EarlyMusicNews.Org

“John Mark Rozendaal specializes in teaching and performing stringed instrument music from the Baroque and Renaissance eras. As founding Artistic Director of Chicago Baroque Ensemble, JMR performed and led seven seasons of subscription concerts, educational programs, radio broadcasts, and recordings for the Cedille and Centaur labels. Rozendaal served as principal 'cellist of The City Musick, and Basically Bach, and has performed both solo and continuo roles with many period instrument ensembles, including the Newberry Consort, Orpheus Band, and the King's Noyse. Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra, the Catacoustic Consort, Philomel, Parthenia, The New York Consort of Viols, and Empire Viols.  JMR performs as a member of Trio Settecento with violinist Rachel Barton Pine and harpsichordist David Schrader. Rozendaal's viola da gamba playing has been praised as "splendid" (Chicago Tribune), and "breathtaking" (Sun-Times).  Recordings are available on the Cedille and Centaur labels. ..“ Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 19, 2009 | Hits: 310

“ .. . She now performs widely as a viola da gamba soloist, having appeared with the Britten-Pears Baroque Orchestra, the Essex Baroque Orchestra, the Lecosaldi Ensemble, the Choir of St. John’s College Cambridge and the Sweelinck Ensemble among others. In 1995 she performed a viola da gamba concerto by Leonard Salzedo at Benslow Hills Music Trust in the presence of the composer.
Since 2000 Mary Pells has worked for the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music as an examiner and as a mentor on their Certificate of Teaching course. ..“ Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 19, 2009 | Hits: 384

“I am a viol player and teacher based on the South Cumbria/North Lancashire border. I travel all over the North West of England performing and teaching - both private pupils and also viol consort coaching. Performing can either be as a soloist or as a bass continuo player.

I am also a renaissance and baroque dancer and am much in demand as a dance teacher and choreographer. My particular interest is the relationship between the dance and music.

In addition to the teaching already mentioned I lecture for adult education classes, run early music workshops, teach recorders and present Tudor workshops for schools. ..“ Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 19, 2009 | Hits: 298

“ Solo-CD, Music by Carl Friedrich Abel ( www.hyperion-records.co.uk/al.asp?al=CDA67628 ), winner of Editor's Choice Gramophone Award 2008 .. .

Susanne Heinrich studied at the Meistersinger Conservatory of Nuremberg, and at the Frankfurt State Academy of Music, where she passed her recital diploma with the highest distinction. She was then granted the prestigious DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) scholarship to study with Wieland Kuijken at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague. She has performed and recorded with many leading period-instrument ensembles of Europe, and has made over 15 recordings with the award-winning ensemble  “Charivari Agréable“. Susanne has been a member of the“Palladian Ensemble” (the “Palladians” from 2007) since 1994 and she has written for various journals, including “The Consort“, and  “Chelys“. Sought after as a teacher, her last position was Professor for Viols and Violone at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London; Susanne is now devoting some of her time to the chief editorship of  “Charivari Agréable Publications”. The revised New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians refers to her as one of the 'leading players' of this generation.“

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Apr 13, 2009 | Hits: 374

"Hideki just moved to Portland, Oregon to pursue more performance opportunities. He would like to thank all his fans in Central Oregon for their support and friendship. He will still visit Bend on a regular basis to teach lessons and for engagements, and is still taking students and bookings there.

Hideki Yamaya is a guitarist and lutenist who has been active as a performer and teacher in the West Coast for over 12 years. He currently resides in Portland, Oregon, and is actively teaching and performing in the Portland area and in Central Oregon. He has a B.A. in Music and an M.A. in Ethnomusicology from University of California, Santa Cruz, and an M.F.A. from University of California, Irvine, in Guitar and Lute Performance. His primary instructors have included Paul Beier, Mesut Ozgen, John Schneiderman, Anita Sheer, Robert Strizich, and James Tyler; he has had master classes with Robert Barto, Ronn McFarlane, Richard Savino, Stephen Stubbs, and Benjamin Verdery. He is an internationally acclaimed musician and has performed in Canada, Japan, Great Britain, and Italy.

