Viva Vivaldi with Ronn McFarlane
7:30 p.m. Sunday, 10 July 2011
"The songs possess a timeless charm, captured with effortless grace." -Time magazine
Tonight's Program: Viva Vivaldi
The complete works for lute & strings
With the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra
Concerto No. 11 in dm (L'Estro Armonico) RV 565
Allegro, Adagio e spiccato, Allegro, Largo e spiccato, Allegro
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Trio sonata in C for lute & violin RV 82
Allegro non molto, Larghetto, Allegro
Vivaldi
Concerto in G BWV 973
(after Vivaldi concerto RV 299)
Allegro assai, Largo, Allegro
Vivaldi/Bach (1685-1750)
Concerto in D for lute & strings RV 93
Allegro giusto, Largo, Allegro
Vivaldi
AN INTERMISSION
Ciacona
Francesco Corbetta ca.1615-1681
Chi passa
Filippo Azzaiola (fl.1557-1569)
Ciacona
Alessandro Piccinini 1566-ca.1638)
Trio sonata in Gm for lute & violin RV 85
Andante molto, Larghetto, Allegro
Vivaldi
Concerto in Dm for lute, viola d’amore & strings RV 540
Allegrto, Largo, Allegro
Vivaldi
Paris Concerto n. 8 in d minor, RV 127
Allegro, Largo, Allegro
Vivaldi
Ronn McFarlane, lute
Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra
Thomas Gerber, harpsichord, director
Allison Guest Edberg, solo violin & viola d’amore
William Simms, theorbo
Mark Cudek, guitar
Brandi Berry, viola
James Johnston, violin
Christine Kyprianides, cello
Martha Perry, violin
Philip Spray, violone
Program Notes
Vivaldi and the Baroque Concerto
The Baroque concerto owes much of its development and advancement to Vivaldi. At the essence of the genre’s structure is idea of the ritornello. The term refers specifically to the varied restatements of a central idea within a work (i.e. a refrain) and more generally to the style cultivated by Vivaldi and others in the Baroque known as ritornello form. In the Baroque concerto, these reoccurring statements each alternate with modulating episodes with freer character in which the soloist(s) dominate the overall texture. Treatment of the ritornello within the works varies greatly among composers: whereas Bach and other Germans often integrated the ideas of the refrain, either complete or in part, as accompaniment to the episodes, in contrast Vivaldi relied heavily on exploring only specific ideas of the complete refrain and regularly ignored or altered other elements of the ritornello during repetitions. In addition, Vivaldi’s works advanced the standard Italianate concerto scheme of three movements in a fast-slow-fast pattern. Often only the opening and closing fast movements display the stereotypical full use of ritornellos. Slow moments may exhibit some sense of ritornello form, but are often binary, variations, or other through-composed forms.
Concerto, RV 93
Vivaldi wrote twenty-two works considered chamber concertos with each scored for three to six instruments and basso continuo. Only one of the chamber concertos, RV 93, is scored for string instruments without any woodwinds. Along with the predominant lute, it features two violins. While often performed and recorded today with full sections of orchestral violins, this distinct subgenre is actually intended to be performed with solo instrument. As true chamber concertos, Vivaldi’s approach is unique among Italian composers, but French and German exemplars exist, most notably Bach’s third and sixth “Brandenburg” concertos.
Dedicated to Count Johann Joseph Wrtby of Bohemia, RV 93 was likely composed in Prague during the earliest years of the 1730s. The violins, while significant to the overall texture of RV 93, generally provide a more ripieno function throughout. In each of the work’s brief movements, Vivaldi exploits the lute’s unique timbres and stunning ability to play arpeggios. The Allegro giusto presents a tuneful ritornello opening contrasted with a more lyrical motif in the minor mode. This kind of thematic differentiation shows a more galante and forward looking approach on the part of the composer. The lute takes up the same material, which unfolds through the expected alternation between soloist and strings. The serene slow movement, in the major mode, has made this work exceedingly popular with guitarists, and as one commentator has remarked, this movement is “threatening to displace the Pachelbel Canon as the Baroque wedding favorite.” With lute passagework over a sustained violin accompaniment and bass, it is among the most enchanting movements in the Baroque repertoire. A final Allegro brings the work to a spirited close with its lilting compound meter.
