Houston Early MusicNEWS RELEASE
Houston Early Music
Who: LUCIDARIUM
When: 4:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Where: First Unitarian Universalist Church 5200 Fannin
Tickets: 713-432-1744
MUSIC AND POETRY OF THE JEWS OF RENAISSANCE ITALY
Houston Early Music will present the acclaimed Italian ensemble Lucidarium in a performance of La Istoria de Purim: Music and Poetry of the Jews of Renaissance Italy on Sunday, May 4. The program, which won the European Association for Jewish Culture award for musical creation in 2004, is a reconstruction of the soundscape that would have accompanied a typical Northern Jewish Italian family through the liturgical year and life cycle. It combines sung poetry in Giudeo-Italian, Yiddish and Hebrew, traditional liturgical and paraliturgical music, and the lively songs and dances that would have been used to celebrate life’s transitions. The performance will be at First Unitarian Universalist Church, 5200 Fannin, at 4:00 p.m.
Founded in 1991, Lucidarium specializes in medieval and early Renaissance music with a special emphasis on unknown or little-known repertoires. The combination of meticulous preparation and creativity, which has opened up new perspectives in historical performance practice, has brought both popular and critical acclaim to the ensemble. Lucidarium has toured extensively throughout Europe and North America and has performed in most of the important European early music festivals, including: Festival van Oude Muziek (Utrecht,) Festival Divina Musica Musica e Poesia a San Maurizio (Milan) and Freunde alter Musik Basel. Recently the ensemble won an unprecedented second EAJC award, as well as a grant from the Rothschild Foundation, for the creation and recording of Ain neues Lid, a project dedicated to the music of the German-speaking Jews from the 16th century.
There will be a preconcert talk at 3:00 p.m. by Avery Gosfield, Co-director of Lucidarium.
Tickets are $30 for general admission, $25 for seniors, $10 for students, under 15 free. Tickets may be purchased at the door or by calling 713-432-1744.
Houston Early Music is funded in part by grants from the City of Houston
through Houston Arts Alliance.
LUCIDARIUM
Gloria Moretti: voice
Viva Biancaluna Biffi: voice, viola d’arco
Enrico Fink: voice, narrator
Avery Gosfield: recorder, pipe and tabor
Marco Ferrari: recorder, dulcian, shawm, double flute
Francis Biggi: viola da mano, viola da penna, cetra, colascione
Massimiliano Dragoni: hammer dulcimer, percussion
PROGRAM
Prayer for the Removal of the Torah from the Ark (En Kamokha/Shema Israel)
Les Caterines / La Cara Cossa (La Folia)
Dos lid fun der sreyfe in Venedig
Anello
All Creatures in Heaven and on Earth (Kol Berue)
Bofo-Bukh
Buovo d’Antona
Moresca (sull’ Aria d’ottava)
Ishena at ani geor venodad
Tu dormi, io veglio e vo perdendo i passi
Tu dormi, io veglio a la tempesta e vento
Pass’e mezo a la bolognesa
Saltarello a la bolognesa
Songs for the Celebration of Purim
La Cansonetta di Purim
La Istoria de Purim io ve racconto Moresca (sull’ Aria d’ottava)
Meghillat Esther
Songs for the Celebration of Passover
Ma Nishtana/Avadim Hainu
Fuggi, fuggi, fuggi (Il Ballo di Mantova)
Khad Gadya / Un Caprett
Khad Gadya, Khad Gadya
