EarlyMusicNews.Org

Chalice Consort collaborates with early music scholars and musicians in helping little-known works from the Renaissance and early Baroque eras become more widely appreciated by the modern music-loving public. The Consort pays special attention to the verbal texts and to the music's rhetorical force, as well as to acoustics. Its performances also take into account the various concepts of stylistic decorum that were strongly articulated by humanist writers in the Renaissance and provide an essential part of the context in which these repertoires were composed, performed, and first appreciated. Chalice Consort aims to communicate the emotional power of this music to modern listeners.

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jan 28, 2011 | Hits: 253

"Founded in 1998 by the organist, harpsicordist and music historian Saverio Villa, Cappella Teatina has the aim of rediscovering, revaluating and reproposing the ancient Italian music repertoire of the "Maestri di Cappella" of XVIII century.

The knowledge of the existence of an enormous musical heritage of undoubtable value, which has not yet been explored, is the stimulus of an intense research of the original manuscripts held in numerous libraries both in Italy and abroad. " See website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Feb 10, 2008 | Hits: 254

“Founded by Antonio Frigé in 1989, as the natural evolution of the Duo Cassone-Frigé, the Ensemble "Pian & Forte" is a group with a variable structure formed by musicians dealing from many years with the study and the development of ancient music. Its aim is the rediscovery and the performance with original instruments of works dating from the early 17th to the late 18th centuries. And such a research, together with the extreme versatility and the fine musicianship of all its components made the Ensemble "Pian & Forte" one of the leading italian groups.

A very big concerts activity has been performed from 1993 for lots of International Festivals (Festival van Vlaanderen - Brugge Tage Alte Musik - Regensburg, Festival "Oude Muziek" - Utrecht, "Autunno Musicale di Como", Serate Musicali - Milano , International Organ Festival" in Aosta,
"Musica e Poesia a San Maurizio" - Milano, MIDEM - Cannes, Teatro Olimpico - Roma, "Pomeriggi Musicali di Milano"). It has moreover appeared in Corsica, France, Holland and Austria.

Up to now the Ens.Pian & Forte has recorded several C.D., issued by Nuova Era Records e Giulia Digital e Agorà with great approvation of the public and of the international critic who has more than once acclaimed them as "CD of the month". The "Pian & Forte" Ensemble plays for Dynamic.“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: May 17, 2009 | Hits: 254

"The Ensemble Diapsalmata is made up of professionals medieval music. Text and singing, with the help of reconstructed instruments. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: May 24, 2008 | Hits: 255

“ENSEMBLE TOURBILLON, founded in 1998 by Petr Wagner, brings together outstanding musicians from various parts of Europe who specialize in baroque and early classical performance practice on period instruments and are devoted to chamber music. Through its members the Ensemble Tourbillon combines the very best of European early music schools with outstanding musicianship, which lends the ensemble distinctively virtuosic style and refined sound colours.

Ensemble Tourbillon‘s repertoire spans a period from the seventeenth century up to C. F. Abel, C. Ph. E. Bach, with works of virtually unknown composers to familiar masterpieces of the baroque and early classical periods. Its formation ranging from 4 musicians (2 violins, viola da gamba, theorboe or harpsichord) to large instrumental and vocal forces enables the ensemble to perform major secular and sacred vocal repertoire. ..“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 14, 2009 | Hits: 255

“The instrumental ensemble Les Cornets Noirs have made their name in specializing in music of the Italian and German early Baroque.

The six musicians of different musical backgrounds met during their of study at the Schola Cantorum (Basel) …”

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jun 03, 2011 | Hits: 255

"Schubert played on a quartet of rubber trout, pieces introduced in Japanese, Wagner grand opera seen through the wrong end of the telescope. Blissfully unaware of the limitations of an instrument with a range of just over an octave, the Chuckerbutty Ocarina Quartet take their small clay instruments through a dazzling array of improbable pieces, played with wit, musicality and occasional bursts of breathtaking speed. To add variety to the mix, the quartet also play guitar, charango and a few other surprises.