Trios, RV 82 & 85
It is likely that Vivaldi composed the Trios for violin and lute in G minor, RV 82 and C major, RV 85 (along with the D major lute Concerto, RV 93) while residing in Bohemia during the early 1730s. Vivaldi’s presence in Bohemia has always been speculative, but the autograph scores for these works, written on an unusual central European paper and carrying the dedication “per sua Eccellenza Signore Wrttbij” (most likely Count Johann Joseph Von Wrtby (1669-1734), a noble and court officer in Prague), provides important evidence that the composer was likely in or near Prague from 1730 to 1732. Both of these trios follow a three movement, fast-slow-fast, scheme. These works are a departure from Vivaldi’s earlier trios which generally followed the form of the church sonata with its more suite-like combination of dance movements. The manuscripts for RV 82 and 85 carry the numbering 2 and 5 respectively suggesting that they may be a surviving pair of works originally from a set of six trios dedicated to Wrtby.
Concerto RV 540
Uniquely scored for lute and viola d’amore with strings and continuo, RV 540 is one of four concertos Vivaldi composed for a special musical fête at the at the Ospedale della Pietà that took place on March 21, 1740. The occasion was a visit from Friedrich Christian, the seventeen year old Prince-Elector of Saxony and Poland. The manuscript (a partial autograph) of the four concertos was presented to the Prince and the copy, which today survives in Dresden, remains the only source for these works.
Vivaldi, along with Bach, was among the earliest composers to write extensively for the viola d’amore, an instrument that has not only a playable set of five, six, or seven strings, but also an additional set located below the main strings and the fingerboard which are not played directly but rather vibrate in sympathy with those played by the bow. While the presence of sympathetic strings are now thought of as characteristic of the viola d’amore, instruments without sympathetic strings may have been common during the seventeenth and first half of the eighteenth centuries. The two types of violas d’amore are thought to have essentially co- existed during the early eighteenth century.
In addition to RV 540, Vivaldi also employs the viola d’amore as a solo instrument in his chamber concerto, RV 95, as soloists for some seven ensemble concertos, as an obbligato instrument for an aria in the oratorio Juditha triumphans, in two liturgical settings of the Nisi Dominus, RV 608 and RV 803, and in the first version of his opera Tito Manlio. The concerto RV 540 scores the lute and d’amore in dialogue in the fast movements, but in the
slow Largo, the viola d’amore is featured, accompanied by light arpeggiation from the lute and graceful accompaniment from the violins.
-Daniel Abraham American University Conductor, The Bach Sinfonia
GRAMMY-nominated lutenist, Ronn McFarlane strives to bring the lute - the most popular instrument of the Renaissance - into today’s musical mainstream and make it accessible to a wider audience.
Born in West Virginia, Ronn spent his early years in Maryland. At thirteen, upon hearing “Wipeout” by the Surfaris, he fell wildly in love with music and taught himself to play on a "cranky sixteen-dollar steel-string guitar.” Ronn kept at it, playing blues and rock music on the electric guitar while studying classical guitar.
He graduated with honors from Shenandoah Conservatory and continued guitar studies at Peabody Conservatory before turning his full attention and energy to the lute in 1978. The following year, Mr. McFarlane began to perform solo recitals on the lute and became a member of the Baltimore Consort. Since then, he has toured throughout the United States, Canada and Europe with the Baltimore Consort and as a soloist.
McFarlane was a faculty member of the Peabody Conservatory from 1984 to 1995, teaching lute and lute-related subjects. In 1996, Mr. McFarlane was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Music from Shenandoah Conservatory for his achievements in bringing the lute and its music to the world. He has over 25 recordings on the Dorian label, including solo albums, lute songs, recordings with the Baltimore Consort, and Blame Not My Lute, a collection of Elizabethan lute music and poetry, with spoken word by Robert Aubry Davis..
