaking through the narrow streets of the Old City to the sound of a hundred flutes at the festival’s Grand Parade, relaxing at a garden concert, catching a choral concert in a chapel or simply enjoying a street performance, this festival gives a new cultural identity to Old Montreal, attracting international tourists and local music lovers as well as novices to Early Music. "

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Tags: Festival Montréal Baroque, Festival de Musique Montréal Baroque 

Added on: Apr 17, 2008 | Hits: 497

"MEMF was created to provide an opportunity for musicians, scholars, teachers and early music enthusiasts to gather and exchange information and ideas about Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque music and to bring acclaimed early music artists to the Midwest to perform in beautiful Madison, Wisconsin. There are opportunities for everyone from those who simply enjoy listening to concerts and lectures to early music scholars and performance opportunities for amateurs and professionals. All listeners, singers, players and dancers are welcome! " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 18, 2008 | Hits: 337

“Chorworks is a non-profit organization founded in 2005 to explore the rich diversity of choral music. Through concerts and educational workshops, Chorworks offers singers and conductors the opportunity to study and perform choral masterpieces, with an emphasis on works from the 16th and 17th centuries. Our world-class faculty is drawn from several premier early music ensembles, including Anonymous 4, Magnificat, and the Tallis Scholars.”

Visit website for more information on the workshops and festivals offered through the group. -- ed.

Added on: Mar 08, 2008 | Hits: 519

"An acclaimed series of summer courses and concerts jointly sponsored by Early Music Vancouver & the School of Music, University of British Columbia”

Added on: Mar 08, 2008 | Hits: 646

"The Texas Toot is a Texas-based non-profit devoted to early music education and performance, presenting two workshops each year. The Fall Texas Toot is a short weekend workshop with instruction in recorders, viols, early reeds, harp, lute, voice, and more. The Summer Texas Toot is a one-week program of classes in Renaissance and Baroque music at all levels, for recorders, viols, singers, plucked strings, Renaissance reeds and brass, and harpsichord. The Toot also sponsors or supports other events, including the Renaissance Polyphony Weekend. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Feb 24, 2008 | Hits: 468

"“To celebrate the works of Johann Sebastian Bach, his contemporaries and musical heirs and to introduce this genre of music to new audiences.”

The Carmel Bach Festival began in 1935 as a three-day festival of concerts at the Sunset School Auditorium and the Carmel Mission Basilica. Dene Denny and Hazel Watrous founded the Festival. Both women were musical producers, owners of the influential Dene-Watrous Gallery and well-known for their efforts in enhancing the cultural life of the Monterey Peninsula. " See website for more info as well as festival schedule. (ed.)

Added on: Feb 03, 2008 | Hits: 482

"Celebrate Mozart's 250th birthday with 5 fabulous concerts and some of the world's finest interpreters of early music on period instruments in a pristine setting beside glacier-fed rivers in the Cascade foothills in Washington State just 2-1/2 hours from Seattle. The third CASCADE EARLY MUSIC FESTIVAL offers a colorful range of period instrument performances and dance with the Festival's focus this year on Mozart. There will be opportunities to hear the Russian 7-string guitar of Mozart's time, both familiar and rarely heard chamber music by composers of the classical period such as Johann Christian Bach, Mozart's publisher Anton Hoffmeister and English flutist Joseph Tacet, a festive Baroque Ball for all ages led by Anna Mansbridge, an all-Johann Sebastian Bach program, three pre-concert lectures ... and of course plenty of Mozart. " ...

Added on: Aug 22, 2007 | Hits: 515

"Amherst Early Music is the largest and most comprehensive teaching music festival for historical performance in the world. Held at Connecticut College in New London, Connecticut, for two weeks in July, our diverse programs include Recorder, Viol, Voice, Baroque Strings, Harpsichord, Reeds, Brass, Lute, Harp and Historical Dance. International faculty and staff provide high quality instruction and concerts for early music at all levels. In addition, audition-only special programs such as the Amherst Baroque Academy and Virtuoso Recorder provide advanced training for the serious amateur and the pre-professional musician. Weekend workshops are provided year-round featuring the world's finest early music artists. " ...

Added on: Aug 22, 2007 | Hits: 949

“Founded in 1982, the New London-based Connecticut Early Music Society presents an annual festival of between six and nine concerts each June. The term “early music” refers to both a repertory (European music written before about 1800, including medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, and early Classical music) and an approach to performance (“historically-informed performance,” including the use of period instruments).

Performers and scholars of early music seek to discover and present music from times past and to explore a repertory of music that is otherwise little known. From Gregorian chant to the music of Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven, the repertory spans a millennium, from roughly 800 to 1800. Early music specialists also aim to recreate the sound-worlds of earlier times through the use of period instruments and techniques. …“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 18, 2007 | Hits: 496

"BLEMF is a highly successful event that draws worldwide interest from performers and critics. BLEMF has become regionally, nationally and internationally recognized as perhaps the leading venue for young and emerging talent. " ...

Added on: Aug 17, 2007 | Hits: 565

"The Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute is led by some of the world's finest musicians in the field of baroque performance. The Institute is held at the Faculty of Music, University of Toronto. The comprehensive training program includes orchestra and choir rehearsals, masterclasses, opera scene study for singers, chamber ensembles, private lessons, lectures and workshops, and concerts by both participants and faculty. We invite advanced students, pre-professional and professional musicians to apply. "

Added on: Mar 17, 2007 | Hits: 660

CAMMAC (CANADIAN AMATEUR MUSICIANS/MUSICIENS AMATEURS DU CANADA) "The beginnings of CAMMAC go back to 1953, on the shores of Otter Lake near Huberdeau in Argenteuil County. The idea of the founders, George and Carl Little as well as their wives, Madeleine and Frances, was to find a place in the midst of nature where all who love music could participate in it under the direction of professional musicians. Active participation rather than passive listening was to be favoured.

Thus the first CAMMAC music center was born in the Laurentians, named Otter Lake Music Centre. The beginnings were modest - 26 participants registered in the first session, which lasted two weeks." ...

CAMMAC offers summer workshops for various musical instruments, most notably the recorder, harpsichord and baroque dance. Please see website for more information.

Added on: Jul 22, 2005 | Hits: 636

"The Boston Early Music Festival (BEMF) is universally recognized as a leader in the field of early music. Since its founding in 1980 by leading practitioners of early music performance in the United States and abroad, BEMF has promoted early music through biennial Festivals featuring newly revived baroque operatic masterpieces, concerts by the world’s leading soloists and ensembles, scholarly symposia, performance masterclasses, and fringe concerts by emerging artists. Through its programs, BEMF has earned its place as the nation’s premier presenting organization for conservators and performers of music of the Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque periods and has secured Boston’s reputation as “America’s early music capital” (Richard Dyer, Boston Globe.)"

Summer workshop is also offered.

Added on: Jun 17, 2005 | Hits: 679