EarlyMusicNews.Org

"Chalemie is a group of musicians, dancers and actors whose aim is to explore the theatrical side of early music - from the dance and pantomime of eighteenth century London to the court spectaculars of earlier centuries.

Chalemie is motivated by a belief in total theatre; the combining of different performance arts to create new dramatic forms. Its own particular focus is on early music, dance and commedia dell'arte. With these as its primary materials it seeks to create a style of theatre that is close to the popular stage of the early 18th century. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 13, 2008 | Hits: 347

"La Donna Musicale was formed in 1992 and is a non-profit organization dedicated to the research and the historical performance of Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, and Contemporary music by women composers. The group presented three concerts in its inaugural year, using scores discovered through the research of its director, Laury Gutiérrez. Sponsored by Indiana University, the performances took place in Bloomington, Indiana during Women's History Month. An enthusiastic reception to those events prompted additional research and performances. Professional musicians and music producers in Bloomington and Boston encouraged the participation of the ensemble as a concurrent event during the 1993 Boston Early Music Festival. Its success attracted more performers to the group and led to the establishment of a Boston-based ensemble.

The ensemble is presently guided by a group of prominent individuals who, through the dedicated work as Boards of Directors and Advisors, represent both the artistic and business community. Since its inception, the researchers and performers of La Donna Musicale have studied more than 17 women composers, performed 100 pieces in 18 concerts, and gathered over 1,000 works. The ensemble has premiered the works of Milanese nun Chiara Margarita Cozzolani, Venetian courtesan Barbara Strozzi and the mysterious Antonia Bembo. Other composers include Julie Pinel, Bianca Maria Meda, Caterina Assandra, Elisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre, and Madalena Casulana. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

La Donna Musicale is a non-profit research, education, and performance organization devoted exclusively to the discovery, preservation, and promotion of sacred and secular music by women composers.  The internationally acclaimed ensemble uses period instruments and historically-informed performance practice to showcase the work of women composers from the Renaissance, Baroque, and Classical periods, as well as contemporary works. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, La Donna Musicale performs throughout the U.S. and internationally.

La Donna Musicale brings together world-renowned musicians and scholars to unearth, perform, and record music that, in many instances, has never been performed or recorded previously. Concerts have featured modern world premieres of works by Antonia Bembo, Anna Bon, Chiara Margarita Cozzolani, Julie Pinel, and Caterina Assandra, among others. Under the leadership of founding director Laury Gutiérrez, the ensemble translates the concept of historical performance into live and recorded music. Collaborating scholars, experts in their field, include Claire Fontijn, Robert Kendrick, Thierry Favier, Catherine E. Gordon-Seifert, David Lasocki, and Rebecca Messbarger.

Since its inception, La Donna Musicale has educated listeners through outreach programs, workshops, pre-concert lectures, extensive and informative CD liner and program notes, radio programs, and via its website which features online audio files. The Ensemble has also participated in music education series such as Harvard University’s Meet the Performer, and has been lauded by Early Music America as an ensemble that performs “…outstanding music stylishly performed…”  Each of La Donna Musicale’s four ground-breaking CDs of music by Antonia Bembo and Julie Pinel and Anna Bon has received national and international accolades."

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 08, 2008 | Hits: 348

“Super Librum, founded in 1985, is internationally acclaimed for its historically accurate performances of medieval music. The name of the ensemble has been chosen with care: playing 'super librum' (literally 'above the book') was the traditional manner of performance during the Middle Ages. Super Librum is one of the few ensembles to incorporate this playing practice in its performances. Super Librum is directed by Jankees Braaksma, who plays the recorder and the organetto. In 1986, Super Librum was awarded the first prize at the 'Competition for Ensembles of Early Music' (now known as 'Van Wassenaer Competition') and in 1987 gained a distinction as one of the finalists at the Musica Antiqua Competition at Bruges, Belgium.