Recently, Ronn has been engaged in composing new music for the lute, building on the tradition of the lutenist/composers of past centuries. His original compositions are the focus of his solo CD, Indigo Road, which received a GRAMMY Award Nomination for Best Classical Crossover Album in 2009. His newest CD release, One Morning, features "Ayreheart," a new ensemble brought together to perform Ronn's new music.
Noted for the beauty of her playing as well as for her versatility, violinist Allison Guest Edberg is one of the preeminent performers of baroque and modern violin. She has been praised by The Chicago Sun Times as “impeccable, with unerring intonation and an austere beauty”. Equally at home as an orchestral and chamber musician, she also performs regularly as a violist.
Ms. Edberg has performed throughout North America, collaborating with many of the top baroque ensembles, including Chatham Baroque, Ensemble Galilei, Apollo's Fire, the Foundling Baroque Orchestra, the Washington Bach Consort, La Monica, and The Vivaldi Project. She is frequently featured at the Bloomington Early Music Festival and the Indianapolis Early Music Festival. Her discography includes recordings for the Eclectra, Delos, and Centaur CD labels.
Highly regarded as a teacher, Ms. Edberg has served on the faculties of Indiana State University, DePauw University, Ohio State, the Interlochen Arts Camp and Lawrence University. She is currently the concertmaster of the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, a member of Ensemble Voltaire, a founding member of Olde Friends, and Education Director for the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra.
Ms. Edberg studied with Stanley Ritchie at the Indiana University Early Music Institute where she was the recipient of the Willi Apel Scholarship in baroque violin. She received a Master of Music degree from the University of Michigan where she studied with Camilla Wicks. Her Bachelor’s degree is from the Peabody Institute with Daniel Heifetz.
William Simms is an active performer of early music. He appears regularly with the Bach Sinfonia, Apollo’s Fire, Harmonious Blacksmith, The Baroque Chamber Orchestra of Colorado and The Folger Consort. He has performed numerous operas, cantatas and oratorios with such ensembles as The Washington National Opera, The Cleveland Opera, Opera Lafayette, The Washington Bach Consort and American Opera Theatre. Venues include The National Cathedral, The Museum of Fine Arts Boston, The Library of Congress, The Corcoran Gallery, The Kennedy Center and The Barns at Wolftrap. He has toured and recorded with the Baltimore Consort as well as Apollo’s Fire. Mr. Simms received a Bachelor of Music from the College of Wooster and a Master of Music from Peabody Conservatory. He serves on the faculties of Mount St. Mary’s University, and Hood College, where he is founder and director of the Hood Early Music Ensemble. He formerly served on the faculty at Interlochen Arts Camp. He has recorded for the Dorian, Centaur, and Eclectra labels.
Thomas Gerber, harpsichord, is a founding member of two period instrument ensembles: Ensemble Voltaire (formerly Ensemble Ouabache), a chamber music group formed in 1987 which is ensemble-in-residnce at Trinity Episcopal Church, Indianapolis; and the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, founded in 1996, which maintains residencies at the Christel DeHaan Fine Arts Center at the University of Indianapolis and at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Indianapolis.
He presently serves as chief financial officer on the board of IndyBaroque Music, Inc.
Gerber is assistant professor of music and humanities at Marian University, Indianapolis, and adjunct professor at Butler University, where he teaches harpsichord, and the University of Indianapolis, where he teaches music history and harpsichord and coaches the student Baroque Ensemble.
He is harpsichordist of the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra; the liturgical early music ensemble Musik Ekklesia; and Anaphantasia, an ensemble based in Ann Arbor which specializes in Italian chamber music of the 17th century.
Recent appearances have included the Early Music Festival of St. Louis and the Bloomington Early Music Festival, as well as concerts with the period instruments ensembles Catacoustic Consort (Cincinnati), Callipygian Players (Chicago), Ars Antique Chicago, Bourbon Baroque (Louisville), and Haydn by the Lake (Evanston). For the past three years he has been harpsichord continuo player in the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra's "Messiah." He can be heard on the Dorian, Catalpa Classics, Concordia, and Sono Luminus labels.