Added on: Mar 04, 2009 | Hits: 579

Part of the Music Institute of Chicago, ‘Viols in Our Schools’ is organized by Dr. Phillip W. Serna of the Spirit of Gambo – a Chicago Consort of Violsand is supported by the Viola da Gamba Society Third Coast as well as a pilot program of the Viola da Gamba Society of America.

Added on: Dec 10, 2008 | Hits: 385

"Laura Vaughan is gaining a reputation as Australia’s most exciting viola da gamba and lirone player of the rising generation and has had a distinguished list of teachers including Wieland Kuijken, Philippe Pierlot, Miriam Morris and Anneke Pols. Following her return to Australia from studies at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague in 2004, she has established a busy schedule of teaching and performing from her base in Melbourne and performs a wide range of solo and chamber repertoire across Australia, Europe and the United States. Passionate about the sound world of the viol, Laura is committed to bringing this exquisite repertoire to audiences around the world." Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Nov 08, 2008 | Hits: 637

"Jerry Willard was born in Cleveland, Ohio and began studying the guitar with his father Jeff Willard who was a guitarist. The guitar pedagogue Sophocles Papas recognized his talent and invited Mr. Willard to study with him in Washington, D.C. Subsequently he expanded his knowledge of musical interpretation when he worked with violinist Misha Mishakoff and cellist Warren Downs. Mr. Willard also studied with guitarists Richard Lurie and Alirio Diaz, both of whom influenced his musical and technical approach to the guitar.

Mr. Willard's performances have taken him to Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall in New York City, and he has concertized extensively throughout Europe and The United States. At Mr. Willard's New York debut, Raymond Ericson of the New York Times said, "The recital was exemplary. Mr. Willard took lute in hand for some pieces by Adrian LeRoy and John Dowland and turned that normally pale-sounding predecessor of the guitar into a brilliant and vivid instrument. Back with the guitar, the performer played his own transcriptions of Bach's Lute Suite in E minor and five dances from Britten's Gloriana' plus Henze's attractive `Drei Tentos'. It was again the clarity of Mr. Willard's playing that gave special pleasure."

Well known as an ensemble player, Mr.Willard has performed with the Cleveland Orchestra, The New York Opera Company, The New York Consort of Viols, Queens Chamber Band , and the Long Island Baroque Ensemble. Mr. Willard resides in New York City and is on the faculty of the State University of New York at Stony Brook . He has published many transcriptions for guitar including "The Complete Lute Music of J.S. Bach" available through Music Sales Corp. and "Ten Sonatas of D. Scarlatti" available through AIG Publications. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 06, 2008 | Hits: 420

"Empire Viols formed in 1994 and has been in residence at Second Presbyterian Church since 1998. The core group of two viols and harpsichord frequently expands to include more viols or other instruments, while maintaining a focus on the rich duo viol repertoire of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The 2008-2009 season features a tour of the southwestern United States. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 06, 2008 | Hits: 417

"I was born in Milan in 1968 and I graduated in guitar with Mauro Storti afterwhich I dedicated myself to the study of practices of Renaissance and Baroque music; ...

In 1996 I graduated with honors in Musicology at the School of Music Palaeography and Philology of Cremona (University of Pavia) with a thesis on theorbo as an instrument used for the realization of basso continuo.

I have attended courses of early music and accompanied singers organized by the School of Music Palaeography and Philology of Cremona ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 04, 2008 | Hits: 416

"Musician, gamba-player, has played music as long as she can think. For her, music is the foremost means of communication between human beings, more precise and intense and unmistakable than language, of greater emotional significance than any other experience besides love. To her, music is a means of connecting not only the past and the future but also a way of socially integrating the most conflicting aspects of existence.