Super Librum often cooperates with specialists educated at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Switzerland, the only College of Music in Europe to have a specialised course in medieval music on its curriculum. ..” Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 27, 2009 | Hits: 348

“Bergen Barokk was founded in 1994. Their repertoire consists of 17th and 18th Cent. vocal and instrumental music from Italy, France, Germany, England and Scandinavia.  Bergen Barokk is supported by the City of Bergen and the Norwegian Culture Council.”

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Added on: May 09, 2009 | Hits: 348

"The Caecilia Concert is a versatile international ensemble specialising in performance and research of 17th century music for instruments and voices. The group was formed in 2001 by four young instrumentalists working at the forefront of authentic performance practice in Europe. Since then, the Caecilia-Concert has not only made a name for itself as a virtuosic, flexible, small-scale recital ensemble of the highest international level, but has on occassion, expanded to incorporate other instruments and singers performing rarely heard masterpieces from Italy, Germany, Austria and The Netherlands. This flexibility allows us to experiment with various mixed ensembles therefore making accessible newly found compositions and other pieces that would otherwise not be programmed due to mixed or more unusual instrumentation. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 08, 2008 | Hits: 349

"With a riot of period instruments, lusty voices and all the exuberance of an early street or theatre band, THE CITY WAITES perform popular English songs, ballads and dance music from the Tudor period to the early 19th century. Street cries, theatre songs, bawdy broadside ballads, early Music Hall, Coffee House catches, courtly dances and the foot-stomping rhythms of a village dance band.

Performances in concert halls, festivals, historic houses, corporate functions and cultural events throughout the world; British Council tours to Middle and Far East; universities in USA, major London venues incl Queen Elizabeth Hall; collaborations with Shakespeare’s Globe, Regents Park Open Air Theatre, RSC; Royal National Theatre; TV, radio and film soundtracks. …”

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Added on: Mar 12, 2008 | Hits: 350

Le Concert Brisé or Broken Consort : this name defines an ensemble of instruments from different families. This chamber music ensemble was created by William Dongois at the beginning of the 1990’s. The various proposed programs are centered around the cornetto and touch on virtually all the repertoire for this instrument. Using musicology to gain an understanding of the spirit of this music, the ensemble aims to create a framework as favorable as possible to a natural and lively execution.

With a variable number of instrumentists and a singer from two to ten members depending on the program, Le Concert Brisé gathers musicians who have a common musical approach and a similar rapport to historical sources. This common ground constitutes one of the two reference pillars of their interpretation, the other one being the use of improvisation techniques based on jazz and traditional music.

The musicians of Le Concert Brisé have the desire to communicate to the public the pleasure they have in playing this music while taking risks by introducing improvisation whenever possible. In this way they privilege eloquence in performance above a too strict adherence to the musical scores. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 20, 2008 | Hits: 350

"Il Desiderio was founded in 1998 by Hans-Jakob Zinkenisten Bollinger."

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Added on: Apr 20, 2008 | Hits: 350

"The group "Gaudium et Clamor" was founded in 1996 with the intent to promote the ancient music, dedicating it to the study and again the public to a repertoire that ranges from medieval songs to Renaissance dances. The artist girovago, minstrel, is the figure of medieval times that inspired the character of our group, which seeks to recreate such moments of celebration in both square and on the street among people both medieval dinners and concerts. In respect of philology, we try to interpret the music choices avoiding cold academic operations, not only distant in time, but also by the public. " (Google translation) Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: May 20, 2008 | Hits: 350

"Created in 1996 by Laurence POTTIER, all the musicians Mademoiselle de Guise aim to rediscover the old repertoire from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century in a way educational and entertaining. The ensemble, varying in size from 4 to 40 instrumentalists and singers (or vocal soloists' singers Mlle de Guise ") is made up of musicians from the Paris area who play on instruments used at the time, originals or copies .

In 1999, Les Musiciens Mademoiselle de Guise recorded a disk at Bayard Music, "Christmas for the instrument s", devoted to composers Marc Antoine Charpentier, Michel Richard Delalande, Michel Corrette and Esprit Philippe Chédeville. In 2001, "Croc'Baroque" (Songs for children of the 16, 17 and 18th centuries), an educational disc, is registered in collaboration with a choir of children, Petit chorus of Miss de Guise, at Bayard and distributed by Music Agreement Universal.