Summers have found him studying and performing at places such as the Aspen Music Festival, the Accademia Internacional del Verano on the island of Mallorca (Spain), and the Oberlin Baroque Performance Institute.
The Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, Barthold Kuijken, Artistic Director, begins its 15th season in 2011-12 as the period instruments orchestra of Indianapolis and central Indiana.
Barthold Kuijken, world renowned Baroque flutist, is also much sought after by European ensembles as a conductor. He teaches at the Royal Conservatories of both Brussels and The Hague and visits the United States annually to conduct "his American orchestra," the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra.
The IBO was born in 1995: local period instruments players gathering to read through Baroque orchestral literature. Its first concert, in 1996, was sponsored by Christ Church Cathedral, Episcopal, and led by acclaimed Baroque violinist Stanley Ritchie.
The first Artistic Director of the IBO was British Baroque violinist John Holloway; it was during those years that the organization, under the dedicated leadership of violinist Lisa Brooks, incorporated and received 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status.
In 2004, the IBO and Ensemble Voltaire collaborated in the formation of the umbrella organization IndyBaroque Music, Inc., which oversees the operations of the two performing ensembles. IBMI's office is in the Athenaeum and is run by Executive Director Martinlow Spaulding.
The IBO serves the entire Indianapolis area through its two residencies: on the south side, at the Christel DeHaan Fine Arts Center of the University of Indianapolis; and on the north side, at St. Paul's Episcopal Church. The orchestra has collaborated over the years with numerous arts organizations, including the Indianapolis Children's Choir, Dance Kaleidoscope, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, Ronen Ensemble, the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir, the Men and Boys Choir of Christ Church Cathedral, and the Indiana University Pro Arte Singers.
Within the last two years members of the IBO have worked with Indianapolis Early Music in the presentation of in-school programs and has recently undertaken a community partnership with Harshman Middle School, promoting IndyBaroque Music's mission "to educate and inspire" audiences of all ages.
"The songs possess a timeless charm, captured with effortless grace." -Time magazine
Tonight's Program: Viva Vivaldi
The complete works for lute & strings
With the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra
Concerto No. 11 in dm (L'Estro Armonico) RV 565
Allegro, Adagio e spiccato, Allegro, Largo e spiccato, Allegro
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Trio sonata in C for lute & violin RV 82
Allegro non molto, Larghetto, Allegro
Vivaldi
Concerto in G BWV 973
(after Vivaldi concerto RV 299)
Allegro assai, Largo, Allegro
Vivaldi/Bach (1685-1750)
Concerto in D for lute & strings RV 93
Allegro giusto, Largo, Allegro
Vivaldi
AN INTERMISSION
Ciacona
Francesco Corbetta ca.1615-1681
Chi passa
Filippo Azzaiola (fl.1557-1569)
Ciacona
Alessandro Piccinini 1566-ca.1638)
Trio sonata in Gm for lute & violin RV 85
Andante molto, Larghetto, Allegro
Vivaldi
Concerto in Dm for lute, viola d’amore & strings RV 540
Allegrto, Largo, Allegro
Vivaldi
Paris Concerto n. 8 in d minor, RV 127
Allegro, Largo, Allegro
Vivaldi
Ronn McFarlane, lute
Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra
Thomas Gerber, harpsichord, director
Allison Guest Edberg, solo violin & viola d’amore
William Simms, theorbo
Mark Cudek, guitar
Brandi Berry, viola
James Johnston, violin
Christine Kyprianides, cello
Martha Perry, violin
Philip Spray, violone
Program Notes
Vivaldi and the Baroque Concerto
The Baroque concerto owes much of its development and advancement to Vivaldi. At the essence of the genre’s structure is idea of the ritornello. The term refers specifically to the varied restatements of a central idea within a work (i.e. a refrain) and more generally to the style cultivated by Vivaldi and others in the Baroque known as ritornello form. In the Baroque concerto, these reoccurring statements each alternate with modulating episodes with freer character in which the soloist(s) dominate the overall texture. Treatment of the ritornello within the works varies greatly among composers: whereas Bach and other Germans often integrated the ideas of the refrain, either complete or in part, as accompaniment to the episodes, in contrast Vivaldi relied heavily on exploring only specific ideas of the complete refrain and regularly ignored or altered other elements of the ritornello during repetitions. In addition, Vivaldi’s works advanced the standard Italianate concerto scheme of three movements in a fast-slow-fast pattern. Often only the opening and closing fast movements display the stereotypical full use of ritornellos. Slow moments may exhibit some sense of ritornello form, but are often binary, variations, or other through-composed forms.
