HOUSTON EARLY MUSIC
P. O. Box 271193
Houston, TX 77277-1193
HoustonEarlyMusic.org
Media contact:
Susan Love Fitts, 936-597-8825
susan@susanlovefitts.com
Houston Early Music Announces 2013-2014 Concert Season
HOUSTON, TX – June 5, 2013 – Houston Early Music, a leading presenter of the
world’s finest period ensembles and soloists, announces its 2013-2014 Concert Season
with five stellar ensembles.
Houston Early Music continues its commitment to its Emerging Artists Series and
Hispanic Heritage Series this season. Each performance features a discussion program
with ensemble members prior, as part of Houston Early Music’s educational outreach
initiative.
Nancy Ellis, artistic director, said that the new season continues the group’s mission of
bringing world-renowned early music performances to the Bayou City.
“By illuminating and showcasing the centuries of rarely heard music from the Middle
Ages through the 18th century, we provide a unique musical perspective for modern
Houston audiences,” Ellis said. “The sounds may be of ancient origins, but their ability to
inspire and transport audiences remains powerful and timeless.”
November 2, 2013
Lachrimae
One of the world’s leading viola da gamba consorts, Fretwork, brings their
contemporary sensibility to John Dowland’s famous collection, Lachrimae. To honor the
450th anniversary of Dowland’s birth, we embark on a transcendental voyage from
despair to hope through an extraordinary collection of music for viols and lute based on
his most famous song, Flow my teares.
Over the last 25 years, this U.K.-based ensemble has brought music old and new to
audiences hitherto unfamiliar with the inspiring sound-world of the viol. For their 2013
Tour, the UK-based ensemble will be joined by the incomparable British lutenist
Elizabeth Kenny.
The concert is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, November 2, 2013 at First Christian
Church, 1601 Sunset Blvd., Houston 77005. A pre-concert talk with ensemble members
starts at 6:45 p.m.
December 15, 2013
An Early American Christmas: Carols, Country Dances, Hymns and
Spiritual Songs
Like Saint Nicholas, The Rose Ensemble returns to Houston for a joyful evening of glad
tidings and good cheer. From Shaker hymns and Colonial anthems to ballads, country
dances and shape-note hymns, this extraordinary performance highlights the early forms
that will later give birth to bluegrass and old-time music. Journey through the dance halls
of Boston to the hills of Appalachia, as the singers and instrumentalists explore the
harmonies of early American Christmastide music.
The ensemble, regularly featured on American Public Media and National Public Radio’s
Performance Today, reawakens history with vocal music that stirs the emotions,
challenges the mind, and lifts the spirit. Experience a fresh take on the sounds of the
traditional yuletide season!
The Yuletide celebration will start at 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, December 15, 2013 at Christ
Church Cathedral, 1117 Texas Ave., Houston 77002. A pre-concert talk with ensemble
members begins at 4:15 p.m.
January 17, 2014
Emerging Artists Series:
Muse, Modes, and Magic (and also Mary)
The youthful and adventurous ensemble The Broken Consort explores music as an
ethereal art with magical powers in Muse, Modes, and Magic (and also Mary). The group
traces the relationship of these constant elements throughout early philosophy, music and
literature, with a diverse secular and sacred repertoire from the 12th to early 17th century.
And like the early broken consort, the artists play a mixed group of instruments including
lute, oud, vielle, gamba, lute, harp, percussion, and voices.
The Boston-based ensemble is redefining the standard conception and presentation of
early music. Explore the philosophies and themes that have captivated our culture for
centuries through these exquisite works.
The event is scheduled for 7:30 p.m., Friday, January 17, 2014 at Salem Evangelical
Lutheran Church, 4930 W. Bellfort, Houston 77035. A pre-concert talk with ensemble
members begins at 6:45 p.m.
February 11, 2014
Forward to the Past: 25 Years of the Orlando Consort
The Orlando Consort anniversary celebration begins with the chansons from Guillaume
de Machaut’s master work, Le Voir Dit - a story of the extraordinary epistolary exchange
between the aging poet and his young female admirer, Peronne.