Laurence Pottier is an instrumentalist as well as a musicologist. She earned a Masters degree in 1989 at La Sorbonne on "The recorder in Italy in the sixteenth century", and in 1993, a doctorate in musicology: "The repertoire of the recorder in France in the Baroque era. "

She participates in chamber music ensembles or a soloist, where she is interested in the relationship between music and dance ancient and contemporary as well as collaborates with the groups "ChapitreXVI" and "Chorégraphe".

She recorded in 1996 the set of suites of Jacques Hotteterre said "Roman" with Ph.Allain-Dupré, Ph.Pierlot and Y. Uyama-Bouvard (label Naxos). Uyama-Bouvard (label Naxos). Holder of CA she teaches recorder and runs regular courses in France and Brazil.

Laurence Pottier published in "The recorder in the seventeenth century" an article on the iconography of the recorder in France in the seventeenth century, following a lecture at the International Symposium Recorder of Utrecht in 1993. She also published in 1996 in Zurfluh, all three recorder methods in France of the Baroque era (Hotteterre, Freillon-Poncein and Loulié). " (Google translation) Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 31, 2008 | Hits: 350

"Luca Pianca is Italian-Swiss musician-lutenist born in Lugano, Switzerland (his specialty is archlute). He studied with Nikolaus Harnoncourt at Mozarteum Salzburg and collaborated with Concentus Musicus Wien since 1982. In 1985 he co - founded Il Giardino Armonico, a pioneering Italian early music ensemble based in Milan. He also served as a lutenist at Zurich Opera House.

Luca Pianca has recorded more than 20 CDs in and out of his work with Il Giardino Armonico, including complete recordings of lute repertoire by J.S.Bach and Antonio Vivaldi. He has partnered with soloists such as Cecilia Bartoli, Eva Mei, Sylvia McNair. Since 1999 Pianca has teamed with viola da gamba player Vittorio Ghielmi to record numerous CDs. Since 2001 he has also collaborated with a contemporary lutenist-composer Roman Turovsky-Savchuk, whose works he premiered at several international festivals (Urbino, Salamanca, Paris, Vilnius inter alia).“ (Wikipedia)

“Vittorio Ghielmi is a viola da gamba player, born in 1968, in Milano, Italy. Vittorio has performed in the most important concert halls of Europe and the USA as a soloist with orchestras such as Il Giardino Armonico, Wiener Philharmoniker, Philharmonia Orchestra London. He teaches viola da gamba at Conservatorio Luca Marenzio di Brescia.

Vittorio Ghielmi is the founder of Il Suonar Parlante ensemble (consort), playing with famous composers and jazzists (Uri Caine, Don Byron, Kenny Wheeler). He published a viol tutorial (in collaboration with Paolo Biordi, Ut-Orpheus Editions, Bologna) and also unedited viol music (Ed. Minkoff, Fuzeau).“ (Wikipedia)

Added on: Feb 10, 2008 | Hits: 351

" Musica Antigua de Toledo works to recreate the styles and sounds of early European music (pre-1800 CE) with as much historical accuracy as possible, using various combinations of voices and period instruments.

Each year we present a concert season of music organized around a theme, using various subjects, time periods, or national styles.

Several school programs are offered to acquaint children with early music and society, including colonial America.