Concerto, RV 93
Vivaldi wrote twenty-two works considered chamber concertos with each scored for three to six instruments and basso continuo. Only one of the chamber concertos, RV 93, is scored for string instruments without any woodwinds. Along with the predominant lute, it features two violins. While often performed and recorded today with full sections of orchestral violins, this distinct subgenre is actually intended to be performed with solo instrument. As true chamber concertos, Vivaldi’s approach is unique among Italian composers, but French and German exemplars exist, most notably Bach’s third and sixth “Brandenburg” concertos.
Dedicated to Count Johann Joseph Wrtby of Bohemia, RV 93 was likely composed in Prague during the earliest years of the 1730s. The violins, while significant to the overall texture of RV 93, generally provide a more ripieno function throughout. In each of the work’s brief movements, Vivaldi exploits the lute’s unique timbres and stunning ability to play arpeggios. The Allegro giusto presents a tuneful ritornello opening contrasted with a more lyrical motif in the minor mode. This kind of thematic differentiation shows a more galante and forward looking approach on the part of the composer. The lute takes up the same material, which unfolds through the expected alternation between soloist and strings. The serene slow movement, in the major mode, has made this work exceedingly popular with guitarists, and as one commentator has remarked, this movement is “threatening to displace the Pachelbel Canon as the Baroque wedding favorite.” With lute passagework over a sustained violin accompaniment and bass, it is among the most enchanting movements in the Baroque repertoire. A final Allegro brings the work to a spirited close with its lilting compound meter.
Trios, RV 82 & 85
It is likely that Vivaldi composed the Trios for violin and lute in G minor, RV 82 and C major, RV 85 (along with the D major lute Concerto, RV 93) while residing in Bohemia during the early 1730s. Vivaldi’s presence in Bohemia has always been speculative, but the autograph scores for these works, written on an unusual central European paper and carrying the dedication “per sua Eccellenza Signore Wrttbij” (most likely Count Johann Joseph Von Wrtby (1669-1734), a noble and court officer in Prague), provides important evidence that the composer was likely in or near Prague from 1730 to 1732. Both of these trios follow a three movement, fast-slow-fast, scheme. These works are a departure from Vivaldi’s earlier trios which generally followed the form of the church sonata with its more suite-like combination of dance movements. The manuscripts for RV 82 and 85 carry the numbering 2 and 5 respectively suggesting that they may be a surviving pair of works originally from a set of six trios dedicated to Wrtby.
Concerto RV 540
Uniquely scored for lute and viola d’amore with strings and continuo, RV 540 is one of four concertos Vivaldi composed for a special musical fête at the at the Ospedale della Pietà that took place on March 21, 1740. The occasion was a visit from Friedrich Christian, the seventeen year old Prince-Elector of Saxony and Poland. The manuscript (a partial autograph) of the four concertos was presented to the Prince and the copy, which today survives in Dresden, remains the only source for these works.
Vivaldi, along with Bach, was among the earliest composers to write extensively for the viola d’amore, an instrument that has not only a playable set of five, six, or seven strings, but also an additional set located below the main strings and the fingerboard which are not played directly but rather vibrate in sympathy with those played by the bow. While the presence of sympathetic strings are now thought of as characteristic of the viola d’amore, instruments without sympathetic strings may have been common during the seventeenth and first half of the eighteenth centuries. The two types of violas d’amore are thought to have essentially co- existed during the early eighteenth century.
