Howard Mayer Brown International Early Music Series
Founded in 1981, the three-concert Howard Mayer Brown International Early Music Series highlights artists dedicated to historical performance practice.(All concerts take place in Mandel Hall unless otherwise noted)
Friday / October 30 / 7:30 pm
Christopher Taylor, piano
Pre-concert lecture by Thomas Christensen, professor of music
J.S. Bach: Goldberg Variations, BWV 988
Pianist Christopher Taylor amazed a packed house during the 2008
Messiaen Festival with his boundless energy and intense delivery. Not
one to shy away from monumental solo works, Taylor returns with a fresh
take on Bach's grand Goldberg Variations, presented on the world's only
dual-manual Steinway piano, built during the 1920s and refurbished
especially for Taylor. This is a rare opportunity to hear and see this
work performed like never before.
Friday / January 22 / 7:30 pm
Europa Galante
Fabio Biondi, conductor/violin
Frank Theuns, flute
Telemann: Ouverture à quatre
Telemann: Concerto per flauto, violino, cello ed archi
Sammartini: Sinfonia JC57
Vivaldi: The Four Seasons
Based on the orchestras of Baroque Italy, the 15-piece Europa Galante
uses period instruments to bring the richness of a 17th-century string
ensemble to life. Under the direction of master violinist Fabio Biondi,
the orchestra closes its program with one of its specialties--Vivaldi's
ageless Four Seasons, never performed during the 28-year history of the Early Music Series.
Friday / April 23 / 7:30 pm
Trio Mediæval
Pre-concert lecture by Anne Robertson, Claire Dux Swift Distinguished
Service Professor of Music
Rockefeller Memorial Chapel
Fragments: A Worcester Ladymass
Norway's Grammy-nominated Trio Mediæval has developed a fervent
following in the chamber music world with its unparalleled mix of
medieval English and French songs, contemporary works and traditional
Scandinavian ballad. After a successful Rockefeller Chapel appearance
in 2004, the trio returns to Chicago with a modern recreation of a
13th-century vocal mass.