The ensemble is available for programs specialized to fit your entertainment, educational, or holiday events. We occasionally join forces with other musical and dance groups! " See website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Feb 10, 2008 | Hits: 351

“Ensemble Ricreation d’Arcadia was formed in 2001 by four young leading Japanese musicians (Ayako Matsunaga and Yukie Yamaguchi, violin, Takashi Kaketa, violoncello and Takashi Watanabe, harpsichord & organ) who regularly play with several baroque ensembles and orchestras in both Europe and Japan such as Bach Collegium Japan, La Venexiana, Il Giardino Armonico and Academia Montis Regalis. The group’s aim is to explore the diverse instrumental music and vocal music of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, particularly focusing on the vast repertoire for the “trio sonata”. Since 2003, they have also taken part in the annual performances of the “Handel Festival Japan” in Tokyo as core members of the orchestra, conducted by Takashi Watanabe. Their diverse repertoire ranges from works by Monterverdi and Carlo Farina (Capriccio Stravagante, 1626) to Handel’s operas and even early Mozart's symphonies, joined by fellow musicians who share the same ideal.

In 2004, Ricreation d’Arcadia won the first prize at “Premio Bonporti” (President of Jury: Gustav Leonhardt) in Rovereto, Italy and also received the Audience prize and the ORF recording prize. Since 2005, they have been invited to several early music festivals in Europe, including Accademia Filarmonica (Bologna), Associazione Filarmonica (Rovereto), Amici della Musica, Musica e Poesia a San Maurizio, MITO Festival (Milan), Festival di Brezice (Slovenia), Festival Internationale di Musica Antica (Urbino), Grandezze & Meraviglie (Modena), Trento Musicantica (Trento), Nuove Settimane di Musica Barocca (Brescia). Their concerts have been received with universal acclaim.

In 2006, the ensemble performed with Gunar Letzbor in Mejiro Ba-Rock Music Festival in Tokyo. In 2007, they were invited to music festivals in Austria, including Internationale Barocktage Stift Melk, INNtöne Festival, Schlosskonzerte Eckartsau and Konzertreihe FIORI MUSICALI in St. Florian. In Mejiro Ba-Rock Music Festival 2007, they collaborated with Enrico Gatti and La Venexiana, which was filmed and broadcast by NHK. Some of their live concerts have also been broadcast by RAI and ORF. In May 2008, their recording of chamber works and sacred motets of F.A. Bonporti was released from the ORF label.

Future plans include performances of Biber’s complete Harmonia Artificioso-Ariosa, as well as trio sonatas by Locatelli, Caldara, Corelli, Leclair and C.P.E. Bach.“

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Added on: Jul 05, 2009 | Hits: 351

"Ensemble Enchiriadis, founded in Rome in 1998 by Andrea De Luca and Silvia Scozzi, perform music of the Middle Ages and the Reinassance particularly related to the cultures of the Mediterranean area. The project is carried on by musicians from different backgrounds, who deal with early music from different points of view: historical, folkloristic, philological, interpretative, including the manufacture of the instruments. " See website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Feb 10, 2008 | Hits: 352

"Founded in 1996 and based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, The Rose Ensemble reawakens the ancient with vocal music that strives to stir the emotions, challenge the mind, and lift the spirit. Each performance illuminates centuries of rarely heard repertoire, bringing to modern audiences research from the world’s manuscript libraries and fresh perspectives on history, languages, politics, religion and world cultures and traditions. With nine critically acclaimed recordings and a diverse selection of concert programs, the group has thrilled audiences across the United States and Europe with repertoire spanning 1,000 years and over 25 languages, including new research in Hawaiian, Swedish, Middle Eastern and American vocal traditions.

The recipient of the 2005 Chorus America Margaret Hillis Award for Choral Excellence and a first-place winner in the sacred music category at the 2007 Tolosa International Choral Competition (Spain), the group’s concerts and recordings have been called “first class” (Neuss-Grevenbroicher Zeitung), “impassioned and brightly alive” (Choral Journal) and “engaging . .. satisfying” (Gramophone). Founder Jordan Sramek received the 2010 Louis Botto Award from Chorus America “for entrepreneurial zeal.”

The Rose Ensemble can be heard regularly on American Public Media and the European Broadcasting Union (most notably with annual Christmas broadcasts) and was recently featured in special live broadcasts on Radio France, Chicago Public Radio, Vermont Public Radio and National Public Radio’s Performance Today.