In addition to RV 540, Vivaldi also employs the viola d’amore as a solo instrument in his chamber concerto, RV 95, as soloists for some seven ensemble concertos, as an obbligato instrument for an aria in the oratorio Juditha triumphans, in two liturgical settings of the Nisi Dominus, RV 608 and RV 803, and in the first version of his opera Tito Manlio. The concerto RV 540 scores the lute and d’amore in dialogue in the fast movements, but in the
slow Largo, the viola d’amore is featured, accompanied by light arpeggiation from the lute and graceful accompaniment from the violins.
-Daniel Abraham American University Conductor, The Bach Sinfonia
GRAMMY-nominated lutenist, Ronn McFarlane strives to bring the lute - the most popular instrument of the Renaissance - into today’s musical mainstream and make it accessible to a wider audience.
Born in West Virginia, Ronn spent his early years in Maryland. At thirteen, upon hearing “Wipeout” by the Surfaris, he fell wildly in love with music and taught himself to play on a "cranky sixteen-dollar steel-string guitar.” Ronn kept at it, playing blues and rock music on the electric guitar while studying classical guitar.
He graduated with honors from Shenandoah Conservatory and continued guitar studies at Peabody Conservatory before turning his full attention and energy to the lute in 1978. The following year, Mr. McFarlane began to perform solo recitals on the lute and became a member of the Baltimore Consort. Since then, he has toured throughout the United States, Canada and Europe with the Baltimore Consort and as a soloist.
McFarlane was a faculty member of the Peabody Conservatory from 1984 to 1995, teaching lute and lute-related subjects. In 1996, Mr. McFarlane was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Music from Shenandoah Conservatory for his achievements in bringing the lute and its music to the world. He has over 25 recordings on the Dorian label, including solo albums, lute songs, recordings with the Baltimore Consort, and Blame Not My Lute, a collection of Elizabethan lute music and poetry, with spoken word by Robert Aubry Davis..
Recently, Ronn has been engaged in composing new music for the lute, building on the tradition of the lutenist/composers of past centuries. His original compositions are the focus of his solo CD, Indigo Road, which received a GRAMMY Award Nomination for Best Classical Crossover Album in 2009. His newest CD release, One Morning, features "Ayreheart," a new ensemble brought together to perform Ronn's new music.
Noted for the beauty of her playing as well as for her versatility, violinist Allison Guest Edberg is one of the preeminent performers of baroque and modern violin. She has been praised by The Chicago Sun Times as “impeccable, with unerring intonation and an austere beauty”. Equally at home as an orchestral and chamber musician, she also performs regularly as a violist.
Ms. Edberg has performed throughout North America, collaborating with many of the top baroque ensembles, including Chatham Baroque, Ensemble Galilei, Apollo's Fire, the Foundling Baroque Orchestra, the Washington Bach Consort, La Monica, and The Vivaldi Project. She is frequently featured at the Bloomington Early Music Festival and the Indianapolis Early Music Festival. Her discography includes recordings for the Eclectra, Delos, and Centaur CD labels.
Highly regarded as a teacher, Ms. Edberg has served on the faculties of Indiana State University, DePauw University, Ohio State, the Interlochen Arts Camp and Lawrence University. She is currently the concertmaster of the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, a member of Ensemble Voltaire, a founding member of Olde Friends, and Education Director for the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra.
Ms. Edberg studied with Stanley Ritchie at the Indiana University Early Music Institute where she was the recipient of the Willi Apel Scholarship in baroque violin. She received a Master of Music degree from the University of Michigan where she studied with Camilla Wicks. Her Bachelor’s degree is from the Peabody Institute with Daniel Heifetz.
