“The Codex Faenza and the Tradition of Improvisation”  (Solo Recital - Recorder)
                                                                         

Anonymous (Faenza Codex) - Kyrie “Cunctipotens Genitor Deus”  

Anonymous (Faenza Codex) - Gloria “Cunctipotens Genitor Deus”

Faenza Codex (after Jacopo da Bologna, fl. c. 1340-86) - Aquila Altera                                                                                            

Anonymous (Faenza Codex) - Or sus, vous dormés trop                                                                                            

Osterlund (after Faenza Codex) - Sanctus “Cunctipotens Genitor Deus”                                                                

Osterlund (after Faenza Codex) - Agnus Dei “Cunctipotens Genitor Deus”                                                            

Faenza Codex (after Francesco Landini, c. 1325-97) - Non ara may pieta questa mia dona                                                    

Anonymous (Faenza Codex) - J’ay grant désespoir de ma vie                                                                                    

Anonymous (Faenza Codex) - Benedicamus Domino (I)    

 

“Variations on a Recital”: An Exploration of Variation and Improvisation Across Time  (Solo Recital - Recorder)

Dario Castello (c. 1590-1658) - Concertate In Stil Moderno, Libro II (Venice, 1629): Sonata prima a sopran solo, Sonata seconda a sopran solo 

Pierre Attaingnant (c. 1494-1551) and Claude Gervais - Les Premier (1547) et Troisieme (1547) Livre de Danseries: Basse dance, Tourdion, Pavanne de la Guerre, Galliarde de la Guerre, Almande, Bransles 

Johannes Prioris (c. 1460-1514) - Wolfenbüttel, Herzog-August-Bibliothek, MS Guelf. extrav. 287: Mon cuer et moi d'une alliance
Adrian Willaert (c. 1490-1562) - Melange de chansons (1572): Vous aurez tout ce qui est mien 

Codex Faenza (15th century) - Benedicamus Domino (1), Or sus, vous dormes trop 

Anonymous - Lochamer Liederbuch (15th century): Mit ganzem willen wunsch ich dir 
Conrad Paumann - Fudamentum organisandi (15th century): Mit ganczem willen wunsch ich dir 
Anonymous - Buxheimer Orgelbuch (c. 1450-70): Mit gantzem willen 

Anonymous - Codex Las Huelgas (c. 1300): Plange castella 
Anonymous - Robertsbridge Codex (14th century): Retrove 
Anonymous - MS Florence, Bib. Mediceo-Laurenziana, Pluteo 29.1: Christo sit laus in celestibus 
 

“Antico è Nuovo: di Stile Moderno”  (Ensemble Program - Recorder, Two Violins, Viola, Cello Lute/Archlute, Organ, and Soprano)
 

Vincenzo Ruffo (ca. 1508 - 1587) - La Gamba in basso and soprano

Cipriano de Rore (ca. 1516 - 1565) - Beato mir direi

Cipriano de Rore - Ancor che col partire: divisions by Giovanni Battista Bovicelli (ca. 1550 - 1597) & Giovanni Bassano (ca. 1558 - 1617)

Emilio de' Cavalieri (ca. 1550 - 1602) - Godi Mortal

Cristofano Malvezzi (ca. 1547 - 1599) - Sinfonia a6: intermedio IV, V, & I

Claudio Monteverdi (ca. 1567-1643) - Orfeo (1607) Prologo: Dal mio permesso amato

Dario Castello (ca. 1590-1658) - Sonate Concertante in Stil Moderno, Libro II (1629): Sonata XV

Dario Castello - Sonate Concertante in Stil Moderno, Libro II (1629): Sonata XVI

Claudio Monteverdi - Concerto Il settimo Libro di Madrigali (1619): symphonia & Tempro la cetra 

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P a s t   P r o g r a m s 

“Turlough O’Carolan: A Life in Song” with Ensemble Musica Humana  (Recorder, Irish Whistle, Flute, Soprano/Baritone, Harp, Uilleann Pipes, Percussion

"Turlough O’Carolan (1670-1738) lived and played at a crossroads in Irish musical history. From the last decades of the 17th century into the first half of the 18th, music from continental Europe was transported to countries and colonies abroad. In O'Carolan’s music, High Baroque forms and harmonies make their presence felt alongside earlier musical traditions and tonalities."

