HISPANIC HERITAGE SERIES
Friday, March 2, 2012
LA MORRA
Tears Of A Lion: A Secret Concert For Pope Leo X

Palmer Memorial Episcopal Church, 7:30 p.m.
6221 Main Street, Houston, TX 77030

Pre-concert talk at 6:45 p.m.
La Morra ensemble members

Houston Early Music is pleased to introduce this exciting young Swiss ensemble. While remembered for his extravagant lifestyle, Pope Leo X (1513-1521) was a noteworthy patron of arts and a man of great sensitivity for music. Himself a competent composer, Leo X clearly had a weakness for good musicians and his rise to the peak of ecclesiastical power brought about a true (albeit short) Golden Age for many of them. Follow LA MORRA to Pope’s private chamber for an intimate concert performed by the best of the pontiff’s “secret musicians.” Music by Pope Leo, Tromboncine, Encina, Francisco de la Torre, …  Madly beautiful music, performed on harp, fiddle, flutes, lute and vihuela de manna.

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Friday, May 4, 2012
TRIO SETTECENTO
The Scottish Play

Palmer Memorial Episcopal Church, 7:30 p.m.
6221 Main Street, Houston, TX 77030

Pre-concert talk at 6:45 p.m.
John Mark Rozendaal

Rising star violinist Rachel Barton Pine is joined by acclaimed cellist John Mark Rozendaal and harpsichordist David Schrader in a spirited program of Scottish baroque music including earthy, infectious Hebridean fiddling and the renewed pleasures of poetic works of Scotland’s classical composers. Even the Italian virtuosi Geminiani and Veracini get in on the action with Scottish-themed compositions.

Web Site

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Friday, February 3, 2012
RICHARD EGARR, Harpsichord
The Harpsichord’s Golden Century

First Unitarian Universalist Church, 7:30 p.m.
5200 Fannin, Houston, TX 77004

Pre-concert talk at 6:45 p.m.
Richard Egarr

Harpsichord superstar Richard Egarr returns to Houston with his trademark sense of discovery and a fresh, compelling look at the virtuosic works of 17th century composers Couperin, Purcell, Froberger and Blow. With his inquiring mind and adventurous spirit, Egarr engages the audience with a gripping performance of works from a time when there were no restrictions and eccentricity was the standard.

View the concert program

• Download Concert Program Harpsichord’s Golden Century
• Bob Stevenson’s interview with Richard Egarr on KUHF’s The Front Row 
• Richard Egarr’s Website
• YouTube -R. Egarr, harpsichord

For the program, entitled The Harpsichord’s Golden Century, Egarr will present a fresh look at works of 17^th century composers Louis Couperin and Johann Jakob Froberger, who were known to be great friends and colleagues.

“The two geniuses inspired each other to create some of the most wonderful creations for the harpsichord,” Egarr said.

He will also examine the work of John Blow and Henry Purcell, which, he said, “add a bit of English quirkiness to the mix.”

Egarr said he is particularly inspired by 17^th century composers, because he believes the greatest music for harpsichord was written during this time.

 “This is the century of real musical barrier breaking and exploration, as well as the time of the harpsichord’s greatest importance,” he said. “I am a proud music addict and love to communicate my passion and enthusiasm for music to everyone I come into contact with.”

 Egarr currently serves as music director of the Academy of Ancient Music, is increasingly sought after as a conductor by non-period chamber and symphony orchestras and performs with period ensembles such as the Handel and Haydn Society in Boston, Tafelmusik and Portland Baroque.

 Egarr began his musical training as a choir boy at York Minster, at Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester, and as organ scholar at Clare College Cambridge. His studies with Gustav and Marie Leonhardt further inspired his work in the field of historical performance.

http://www.thefrontrow.org/articles/1328115130-Houston-Early-Music—Richard-Egarr.html

Download Concert Program Harpsichord’s Golden Century

Sunday, December 11, 2011
DUFAY COLLECTIVE
To Drive the Cold Winter Away – Christmas Revelry in Renaissance England

Christ Church Cathedral, 5:00 p.m.
1117 Texas Avenue, Houston, TX 77002

Pre-concert talk at 4:15 p.m.
Dufay Collective members

Celebrate the season as this acclaimed British ensemble makes their Houston debut with their own brand of entertaining Christmas treats. Included are carols and a pretty number written by Henry VIII, after which things move to the streets with tavern music, ecstatic dances and foot-tapping ballads. This holiday delight includes voice and a feast of instruments including fiddle, harp, guitar, vielle, flute, recorder, percussion, hurdy-gurdy and bagpipes.

Program

• On Facebook: The Dufay Collective
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• See complete Concert Program
• Read Preview in Houston Chronicle
• See Photos from Concert

Boston-based La Donna Musicale is a nonprofit research, education and performance organization dedicated to highlighting music by women composers from the Renaissance, Baroque and Classical periods, as well as contemporary works. The ensemble uses period instruments and historically based productions to showcases the compositions. 

 For their Houston program, Passionate Enemies, La Donna Musicale presents music by women composers at courts of Frederic the Great and the House of Hapsburg. For these powerful foes on the battlefield, the competitive spirit extended to the salon, where passions ran high and nothing was spared in their lavish quest of the arts.

 Soprano Shari Alise Wilson and countertenor Gerrod Pagenkopf perform with the ensemble that includes violins, viola, violone, harpsichord and viola da gamba.

 Music by Frederic’s sister, Wilhelmine, and Anna Bon goes up against Hapsburg-sponsored Camilla de Rossi and Maria Teresa Agnesi.

 “For all of these rulers, music was a vehicle to express not only passions but also power,” said Laury Gutiérrez, director of La Donna Musicale. “They spared no effort in presenting the best music and musicians, just as they spared no effort in fighting military battles. Their passion for triumph was the same.”

 Gutiérrez explained that La Donna Musicale focuses on pieces that have not yet been recorded.

 “The 18th century is an exciting period: you have composers such as Handel and Camilla de Rossi that sound Baroque; ­­­­you have composers ­­such as CPE Bach and Anna Bon that sound Pre-classical and you also have composers such as Haydn and Maria Teresa Agnesi that sound Classical. Also, the genres of oratorio and opera demonstrate the abilities of the composers on a larger scale than we generally find in the 17th century,” she said.

Gutiérrez will present a pre-concert talk at 4:15 p.m. focusing on the historical background of the music and composers.

 Exploring history through music is a Houston Early Music hallmark. The group follows music from the Middle Ages through the 18th century, providing unique programming and world-class concerts performed with historical instruments and styles true to the period.

The theme for the 2011-2012 season is “Reimagining the Past.” For the five programs are on the schedule this year, Nancy Ellis, artistic director, has scouted top talent from around the country.

 “This season’s concerts will appeal to early-music devotees as well as those who have not yet experienced the energy and spontaneity of early music,” Ellis said.

 Ellis added that hearing music written 500 years ago with modern ears is a journey of discovery. “It is a great opportunity to explore the rhythmic intricacies, fascinating harmony and passion of music that is an important part of our past,” she said.

You may Download the PDF file or read it on the web by clicking the image below