Since its debut at the Wigmore Hall, the Chuckerbutty Ocarina Quartet's talent has been appreciated in such prestigious venues as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Royal Festival Hall and Barbican Centre in London, and the Festival of Flanders. In 2005 the quartet appeared as the headline act at the 3rd international ocarina festival in Budrio, Italy, and in 2006/07 made six visits to Spain. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 20, 2008 | Hits: 257

"THE DULCAMARA training is instrumental, composed primarily of reeds and percussion, who wants to convey the variety of colors and sensations of representations itinerant street in the Middle Ages, Renaissance and early Baroque. ... " (Google translation) Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: May 24, 2008 | Hits: 257

“Datura plays medieval music. We have a divers medieval program with wild music to dance on, drinking songs, ballads, courtly- and secular music (o.a. from the Carmina Burana) and religious music (o.a.from the Cantigas de Santa Maria). We play with three or four musicians in matching medieval clothes.
   
Francesco Scafidi, Lies Sommer, Tom Haage and Nynke Glazema are together the band Datura. We work for more than ten years now as medieval musicians and have played in many castles, joustig events, medieval village parties, openings, ceremonies, weddings, gothic- folk- and fantasy festivals in the Netherlands and abroad.”

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Feb 19, 2012 | Hits: 257

"Altramar, in the Occitan language of the troubadours, was the name given to the Near Eastern lands that lay "over the sea;" the lands where Crusade and trade resulted in the rich cultural interchange of East and West.

Altramar is an ensemble specializing in music of the Medieval Era, sharing historical repertory in the context of human experience, and evoking the vibrant tapestry of medieval culture. Altramar combines a process of collaborative partnership with a commitment to scholarship and expression. Since 1991, Altramar has been presenting their unique blend of song and story, drama and rhetoric, and voices and instruments to audiences throughout North America.

Altramar's members arrived at their medieval meeting place by way of diverse musical paths: Jann Cosart plays bowed string instruments from the twelfth to the twentieth centuries. Her varied performing and teaching experience has taken her throughout North America and the Orient. David Stattelman, a native Iowan, received his earliest musical training through participation in the Roman Catholic liturgy, in which he is still plays an active part. In addition to Altramar, he maintains interests in chant and medieval polyphony, and performs with Magnificat and Theatre of Voices. Chris Smith is a jazz guitarist and ethnomusicologist, specializing in performance traditions of the Near East and the African Diaspora. He is a faculty member at the Indiana University School of Music, and produces the program "One World" for National Public Radio affiliate WFIU in Bloomington. Angela Mariani is a specialist in the performance practice of medieval music, whose career has included experience in rock, folk, and traditional styles. She produces the nationally-syndicated early music program Harmonia at WFIU in Bloomington, and has taught and performed in Boston, Bloomington, Amherst, and Vancouver. " See website for more details. (ed.)

Added on: Feb 18, 2008 | Hits: 258

“Founded in 2009 in Geneva by Pierre-Louis Rétat, harpsichordist and director, all Chioma d'Oro has chosen to explore the world of Baroque music through the relationship between text and music. “

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Sep 30, 2011 | Hits: 258

“In the world of Lady Georgianna, lascivious libertines and immodest maidens sport in the enchanted groves attended by nymphs and celestial zephyrs…

Wearing the flamboyant fashions of the Georgian and Regency eras we perform popular hits from the time of Marie Antoinette and Mad King George.

With voice, harpsichord and cello, we aim to bring to life the songs of the 18th century pleasure garden, interspersed with poetry and readings, for an unforgettable Georgian experience.

Lady Georgianna also perform popular Victorian music-hall songs and carols in late 19th century costume.”