She travels the world, playing concerts and recording CDs with different groups or soloizing, mostly in the field of 17th and 18th century music but also letting the music take her to places she never even dreamed of.

When she is not travelling she lives in a farmhouse in northern Germany with her family and a few chickens, horses, cats and rabbits.

She passionately teaches her twelve students at the Hochschule der Künste in Bremen, Germany, everything she knows about music, playing the gamba, and how not to be jealous if someone plays better than you. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 04, 2008 | Hits: 304

"The members of the Quatuor Mosaïques, Erich Höbarth, Andrea Bischof, Anita Mitterer and Christophe Coin, met in Vienna when they were playing with Concentus Musicus Wien, and it was the great names of the classical Viennese repertoire that brought them together as a quartet.

Right from the beginning of the Quartet’s career in 1985, the Mosaïques performances were marked by both a new clarity stemming from their use of period instruments, and a poetic attention to detail that was typical of the central European tradition of chamber music.

The Mosaïques have forged ahead ever since, concentrating on the core of the classical repertoire with Haydn, Mozart, Schubert and Beethoven. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 04, 2008 | Hits: 360

"1st prize in cello playing under André Navarra at the Paris Conservatory. Completes his studies in early music in Vienna with Nikolaus Harnoncourt and viola da gamba with Jordi Savall at the Schola Cantorum in Basel.

Together with Erich Höbarth, Andrea Bischof and Anita Mitterer, he founded the Quatuor Mosaïques in 1984. The quartet is specialised in music from Vienna classic repertoire.

Besides activities as a chamber musician, Christophe Coin is regularly invited as a soloist and conductor in France and abroad.

Since 1991, he has directed the Ensemble Baroque de Limoges in a repertoire of 17th and 18th century music.

Musician and research worker, he has organised international Symposa to examine playing techniques and fabrication of early instruments since 1992 in Limoges.

His recordings have been well-received by the critics; two Gramophone Awards successively for Haydn's Opus 20 and Opus 33 quartets played by the Quatuor Mosaïques, and a Classical Music Victoire Award for his recording of the “cello piccolo” cantatas by Bach with the Ensemble Baroque de Limoges.

Christophe Coin teaches at the Paris Conservatory and at the Schola Cantorum in Basel. "

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 04, 2008 | Hits: 356

"Born in Holland in 1961 and after his cello studies Coen Engelhard is living in France, where he learns to play the viola da gamba and how to make them.

In Foix (Pyrenees) he discovered an unknown manuscript of viola da gamba music which he has revived. The CD ‘Le Manuscrit de Foix’ is part of this adventure.

Since 1996 Coen has been teaching viola da gamba at the Conservatory of Toulouse. He is an appreciated gamba soloist in Bach's Passions and is leader of Consortoulouse. " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 04, 2008 | Hits: 385

Violone and Kontrabass performer. Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 02, 2008 | Hits: 470

"The Baroque Cello International Society (Associazione Internazionale del Violoncello Barocco) was founded in 2006 by the cellists Renato Criscuolo and Andrea Fossà.

The purpose of the Association is being a point of reference for all those interested in the baroque cello and related instruments (such as il basso di violino, il violoncino, il bassetto etc.) as well as musicians, philologists, researchers, violin makers, organists, string makers etc.

The Association organizes concerts, courses, workshops, recordings and and all that can help fulfil the above mentioned purpose of the Association. As well, the Association is developing and maintains an on-line library, iconography and virtual museum with pictures of several instruments from all over the world. ... "

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Aug 02, 2008 | Hits: 511

"Born in 1980 in Seville of Syrian father and Palestinian mother, he studied viola da gamba with Ventura Rico. He travels to Europe. In Milan he entered in the Accademia Internazionale della Musica and Switzerland entered the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana, perfecting his studies in viola da gamba. He received lessons from the best European musicians as Enrico Onofri, Lorenzo Ghielmi, Trevor Pinnock, Kees Boeke, Stefano Montanari, Diego Fasolis, and with Vittorio Ghielmi viol. He is a member of Accademia del Piacere, a group that specializes in music for viola da gamba. He is a member of Gruppo Seicento, Ishbilya Consort, Speculum, etc. and has worked with La Venexiana, Armoniosi Concerti, Sorcerous Stabber Orphen Lyra and many others, with whom he has travelled around the world. Currently preparing a double disc for BRILLIANT CLASSICS on the family Forqueray. ... "