Next, the British male vocal quartet offers up an indulgent review of the Consort’s
favorite fifteenth-century composers. Featuring some of the finest examples of late
medieval composition, the group showcases the sacred works of Dunstaple, Ockeghem,
Compère, Josquin and many others featured in their extensive recordings.
Enjoy an evening of captivating entertainment and fresh scholarly insight. The unique
imagination and originality of their programming combined with their superb vocal skills
has marked The Orlando Consort one of Britain’s most important chamber music
ensembles.
The performance begins at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, February 11, 2014 at Zilkha Hall in the
Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, 800 Bagby, Houston 77002. A pre-concert talk
with ensemble members begins at 6:45 p.m.
April 11, 2014
Hispanic Heritage Series:
Salsa Baroque
During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the musical dialogue between the Old and
the New Worlds produced extraordinary results. The internationally acclaimed Ensemble
Caprice calls this unique style and fascinating blend of European polyphony and Latin
American traditional music Salsa Baroque. Gems from this spectacular musical era will
be performed on instruments that were common at the time: flutes and recorders,
baroque guitar, violoncello and various percussion instruments.
Heralded as a group that encourages listeners to rehear the world, Ensemble Caprice
returns to the Houston Early Music stage for another imaginative, incomparable
performance during the 2013-2014 season.
The event is set for 7:30 p.m. on Friday, April 11, 2014, at Palmer Memorial Episcopal Church,
6221 Main Street, Houston 77030. A pre-concert talk with ensemble director Matthias Maute
begins at 6:45 p.m.
Subscriptions and tickets:
Full season subscriptions and individual tickets for the Houston Early Music 2013-2014
season are available now and can be purchased at HoustonEarlyMusic.org.
A full season subscription for all five concerts is $180 General Admission, $155 Senior
Admission. A mini-pass option which allows you to select any three concerts is also
available for $110 General Admission, $95 Senior Admission. Individual tickets are
available for $40 General Admission, $35 Senior Admission, and $20 Students with valid
student ID card.
For more information, e-mail info@HoustonEarlyMusic.org or call 281-846-4222.
SUMMARY OF THE SEASON:
Saturday, November 2, 2013, 7:30 p.m.
FRETWORK -- Lachrimae
First Christian Church
1601 Sunset Blvd.
Houston, TX 77005 Sunday, December 15, 2013, 5:00 p.m.
THE ROSE ENSEMBLE -- An Early American Christmas: Carols, Country Dances,
Hymns and Spiritual Songs Christ Church Cathedral
1117 Texas Ave.
Houston, Texas 77002 Friday, January 17, 2014, 7:30 p.m.
EMERGING ARTISTS SERIES
THE BROKEN CONSORT -- Muse, Modes, and Magic (and also Mary)
Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church
4930 West Bellfort
Houston, Texas 77035
Tuesday, February 11, 2014, 7:30 p.m.
THE ORLANDO CONSORT -- Forward to the Past: 25 Years of The Orlando Consort
Zilkha Hall, The Hobby Center for Performing Arts
800 Bagby Street
Houston, Texas 77002
Friday, April 11, 2014, 7:30 p.m.
HISPANIC HERITAGE SERIES
ENSEMBLE CAPRICE – Salsa Baroque
Palmer Memorial Episcopal Church 6221 Main Street Houston, TX 77030 ABOUT HOUSTON EARLY MUSIC
As the city’s only organization dedicated to covering the large historical span of early
music in all of its forms, Houston Early Music epitomizes a movement that has swept the
world of classical music. Officially incorporated in 1969, the nonprofit provides
performance opportunities for up-and-coming and major early music artists from around
the world in an annual concert series. A successful and growing educational outreach
program introduces a future generation to a broad range of music. Houston Early Music
is funded in part by grants from the Houston Arts Alliance, the Texas Commission on the
Arts and The National Endowment for the Arts.
###
Attached photo:
Houston Early Music’s 2013-20134 season opens with one of the world's leading viola da
gamba consorts, U.K.-based Fretwork. To view the full line-up for the season and to
purchase tickets, visit HoustonEarlyMusic.org or call 281-846-4222.
Photo by Chris Dawes
Media contact:
Susan Love Fitts
Susan Love Fitts Communications Inc.
936-597-8825
susan@susanlovefitts.com