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Sep 07, 2011 | Hits: 260

“Formed in 1973 by five Juilliard graduates, THE AULOS ENSEMBLE was at the forefront of a movement that was to capture the imagination of the American listening public. In 1978 with the release of their recording, "Masterpieces of the High Baroque", AULOS' reputation for exhilarating performances informed with scholarly insight was firmly established. In those groundbreaking years, the group's innovative programming featured a blend of flute, oboe, violin, cello, and harpsichord, later adding a viola da gamba.  With its conservatory based training, Aulos brought an uncompromising standard of excellence in performance that resulted in invitations from virtually all of this country's major chamber music presenters. This exposure helped create a new audience awareness for the rich rewards of this repertoire performed on "period instruments" and comments such as "scintillating", "virtuosic", and "authentic baroque performance at its best" from America's most respected music critics.  …“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jan 21, 2011 | Hits: 261

"Magnificat was formed in 1991 by its conductor, Philip Cave, to explore the rich diversity of choral music from the last five centuries. The ensemble specializes in the restoration and performance of neglected choral masterpieces of the 16th and 17th centuries. The choir ranges from four to forty voices and has performed a wide range of music, both a cappella and with its own orchestra of period instruments. " See website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 08, 2008 | Hits: 262

"Europa Galante has performed in many of the world's major concert halls and theatres: La Scala in Milan, the Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome, the Suntory Hall in Tokyo, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Royal Albert Hall in London, the Musikverein in Vienna, the Lincoln Center in New York and the Sydney Opera House. The ensemble has toured throughout Australia, Japan, Canada, Israel, USA and South America and often collaborates with the Ente Santa Cecilia in Rome to find and restore eighteenth-century Italian operas such as Antonio Caldara's La Passione di Gesù Cristo and Leonardo Leo's Sant'Elena al Calvario. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 13, 2008 | Hits: 262

“The Wessex Consort recreates a late 16th century European music ensemble. Similar groups worked in towns, churches and at courts, and were found throughout continental Europe and Great Britain.

Our ensemble consists of five musicians who play modern reproductions of historical instruments. The Wessex Consort has a variety of programs suitable for any occasion. Let us create a memorable musical experience for you. “

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 18, 2010 | Hits: 264

“We, the Okamotos [Yoshiko (Oneh-san) and Hiromi (aHO) Okamoto], call our small musical space at home "Studio aHOYO", which is devoted mainly for the early European music of the medieval to the early baroque (17C) era.“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jun 17, 2010 | Hits: 264

"The Trompettes des Plaisirs ensemble has a staff of natural trumpets (in number varying from three to five), baroque timpani and organ in addition, the voices and other instruments, as the songs scheduled to reach a staff orchestra. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 01, 2008 | Hits: 265

"The Early Music Group " Contredanse " was created from the teachers of music. The ensemble helped to organize religious services of NewApostolic city community. A set of recorders (the firm Moeck) was brought and presented to the musicians for that purpose from Germany.

At the time the members of the ensemble were not permanent, mainly, the teachers of music played in it. Gradually the repertoire and the instruments were enlarging and the ensemble became an independent collective. They took part in a great number of perfomances in towns and cities.

By that time it consisted of four recorders, guitar and percussion in some works cembalo, mandoline, cornomuse and vocal were used. ...

At presrnt the group consist of the followning musicians : Andrew Konstantinov, the leader, recorders sopran, tenor Viktor Kerbul, recorders Eugeni Julan, guitar Andrew Dunchik, percussion. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 24, 2008 | Hits: 265

