Sunday, Nov 12, 2017, 3:30 pm
Musicians of The Old
Post Road
BACH’S DRESDEN CIRCLE
Suzanne Stumpf, traverso
Sarah Darling & Jesse Irons, violin Marcia Cassidy, viola
Daniel Ryan, cello
Michael Bahmann, harpsichord
Bach’s Dresden Circle explores the opulent, trend-setting musical culture of the Dresden court admired by Johann Sebastian Bach. The musical style cultivated there emphasized melodic beauty and naturalness over baroque complexity, and Bach enjoyed taking his eldest son to hear “the lovely Dresden ditties.” This program features dramatic concertos and sonatas by the virtuoso instrumentalists and composers who rubbed shoulders with Bach, including Vinci, Hasse, Pisendel, Buffardin and others.
Founded by Artistic Directors Stumpf and Ryan, the ensemble takes its name from its venues bringing period instrument performances to historical buildings such as meetinghouses, churches, mansions, and museums. The venues trace the route of the old Boston Post Road, the first thoroughfare connecting Boston and New York City beginning in the 1670s. Their repertoire stretches from the late 17th to the mid-19th century, the exact period of the Old Post Road’s importance. The ensemble’s programming takes its audience on a journey full of history, imagination, and discovery. The ensemble specializes in finding and premiering works that have remained unheard for centuries, presenting these works in fascinating thematic programs. Stumpf and Ryan work together to discover and handpick repertoire from lesser-known, yet outstanding composers efforts that have garnered programming awards from Chamber Music America, and the US-Mexico Fund for Culture.
“Performances exuded zest, polish, and abundant care”
— Jeremy Eichler, Boston Globe
“Musicians of the Old Post Road match visceral musical excitement with intellectual rigor”
— Boston Musical Intelligencer
Sunday, March 11, 2018, 3:30 pm
Les Bostonades: Amours Contrariées
Cantatas of Clérambault
and Rameau
Zachary Wilder, tenor
Teddie Hwang, traverso
Sarah Darling, violin
Emily Walhout, viola da gamba
Akiko Sato, harpsichord
This program features cantatas and instrumental music by two of the most important French Baroque composers, Louis-Nicolas Clérambault and Jean-Philippe Rameau. Clérambault’s musical career included organist positions at several churches in Paris and at the Maison Royale de Saint-Cyr, near Versailles, as well as the position of music advisor to Madame de Maintenon, the second wife of King Louis XIV. He had five books of cantatas published between 1710 and 1726; many of his cantatas, such as the two to be performed in this program, Orphée (1710) and Pirâme et Tisbé (1713), were inspired by classical subjects and relate the desperate passion of separated lovers who can reunite only after death. Rameau was not only a leading composer of the 18th century, but also a very influential music theorist. This program will include his cantata L’Impatience (c. 1715–22) and also the Cinquème concert from his only instrumental chamber output, Pièces de clavecin en concert (1741).
Les Bostonades performances have been described as “the most engaging chamber music playing...[a] generous, voluptuous sound...well delineated, [and with] a poignancy of emotion.”
— Early Music America
Zachary Wilder “was a great Alexander, nonchalantly confident in voice and bearing, his bright tenor running through the character’s roulades with easygoing swagger.”
— Matthew Guerreri, Boston Globe
Sunday, April 8, 2018, 3:30 pm
The Orfeo Duo
The Romantic Salon
Vita Wallace, violin
Ishmael Wallace, fortepiano
Featuring Beethoven’s “Spring Sonata,” lieder, duets, poetry, and letters by Schubert, Mendelssohn, Clara Schumann, Goethe, Bettina von Arnim, and others
Vita and Ishmael Wallace, the Orfeo Duo, are known for their close rapport with each other, and for their power of communication with audiences. The siblings have performed together on the violin and piano since 1984, giving concerts in Europe and throughout the Americas. They have recorded complete sets of the sonatas of Beethoven and Schumann on period instruments. Since 2003, Vita and Ishmael have directed What a Neighborhood!, a series of concerts and gatherings inspired by nineteenth-century salon and concert performance practice. The duo has been awarded four Chamber Music America residency grants as well as the 2011 Goddard Riverside Good Neighbor Award.
“Having performed together since childhood, their sense of ensemble and communication is impeccable…. These are singularly passionate performances.”
— Early Music America