William Simms is an active performer of early music. He appears regularly with the Bach Sinfonia, Apollo’s Fire, Harmonious Blacksmith, The Baroque Chamber Orchestra of Colorado and The Folger Consort. He has performed numerous operas, cantatas and oratorios with such ensembles as The Washington National Opera, The Cleveland Opera, Opera Lafayette, The Washington Bach Consort and American Opera Theatre. Venues include The National Cathedral, The Museum of Fine Arts Boston, The Library of Congress, The Corcoran Gallery, The Kennedy Center and The Barns at Wolftrap. He has toured and recorded with the Baltimore Consort as well as Apollo’s Fire. Mr. Simms received a Bachelor of Music from the College of Wooster and a Master of Music from Peabody Conservatory. He serves on the faculties of Mount St. Mary’s University, and Hood College, where he is founder and director of the Hood Early Music Ensemble. He formerly served on the faculty at Interlochen Arts Camp. He has recorded for the Dorian, Centaur, and Eclectra labels.
Thomas Gerber, harpsichord, is a founding member of two period instrument ensembles: Ensemble Voltaire (formerly Ensemble Ouabache), a chamber music group formed in 1987 which is ensemble-in-residnce at Trinity Episcopal Church, Indianapolis; and the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, founded in 1996, which maintains residencies at the Christel DeHaan Fine Arts Center at the University of Indianapolis and at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Indianapolis.
He presently serves as chief financial officer on the board of IndyBaroque Music, Inc.
Gerber is assistant professor of music and humanities at Marian University, Indianapolis, and adjunct professor at Butler University, where he teaches harpsichord, and the University of Indianapolis, where he teaches music history and harpsichord and coaches the student Baroque Ensemble.
He is harpsichordist of the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra; the liturgical early music ensemble Musik Ekklesia; and Anaphantasia, an ensemble based in Ann Arbor which specializes in Italian chamber music of the 17th century.
Recent appearances have included the Early Music Festival of St. Louis and the Bloomington Early Music Festival, as well as concerts with the period instruments ensembles Catacoustic Consort (Cincinnati), Callipygian Players (Chicago), Ars Antique Chicago, Bourbon Baroque (Louisville), and Haydn by the Lake (Evanston). For the past three years he has been harpsichord continuo player in the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra's "Messiah." He can be heard on the Dorian, Catalpa Classics, Concordia, and Sono Luminus labels.
Summers have found him studying and performing at places such as the Aspen Music Festival, the Accademia Internacional del Verano on the island of Mallorca (Spain), and the Oberlin Baroque Performance Institute.
The Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, Barthold Kuijken, Artistic Director, begins its 15th season in 2011-12 as the period instruments orchestra of Indianapolis and central Indiana.
Barthold Kuijken, world renowned Baroque flutist, is also much sought after by European ensembles as a conductor. He teaches at the Royal Conservatories of both Brussels and The Hague and visits the United States annually to conduct "his American orchestra," the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra.
The IBO was born in 1995: local period instruments players gathering to read through Baroque orchestral literature. Its first concert, in 1996, was sponsored by Christ Church Cathedral, Episcopal, and led by acclaimed Baroque violinist Stanley Ritchie.
The first Artistic Director of the IBO was British Baroque violinist John Holloway; it was during those years that the organization, under the dedicated leadership of violinist Lisa Brooks, incorporated and received 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status.
In 2004, the IBO and Ensemble Voltaire collaborated in the formation of the umbrella organization IndyBaroque Music, Inc., which oversees the operations of the two performing ensembles. IBMI's office is in the Athenaeum and is run by Executive Director Martinlow Spaulding.
The IBO serves the entire Indianapolis area through its two residencies: on the south side, at the Christel DeHaan Fine Arts Center of the University of Indianapolis; and on the north side, at St. Paul's Episcopal Church. The orchestra has collaborated over the years with numerous arts organizations, including the Indianapolis Children's Choir, Dance Kaleidoscope, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, Ronen Ensemble, the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir, the Men and Boys Choir of Christ Church Cathedral, and the Indiana University Pro Arte Singers.
Within the last two years members of the IBO have worked with Indianapolis Early Music in the presentation of in-school programs and has recently undertaken a community partnership with Harshman Middle School, promoting IndyBaroque Music's mission "to educate and inspire" audiences of all ages.