The Rose Ensemble’s 16th anniversary season highlights include appearances at Cornell Concert Series (Ithaca, NY), University of Vermont Lane Series, The National Gallery (Washington, D.C.), Secrest Artist Series (Winston-Salem, NC), J. Paul Getty Museum (Los Angeles, CA), and a collaboration with Piffaro, The Renaissance Band (Philadelphia, PA and MN).

The Rose Ensemble’s latest recording, Il Poverello, is a diverse collection of medieval and Renaissance music for Saint Francis of Assisi."

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Feb 23, 2008 | Hits: 352

"Mostly Motets is a small vocal ensemble that sings sacred music primarily from the Renaissance and earlier. The group typically sings works by 15th and 16th century composers such as: Byrd, Tallis, Palestrina, Victoria, Dufay, Desprez, and Frye as well as some Gregorian chant and other works from the Middle Ages. " See website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 02, 2008 | Hits: 352

"What did women sing in the sixteenth and seventeeth centuries?

Musica Secreta was founded in 1990 to explore this question, and we have been particularly fortunate in having the help of the foremost scholars in this exciting new field. The answer seems to be that a lot of it has been sitting for decades on library shelves disguised as madrigals or sacred music for mixed a cappella voices. All that was needed was to rediscover a performance practice that always had taken huge liberties with the printed score. ...

Having performed and recorded music specifically composed by nuns or dedicated to convents, the group now plans to look at "mainstream" polyphony from 16th-century composers (Josquin, Rore, Palestrina, Victoria, Lassus, etc.) and arrange it as the nuns would have done - both accompanied and a cappella - thus giving a fascinating new historical slant to familiar repertoire. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 20, 2008 | Hits: 352

"The Brook Street Band is an award winning specialist in Eighteenth Century repertoire that takes its name from the London street where Handel lived and composed for most of his working life in England. Its various prizes include BBC Radio 3 Young Artists' Forum and the Byrne Award, given by the Handel Institute. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 20, 2008 | Hits: 352

"JANICULUM was founded by Jane Clark primarily to perform the unpublished music she had found in her research on The Grand Tour. It takes its name from the hill in Rome.

Jane Clark, founder of Janiculum, is well known as a harpsichord recitalist in Europe and the USA.

Her research into the music of François Couperin and Domenico Scarlatti has received international recognition. The Scarlatti CD reflects her knowledge of Spanish folk music. In 1992 she played the complete Pièces de Clavecin of François Couperin at The Bate Collection in Oxford and her research on the background to the pieces is published in the Bate Collection Handbook series.

She has given recitals and lectures extensively in the USA including The Fine Arts Museum in Boston, The Frick Collection in New York, Indiana State University at Bloomington, Southern Methodist University in Dallas and The Round Top Festival Institute in Texas. She has taught, lectured and played at summer courses including the Dartington International Summer School, Fort Bergwin, New Mexico and the Aston Magna Academy at Yale. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 26, 2008 | Hits: 352

“I founded this ensemble in order to achieve, with the help of some of my closest musical friends, certain projects which are dear to my heart. These are of various kinds, and include not only the performance of ‘classics’ of the early music repertoire, but also the promotion of neglected works (such as, for example, the works of Joseph Touchemoulin). We also wish to make more widely known some of the neo-baroque works of the C20th and C21st which have been written with period instruments in mind.’..“ Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 27, 2009 | Hits: 352

"Ensemble Arcomelo, founded by Michele Benuzzi, is a group of varying number which unites musicians who have been dedicated for years to study of the Baroque music and the problems related to its performance on period instruments.

Its repertoire spans from the early seventeenth century to the Classical period. Its main interest is in the works of composers of the late-eighteenth century, especially the concertos for harpsichord and orchestra unpublished and still in manuscript form in European libraries.