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 31, 2008 | Hits: 451

"The "Liuto" (or "lute") derives both in name and form from the Arab instrument known as "al 'Ud" (in spanish "laúd"), which means literally "the wood". Normally a lute is described as a musical instrument which has a body with a round back and a flat top, a long neck and strings which are played with the fingers. We associate this instrument with the classic painting of the renassaince with an angel playing a "lute" while fliying. Is not so simple but is a good first contact with the lute.

We would consider a "lute" or "liuto" as a concept more than a single instrument.

Liuto com want to be a full web resource of lute, old plucked instruments and early music. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 31, 2008 | Hits: 351

"Eduardo Figueroa - lutenist, born at Santiago (Chile), studies guitar with Oscar Ohlsen at the Music Institute of the "Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile".

Since 1995 dedicates himself to the study of early music (lute and theorbo), assisting to seminars with Hopkinson Smith, Eduardo Egüez, Paul O'Dette, Nigel North and Juan Carlos Rivera, obtaining his luth diploma on 2004 at the Early Music Institute of the "Accademia Internazionale della Musica" (Milan) under the guide of Paul Beier.

For years he has developed a wide concert activity as a soloist and in orchestral ensembles in Italy, Spain, Norway, United Kingdom, France and South America. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 30, 2008 | Hits: 406

"My name is Olve Utne, and I play the Baroque Violin and the Baroque Viola. I have a Cand.Philol. degree (roughly equivalent to an advanced thesis MA) in Musicology from the University of Oslo (1996), with Arvid Vollsnes as my advisor and Richard Gwilt as my Baroque Viola teacher. I have also studied one year as a guest student at the Early Music programme of the Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel (Royal Conservatory of Brussels) in Belgium on a Flemish State Scholarship (1997/98).

My main teacher in Brussels was François Fernandez — a violinist with a truly stunning technique, great musical insight and an open mind. I consider it a true honour to have had the chance to learn from him.

Orchestral practice includes playing the viola in the Oslo Baroque Orchestra, leading the 2nd violins and violas in Lofoten og Vesterålen Orkesterforening, and participating in various orchestral projects during my year in Belgium. Of those projects, the three that I feel I learned the most from were the Beethoven concert (4th Symphony, 5th Piano Concerto, Egmont Ouverture) conducted by Phillippe Herreweghe; the C.Ph.E. Bach concert (two symphonies and two cello concertos) lead by the impressively virtuoso Baroque cellist Hidemi Suzuki; and Haydn’s oratorio Die Schöpfung, conducted by Sigiswald Kuijken — a baroque violin pioneer and conductor whose orchestral leading skills and insight in Haydn’s music is truly exceptional. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 30, 2008 | Hits: 340

"Although in the past, the Society organised courses in making as well as many in playing these instruments, at present the activity of both branches of the Society is fairly dormant due to the apathy of the membership. On the positive side, there are several good gamba makers as well as lute makers. Special mention should be made of Petr Vavrous (gambas) and Jiri Cepelak (lutes) who have both been very supportive to the work of the Society. However we do continue to lend out many instruments both gambas and lutes. The Society also lends out music and CDs. ... "

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 30, 2008 | Hits: 390

"The Sociedad de la Vihuela is a cultural association created at the national level on September 25, 2004 in order to disseminate and promote knowledge and study of historic stringed instruments such as: vihuela, lute, theorbo, guitar renaissance, baroque, romantic and classical, etc..

