EarlyMusicNews.org

Two concerts of Baroque Music by Women Composers performed by one of Canada’s newest baroque ensembles, Musathena.

Members of Musathena: Katherine Hill, soprano; Sheila Smyth & Valerie Sylvester, baroque violins; Rebecca Morton, baroque cello; Sara-Anne Churchill, harpsichord 

Enjoy the rare opportunity to hear some exquisite music written by seldom-heard women composers of the Baroque. The programme will include works by Elisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre, Barbara Strozzi, Isabella Leonarda and the enigmatic Mrs. Philarmonica. As an added bonus, the ensemble will be premiering a specially-commissioned work by Canadian composer Elizabeth Raum, a setting of a dialogue by Mary Sidney (1561-1621) in honour of Queen Elizabeth I. Countertenor Timothy Wong will join Musathena for this new work.

An evening of sublime music will be performed in the magnificent spaces of Guelph’s Church of Our Lady Immaculate. Guest organist Christiaan Teeuwsen joins TACTUS to perform works chosen mainly from the Italian Renaissance.

There is a strong connection between the composers featured in our concert and the acoustically brilliant Sistine Chapel. Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, champion of Rome's Counter Reformation, needs little introduction to lovers of early music. His student, the Spaniard, Tomas Luis de Victoria will be also represented.

Henry Purcell and George Frideric Handel took great joy in composing music for their royal patrons, Queens Mary II of England, Anne of Great Britain, and Caroline of Ansbach. Join ABS, the American Bach Choir, and a quintet of splendid vocal soloists for a rare treat of sumptuous music! 

This year's Festival takes a tour of Central Europe, from the Hanseatic trading towns of the Baltic coast through the courts and cities of Germany, Poland, Bohemia and Austria, to finish up by the waters of the Venetian lagoon.

For those of you who are interested in the intricacies of the politics of choosing a “Sous-Maître” at the Chappelle Royale.

Saturday, 19 February 2011
First Moravian Church of
New York City, NY

Harpsichord Unlimited presents Nickolai Sheikov & Elaine Comparone in a rare duo recital of music for two harpsichords.
Program:

• Wilhelm Friedemann Bach, Duetto for 2 Keyboards in F Major
• Francois Couperin, Four Pieces
• Padre Antonio Soler, Concerto #1 in C Major for 2 Harpsichords
• Robert Baksa*, Duo Sonata #2 for 2 Harpsichords (1995)
• Elodie Lauten, Indigo 2 for 2 Harpsichords (World Premiere)
• Johann Sebastian Bach, Chromatic Fantasy & Fugue for Solo Harpsichord (BWV 903) -- Mr. Sheikov
  
  

Music of Couperin, Leclair, Caldara, Strozzi and Hasse
25th Anniversary New York Concert Series
Monday, February 21/2011 at 8pm
The New Church
114 East 35 Street
New York City

Visit and browse newly available 2010-2011 musicological materials at LIM Editions. Some titles include: “Venetian-Hanoverian Patronage in 17th-Century“; “Alessandro Rolla (1754-1841) -- Un caposcuola dell'arte violinistica lombarda“; “Una nuova fonte della trattatistica musicale settecentesca“; “Musica e musicisti ad Ancona nel XVI secolo”;  and more …

News from Oxford University Press, the soon to be published paperback/hardback: 

“The Performance of 16th-Century Music will enable the performer to better understand this music and advance their technical and expressive abilities. Early music specialist Anne Smith outlines several major areas of technical knowledge and skill needed to perform the music of this period. 

Rendezvous for lovers of music and art, and not just Baroque!

The Harmonia Early Music website is running an interesting project. 

“We’re looking to put together a program of listener favorites and we need your help.

…  The American medieval ensemble Cançonièr has taken inspiration from Benheim’s poem as well as the music from Dracula’s time. Their recording “The Black Dragon” includes traditional and art music of the period in addition to excerpts from the blood-curdling poem.

Snow be damned, we have managed to pull together our sophomore issue! And what an issue we have for you.  Nature’s Way:  Vocal Production in Social Context by Dr. Peter Hennen, and my article, How to Handle Spelling Händel, cover topics close to the countertenor experience.

Bach’s great monument to the human spirit, featuring the Tafelmusik Chamber Choir and Orchestra and a stunning cast of soloists, all under the direction of Choir Director Ivars Taurins.

Dorothee Mields, soprano
Laura Pudwell, mezzo-soprano
Charles Daniels, tenor
Brett Polegato, baritone

The Margaret Cavendish Society is pleased to announce its next meeting.

THEME: The Cavendishes and Anglo-European Cultural Exchange: Seventeenth-Century Dutch, Flemish and French Influences.

Menucha Retreat Center, Corbett, Oregon

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.

The Farallon Recorder Quartet announces the release of its new CD entitled "From Albion's Shores."

YouTube video of an interview with Maestro López Banzo of the Al Ayre Español ensemble on Handel. Al Ayre Español was founded in 1988 by Eduardo López Banzo for the purpose of addressing topics that then surrounded the interpretation of Spanish baroque music.

Winner of the 1970 Chopin International Piano Competition, pianist Garrick Ohlsson is regarded as one of the world's leading performers of the music of Frédéric Chopin. He is also noted for his masterly performances of the works of Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert, as well as the Romantic repertoire.

Some few years back, Suisse-Romande pianist Pierre Goy set about crafting an international setting for a spirited exchange of ideas, informed opinions, and in-depth information touching on music for and with keyboards. Each even year since 2002, his Rencontres harmoniques have conferred total immersion in the theme at hand on performers, professionals in the field, and a growing public.

Chalice Consort is pleased to announce the second annual Chalice Consort Early Music Conference (CCEMC), which brings together performers, scholars, and listeners of early music to examine newly-discovered and edited sacred music from the Renaissance and Baroque eras, and select the top piece from those heard at the conference will be performed at a future concert by the Chalice Consort.

We are on the hunt for missing "pieces" of early music history in alignment with our mission. Chalice is calling for submissions for the 2011 Early Music Scholars Competition (EMSC).

To those who may be interested, we are trying a new idea - for us at least.  Responding to requests from our audiences, we have just posted a few singles of pieces that we frequently perform live but have not been included on our CDs.

Coun­ter­points Pub­lish­ing LLC was formed to an­swer the ques­tion, “who does a coun­tertenor have to know to get his hands on some reper­toire?” While the coun­tertenor voice has ex­pe­ri­enced a well-de­served re­nais­sance since Al­fred Deller stepped out of the choir stalls at St. Paul’s Cathe­dral in Lon­don, much of the mu­sic from the coun­tertenor’s Baroque hey­day re­mains bound up in li­braries, in il­leg­i­ble or pro­hib­i­tively ex­pen­sive scores.

Bach’s Passions ­– Musical Language and Religious Contexts
June 6–10, 2011

In the course of its annual Summer Term, the Yale Institute of Sacred Music will offer a weeklong course on Johann Sebastian Bach’s Passions, taught by Yale faculty member Prof. Markus Rathey:

Johann Sebastian Bach’s St. John and St. Matthew Passions, considered cornerstones of the western classical music canon, form the culmination of his art as a composer of sacred music. The revival of Bach’s music in 19th century concert halls began with Mendelssohn’s performance of the St. Matthew Passion.