"The Ensemble dell'Accademia was created within the Accademia Bartolomeo Cristofori, a Florentine Institute which is dedicated to the spreading of fortepiano and its repertoire. The musicians of this ensemble both collaborate with the best ensembles and orchestras which are active in the field of early music – Sonatori della Gioiosa Marca, Barocchisti, Europa Galante, Concerto Italiano, Giardino Armonico, and usually play as principals in some important symphonic orchestras – Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Orchestra of Toscana and Orchestra of the Teatro Verdi of Trieste. They have decided to put together their experiences in a joint project which aims to offer a modern listening of the classic and pre-classic repertoire for wind instruments. The performances, which are given with historical instruments, allow the Ensemble dell'Accademia to play the music in its original timbre and sound context, and also to recover its chamber value. Focusing on the period between the Eighteen and the Nineteen century, when the wind instruments started to be played in soloist and chamber roles, the Ensemble dell'Accademia dedicates itself to the philological reinterpretation of the great repertoire, as the quintetti with fortepiano by Mozart and Beethoven, but also – and particularly – to the research of unpublished works of composers which are too often superficially considered minor ones. The ensemble is particularly interested in the collaboration with the Tuscan Musical Treasures Project, and in the research of the music of those composers who worked in the Tuscan area, where, dating from the second half of the Eighteen century – thanks to the contribution of French and Austrian composers who were related with the Court of the Lorena, the wind instruments had an essential role in the evolution of the orchestra of the Grand Duke. The production for wind instruments by composers such Cambini, Boccherini, Nardini, Giovanni Francesco Giuliani and Joseph Lidarti is revisited in the context of the relations and reciprocal stylistic and formal influences that were established during the second half of the Eighteen century in Tuscany and in the main European musical centres. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 17, 2008 | Hits: 266

"Machicoti (Ma-Shee-Co-Tee) is dedicated to creating exhilarating interpretations of medieval music. The group debuted in 2003 and has performed medieval music from France on concert series around the city, including Midtown Concerts, Salon Concerts at Stern, the New York Early Music Series, the 2007 and 2004 New York Early Music Celebrations, and recent concerts in conjunction with NY Public Library's "Splendor of the Word" exhibition. Individually, the members have sung with such early music groups as Ensemble for Early Music, Pomerium, New York Collegium, Infiorare, and City of Ladies. The original machicoti were the skilled vocal soloists at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in the twelfth century, who created virtuosic improvisations on the liturgy and beyond-a tradition later preserved in manuscripts. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 06, 2008 | Hits: 266

“The Camerata Trajectina ensemble ('Utrecht Music Company', set up in 1974) has made a name for itself playing Dutch music from the Middle Ages through the 17th century. The nucleus of the ensemble consists of Nico van der Meel (tenor), Saskia Coolen (recorder, viol), Erik Beijer (viol, percussion) and Louis Peter Grijp (lute, cittern, artistic director), often joined by Hieke Meppelink (soprano), Sytse Buwalda (countertenor), Marcel Moester (baritone), Annelies van der Vegt (baroque violin) and many other musicians. ..“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 25, 2010 | Hits: 266

"The Freiburger BarockConsort is an "extra edition" of the Freiburger Barockorchester and specialises in chamber music of the 17th and 18th centuries, with which it has gained its own parallel success.

The preference of the BarockConsort is for the viola da gamba, a strong continuo line and a delight in experimentation that repeatedly gives rise to unusual combinations, be that with musicians on stage or with New Music colleagues.

Their basic repertoire includes Bohemian-Habsburg music, virtuoso works by Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber, Johann Heinrich Schmelzer or Antonio Bertali. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 20, 2008 | Hits: 267

"The Ensemble dei Suoni Residui was born in 1994 to perform some music commissioned for a theatrical spectacle. The music played was a particular mix between the music and popular period between the end of the fifteenth century until the middle of XVII (or Renaissance and Baroque) " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 25, 2008 | Hits: 268

"The Ensemble D.S.G. (Soli Deo Gloria) is a complex vocal and instrumental composed of young musicians engaged in the study, in the rediscovery and implementation of new musical heritage of Italian Baroque. The Ensemble, born in 2000, performs especially in Bologna and its glorious musical institutions, among which figure in the first place, the Chapel of St. Petronio. ... " (Google translation) Visit website for more information.

Added on: Jul 31, 2008 | Hits: 269