These objectives are carried out by organizing concerts, workshops, meetings and conferences as well as through the publication of specialized publications. ... "

Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 30, 2008 | Hits: 563

"... Fascinated by the Baroque period, Louis began the lute- he was not yet fifteen. He started out by poring over musical research documents describing the antique music, gleaning whatever practical information he could. On the eve of his confirmation, he received what would become a lifelong passion: his first baroque lute. Working with another young enthusiast, Kleber Besson, his technique grew. Three times a day all through high school, the lute was as regular as meals. Louis played lute, theorbo and a 1927 folk guitar he had adopted on his first visit to New York to play blues. ...

In 1984 EMI records chose him to be their lute master of their Treasury of Bach; this box set included pieces with every instrument Bach has written for. By then, Louis was playing in the Saint Chapel in Paris. He then recorded the Dufaut disc in a small chapel in Switzerland. Louis also started playing harpsichord, organ and french hunting horn on the side. In 1989, a subsidiary of Universal Music requested a worldwide first: the recording of the "Divine Rhethoric", by Gaultier. The same year, national television produced a 30 minute documentary about Louis, the "Musician Minister": Louis was indeed a minister, but also an engineer and a PhD. in philosophy. ...

For the past ten years, Louis has been working incessantly on his latest masterpiece, the "Book of Perrine", recorded in Switzerland, which will finally be released in a few months. This recording is the apotheosis of his work, and is impatiently awaited by his fans. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 28, 2008 | Hits: 368

"Like many lute players, Liz Kenny started out by playing the classical guitar. As a junior at the Royal Academy of Music she received intelligent guidance from Michael Lewin (now a colleague there) and came within reach of London concert life. Her first encounter with the lute was hearing a performance by Nigel North - later to be an inspiring teacher. After going down the byways of an English degree and back to the guitar, she returned to this sound. Discovering everything from the subtle feeling of playing on double strung lutes to the freedom of improvisation that playing continuo offered was an exhilarating and at times frustrating experience. Just as well she didn't know at the outset that playing the lute for a living would entail mastering and giving houseroom to a dozen different instruments …

Now her repertoire extends from the early 16th century through the domain of the theorbo and baroque lute to the 19th century, thanks to stumbling across a beautiful small French romantic guitar at a London dealer's.

Her career has always had a strong international bias since it began during the recession in the UK in the early 90s. She went to Paris instead and began a long association with William Christie's Les Arts Florissants, which has had a big influence on her performing style. Playing with an unusually diverse range of ensembles in France, Germany and the USA as well as at home has given her a wide perspective on different ways of making music. She is now committed to drawing on this in devising her own programmes. Groups she has appeared with regularly in over a decade of touring include Les Arts Florissants, Concerto Vocale, The English Concert, Tragicomedia, Teatro Lirico, Tira mi sú, The Gabrieli Consort, The Taverner Consort, The Parley of Instruments, The King's Consort, The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and Concordia. ..." Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 16, 2008 | Hits: 427

"Hannelore Devaere studied historical harp at the Akademie für alte Musik, Bremen, with Andrew Lawrence-King. Her main focus is on music of Spain and Italy from the Renaissance and Baroque periods . As a soloist she can be heard in many recordings and is often featured on national radio. As a continuo player, she records regularly with many national and international ensembles, including Zefiro Torna, Romanesque, Elyma and Al Ayre Espanol. Hannelore is also a musicologist specialized in 16th- and 17th-century iconography and organology; as such, she has worked for the Museum of Musical Instruments in Brussels. She is a very active lecturer at symposia and music festivals, and is a published scholar.

Hannelore teaches the harp, continuo, improvisation and primary-source reading at the music schools of Tielt, Knokke and Woluwé (Brussels). She is often invited to give masterclasses in Belgium (Festival Van Vlaanderen) and abroad.

Hannelore was the first harpist on record to perform on the ice cap in the Antarctica and has a landing spot under her own name. ... " Visit website for more information. (ed.)

Added on: Jul 15, 2008 | Hits: 1080