Ordo Virtutum with Ensemble Musica Humana  (Vielle, Flute, Organ, Percussion, Male and Female Voices)
 

"Composed by Hildegard von Bingen around 1151, Ordo Virtutum depicts a struggle for the fate of a soul, Anima. The Virtues encourage Anima to stay on a righteous path while the Devil taunts and tempts. The Devil's laughter clashes with Hildegard's gorgeous lines of Plainchant in Ensemble Musica Humana's fully staged production of this battle of wills."

 

“The Legend of Robin Hood: Songs from the Greenwood” with Ensemble Musica Humana  (Soprano, Flute, Recorders, Vielle, Percussion)
 

"Told from the perspective of Marion, a shepherdess who transforms over time into a noblewoman, our program recounts the varied tales of Robin Hood in dramatic reading and song accompanied by instrumental compositions from the 12th through 18th centuries, plus improvisation in period styles. The mythical figure of Robin Hood has undergone stark change from invention to present day, gifting us with a trove of the outlaw-hero’s exploits in story and music. Robin Hood’s relation to the maid Marion in early fables sprang from the same tradition as archetypal medieval narratives of encounters between virginal shepherdesses and knights, with origins in pre-Christian May Day ritual. Today, we present a musical narrative tracing the development of the Robin Hood mythos from archetypes in medieval French pastourelle traditions, through contemporaneous collections of polyphonic music, to English, Sottish, and Irish ballad traditions alive in the 17th and 18th centuries, proposing more than one answer to the centuries-old question of, 'Who was Robin Hood?'"
 

“Sybil of the Rhine” with Ensemble Musica Humana  (Soprano, Vielle, Flute)
 

"Told in Hildegard von Bingen’s own words, this imaginative program simultaneously explores the soundscape in which the celebrated Abbess lived, and the theology that she embraced. Dramatic readings from her “Scivias” with improvised instrumental accompaniment are interspersed with her own compositions and anonymous medieval dances as a means of interpreting her visions musically."

"Surfing the Channel" with Chicago Recorder Quartet 

"'Surfing the Channel' is a musical journey along the shores of England and France. From the innovative rhythms of the French Middle Ages to the distinctive chromaticism of the English Renaissance consort, CRQ tours six centuries along the English Channel, which connects and separates these two lands. Visit Machaut, Boismortier, Purcell, Vaughan Williams, and others. No passport required!"

"Double Take: Musical Pairings Through the Ages" with Chicago Recorder Quartet

"'Double Take: Musical Pairings Through the Ages' explores interesting musical combinations and juxtapositions, finding similarities and uncanny common themes in different musical forms and eras, old and new. You'll experience a traditional Bach prelude and fugue paired with a modern one by Matthias Maute. You'll also hear two settings of the sacred text Da Pacem Domine ("Give peace, Lord"): one beautifully restrained version by early 20th-century composer Arvo Pärt, and the other a florid polyphonic version from the Francoflemish tradition of the 16th century. Chicago Recorder Quartet invites you to listen further to a pairing of two suites by German composers Hans Poser and Sören Sieg giving voice to indigenous musical traditions worlds apart." 

"German Gems" with Chicago Recorder Quartet

"In Chicago Recorder Quartet’s 'German Gems,' early baroque and transitional composers Samuel Scheidt and Georg Engelmann serve as a fanfare and chromatic prelude to baroque masters Bach and Telemann. Lesser-known 20th and 21st century German gems shine as well to round out the program: Hans Poser challenges us to dance to an uneven beat; Matthias Maute contributes soaring tension and intricate detail as he looks to past traditions; and Sören Sieg references the beauty and rhythmic idioms from a distant land in his African Suite."