the festival music society of indiana's

All events  will be presented at:

The Indiana History Center Theater , 450 W. Ohio St 

This new & wonderful facility is located between the Canal Walk & West Street. Free parking is entered from New York Street (one block north of Ohio)

Fri. June 24:   Istanpitta

"Chevrefoil". . . .The Medieval Tale of Tristan and Isolde.  The Istanpitta Ensemble was formed in 1994 to present medieval dance and song in the manner that musicians of the time (who were somewhat low on the social scale) might have performed them when playing for their next meal as they traveled across Europe. This includes incorporating Arabic styles that were possibly familiar to the medieval ear due to the occupation of Spain by the Moors. Istanpitta's interpretations of these songs and dances are meant to represent the dynamic historical reality of the "musician in the field", not static literary versions so often presented.

Tonight's program will include an ancient Lament di Tristano based on the tale written about 1160 by Marie de France, lively dances of the 13th Century, and an extensive glance at the lovely and heartfelt poetry and song of the time.

Sun. June 26: Cappella Romana

"Music of the Three Romes". Cappella Romana is dedicated to combining scholarship with passion in its exploration of the music of the Christian East and West. It has been garnering international critical acclaim for its brilliant, innovative programming and recordings. Experience majestic, radiant, and ceremonial music from three Imperial Cities, each called Rome.

Tonight you will be taken on a triple Roman holiday: to Old Rome (Italy), to New Rome (Constantinople) and to the Third Rome (Moscow). The first half will include radiant music for the Epiphany in Old Rome and in New Rome, featuring an 11th Century Old Rome mass and Byzantine chant of the 15th Century. Then Cappella Romana will explore Easter in the Third Rome with ethereal 17th and 18th Century chant and motets for the Paschal Divine Liturgy.

 

Fri.   July 8 :   Seattle Baroque

"Bach Harpsichord Concerti Plus!". The goal of Seattle Baroque is to awaken contemporary audiences to the vitality of 17th and 18th Century music through historically informed and dynamic performances of both familiar and unknown works. They hope to foster an awareness and appreciation of this music, which not only illuminates past eras, but also provides a unique lens through which to view our own. Byron Schenkman, artistic director, and Ingrid Matthews, his long-time musical partner, dazzle audiences with their mastery of the harpsichord and baroque violin.

Mr. Schenkman, arguably America's finest harpsichordist, will treat us to three masterpieces from the pen of  J. S. Bach - the taut, thorny Concerto in F Minor, the outstandingly lyrical Concerto in A Major and the towering Concerto in D Minor.  The ensemble will also present Jean-Philippe Rameau's elegant Premier Concert in C minor while Schenkman will play  George Frideric Handel's high-spirited Suite in G Major for harpsichord solo.

Sun.   July 10 :   Seattle Baroque

"Chamber Music from the Library of J. S. Bach".  Ingrid Matthews, Byron Schenkman and other members of the outsanding Seattle Baroque Ensemble invite us to experience the personal taste of 18th Century Germany's greatest composer, J. S. Bach in this program drawn from works in his own library. Not only will we hear works that Bach cared to possess, but we will have the unusual opportunity to savor how other composers of eminent renown influenced him.

Trio Sonatas, the currency of refined musical conversation in the Baroque Era (as string quartets were to the Classical Era), make up this evening of delights for all lovers of music. Works by Italy's famed Arcangelo Corelli (the only musican buried "with the gods" in Rome's Pantheon), by French King Louis XIV's esteemed court composer Francois Couperin (called "The Great" by his contemporaries), by Germany's outstanding representative of the older generation of composers, Johann Adam Reincken (who lived to the  unprecedented age of 99), and by Bach himself are brillantly presented by Seattle Baroque. In addition, Schenkman will be heard in four solos from the Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach plus Bach's English Suite No. 2 in A Minor, a virtuso delight.

Fri.   July 29 :   Red Priest

"Pirates of the Baroque". Red Priest, the Cirque du Soleil of baroque performance, is back. A past favorite with Indianapolis audiences, this renowned English ensemble  has redefined the art of baroque music performance, combining the fruits of extensive research with virtuosity, creative re-composition, emotion and compelling stagecraft. The group performs largely from memory, allowing an operatic level of freedom and interaction. Its highly imaginative programs are drawn from myriad baroque sources to create a kaleidoscopic range of moods and colors. They are amazing to listen to and to watch.

Their first program is a celebration of pioneers and adventurers (and plagiarists) who made the baroque era so vital and exciting. Telemann, Bach and Handel are among the brilliant composers sharing the stage with Vivaldi (the original Red Priest).

Sun.   July 31 :   Red Priest

"Carnival of the Seasons". This program combines Vivaldi's ever popular Four Seasons Concerti with delightful works related  in time and theme to each season that Vivaldi describes so vividly in his exhilarating music. They include Heinrich Biber's Easter Sonata (spring), Jacob Van Eyck's What Shall We Do This Evening? and Henry Purcll's A Mdsummer Night's Dream Suite (summer), Robert Johnson's The Witches' Dance (autumn), and Arcangelo Corelli's Concerto Grosso in G Minor "per las Notte de Natale" (make a guess).

Three slide lectures by Frank Cooper*, Artistic Director

Frank Cooper will again present three lectures on the Sunday afternoons of June 26, July 10 and July 31 at 3:00 in the Indiana History Center.  His lectures, always eagerly awaited, interweave musical themes of the concert series with  interesting/novel aspects of concurrent history and art. Relevant slides and recordings will be woven into Mr. Cooper's presentations.

Sun. June 26  3:00 PM   Rome the Glorious

Rome was the center of government in the Western world for centuries, and the source of inspiration for Constantinople and Moscow, the seats of Christianity in the East. Rome set standards for glorious achievement in architecture and art along with music as a manifestation of its temporal and spiritual magnificance. This presentation will focus on the turbulent personalities and powerful historic forces that resulted in masterpieces in all the arts.

Sun. July 10  3:00 PM   On the Pleasures of Hearing Really Old Music

Early music is as current as any music for it speaks with immediacy to both the educated and untutored 21st Century ear. This curious phenomenom will be explored using written sources from music of the Middle Ages, Renaissance and Baroque. We will also investigate new perceptions about musical style and meaning in order to enhance the listening experience for all.

Sun. July 31  3:00 PM   Music and Art in the World of the Baroque

Breathtaking developments in all forms of music are shown to parallel the imaginative work of painters, sculptors and architects in this fascinating exploration of the Florentine origins of a new phenomenon in expression, ca 1600. Tracing this phenomenon's spread throughout Europe will give you an understanding of the atmosphere that captivated everyone for 150 years.

* Mr. Cooper is Research Prof. of Music, University of Miami (Florida); and Associate Curator of Fine Arts at the Vizcaya Museum, Miami. A former Butler Univ. faculty member, Cooper is an accomplished harpsichordist and interpreter of early music.

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