Arcomelo has performed for important music festival in Italy and abroad: Serate Muscali di Milano, La Societa' dei Concerti di Milano, Bach Festival di Modena, Musica e Poesia a San Maurizio di Milano, Tiroler Festspiele (Austria), Les Fete Musicales de Savoie (France), Musicales Internationales Guil Durance (France), Festival de Musica Antigua de Daroca (Spain), Hakuju Hall Tokyo, Tochigi Kuranomachi Early Music Festival in Japan. In 2002 the ensemble began performing the complete Concertos for harpsichord and orchestra by C.Ph.E.Bach.

The ensemble Arcomelo records for the Milanese label la Bottega Discantica. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 02, 2008 | Hits: 353

"For more than a decade, LIBER (formerly Liber unUsualis) has been the foremost interpreter of late medieval music in the United States.  LIBER’s artistic director and founding member, William Hudson, is doggedly devoted to rediscovering and performing this ancient repertoire.  His extensive research and meticulous preparation of the music of the late medieval period highlights the vitality of this music.  Audiences leave a LIBER performance entertained, enlightened, and energized by their new experience of this ancient art form."

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Added on: Mar 08, 2008 | Hits: 354

"Réjouissance was founded in 1995 by Halifax musicians Karen Langille and Ivor Rothwell, both long time members of Symphony Nova Scotia. The ensemble specializes in the performance of 17th and 18th century music on period instruments, in historically informed style.

The name “Réjouissance,” used by 18th century composers as a title for certain especially delightful pieces, means rejoicing or merrymaking, sensibilities the ensemble strives to instill in their performances. Often, the musicians perform in 18th century costume and by candle light.

Réjouissance draws most of its repertoire from the vast collections of European instrumental music; from early 17th century Italian composers such as Uccellini and Fontana , to great 18th century German masters like Bach, Handel and Telemann. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 17, 2008 | Hits: 354

"Holland Baroque Society has combined innovative programming with a unique working style. Baroque music still takes center stage, but bridges are also being built to other traditions and arts such as Balkan music and the art of literature. The orchestra does not have a permanent director: that helps keep their ears sharp and makes the sense of ensemble both richer and more intense. For each new project, HBS invites a particular baroque specialist who has an innovative vision, one who has mastered a distinctive aspect of performance practice (such as ornamentation or improvisation), or in some other way has escaped the timeworn pathways of convention. HBS has worked for several years with some of them, including oboist Alfredo Bernardini, soprano Maria Keohane, and traverso player Alexis Kossenko; this has allowed ample room for growth and development. In recent years, the orchestra has collaborated with prominent musicians such as Michael Maniaci, Matthew Halls, Stephen Stubbs, Milos Valent, Jan Rokyta, Stefano Montanari, Paolo Pandolfo, Veronika Skuplik, and the actress Cox Habbema. HBS has undertaken projects with the Netherlands Chamber Choir and Cappella Amsterdam, and organizes six of its own concert series throughout the Netherlands. Hbs has also been invited to perform at renowned early music festivals at home and abroad. Educational projects such as ‘Kids only-concerts’ allow HBS to introduce thousands of children and young people to baroque music every year. In this way, too, Holland Baroque Society plays a dynamic role in society." Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 27, 2008 | Hits: 355

"Music of the Spheres™, formed in 2000, is an early music group based in San Francisco and Atlanta, consisting of Baroque violinist Jeanne Johnson, Baroque cellist Joanna Blendulf, and harpsichordist Yuko Tanaka. Music of the Spheres has performed at the 2006 Tage Alter Musik Festival in Regensburg, Germany, on the San Francisco Early Music Society series, as a main event for the 2002 Bloomington and Berkeley Early Music Festivals, and on several broadcasts of "Harmonia" and “Performance Today.” Highlights of 2007 include a performance on the Frick Collection series in New York.

We give lively, fun and informative performances, often interacting informally with our audiences and speaking about composers, history and our instruments. Our programs focus primarily on music of the 17th and 18th centuries, and in addition to performing major works by well-known composers, we also introduce little-known composers and works which are new to our audiences. We are available for concerts, series, festivals, recordings and advanced master classes. Our CD’s are available at www.magnatune.com. " See website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Mar 02, 2008 | Hits: 357