The Well-Tempered Ear
Classical music: The new period-instrument group Sonata à Quattro makes its debut and excels in early Baroque music
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ALERT: The All-Festival Concert that closes this summer’s 19th annual Madison Early Musical Festival will take place in Mills Hall on Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $20 for the general public, $10 for seniors and students. Here are two links where you can find more specific information, including composers and works on the program:
https://memf.wisc.edu/event/all-fest-2018/
By Jacob Stockinger
Here is a special posting, a review written by frequent guest critic and writer for this blog, John W. Barker. Barker (below) is an emeritus professor of Medieval history at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also is a well-known classical music critic who writes for Isthmus and the American Record Guide, and who hosts an early music show once a month on Sunday morning on WORT FM 89.9 FM. For years, he served on the Board of Advisors for the Madison Early Music Festival and frequently gives pre-concert lectures in Madison.
By John W. Barker
Marika Fischer Hoyt (below) is becoming another powerhouse in our musical scene. Already a spark plug of the Ancora String Quartet, and now the director of the annual “Bach Around the Clock” bashes, she has organized a new ensemble, Sonata à Quattro, which made its debut on Wednesday night at Pres House.
This was done under the aegis of the current Madison Early Music Festival (MEMF) as a “fringe concert” — in the manner long-established by the Boston Early Music Festival. Plus, the concert’s theme was “The Lübeck Connection,” clearly tying it to the MEMF.
The music was early Baroque, almost entirely from the 17th century.
The first half presented pieces by seven composers, including, among the better-known ones, Michael Praetorius, Giovanni Gabrieli, Heinrich Schütz, Heinrich Ignaz Biber and Antonio Vivaldi.
In the earlier pieces, the instruments were not originally specified at all — and one of them was in fact purely vocal. But the later ones clearly displayed the definition of the early string ensemble.
Indeed, the basic players — besides the backup harpsichord — were seated (below) in what is now familiar in the configuration of the latter-day string quartet, with the subtle suggestion that the earlier sonata à quattro genre was its natural predecessor.
The presence here of Vivaldi—besides Gabrieli, the only Italian among these Germans, and of later date—seemed a bit incongruous, but his familiar Sinfonia ‘al Santo Sepolcro’ actually illustrated well the mature à quattro texture. (You can hear the Vivaldi in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
And a most impressive conclusion for this first half of the program was the fascinating eight-part Sonata in A minor by the sadly neglected Samuel Capricornus (1628-1665)—its eight-voice scoring not serving as a double choir but as a richly textured study in contrasting high with low parts.
For this first half, the core performers were Nathan Giglierano and Christine Hauptly Annin, violins; Fischer-Hoyt, viola; and Charlie Rasmussen, cello, with harpsichordist Daniel Sullivan.
They were joined along the way by gambist Phillip Serna (below top) who performed later on violone; and, for the Capricornus also violinist Thalia Coombs (below second), violist Micah Behr (below third) and viola da gambist Eric Miller (below bottom, in a photo by Katrin Talbot).
The program’s second half was devoted entirely to the music of Dietrich Buxtehude (below, ca. 1637-1707), the big star of the MEMF constellation.
First we had a Trio in B-flat from his Op. 2 collection, then a slightly French-style solo harpsichord Suite in D minor from Daniel Sullivan (below top).
Finally, we had two solo cantatas, sung by Kristin Knutson (below bottom), whose lovely soprano voice blended beautifully with the instruments.
This new ensemble will continue with concerts scheduled ahead for the coming season. But certainly this appearance represents a beautiful, and perfectly timed, introduction in a concert of true delight.
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Classical music: The early music, period-instrument group Sonata à Quattro plays a very varied “fringe concert” during the Madison Early Music Festival this Wednesday night
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By Jacob Stockinger
The new early music, period-instrument group Sonata à Quattro (below, in a photo by Lori Skelton) will perform a “Fringe Concert” during this year’s Madison Early Music Festival of a program called “The Lübeck Connection.”
The theme of this year’s MEMF, which is taking place all this week, focuses on music in the fabled choir library at St. Mary’s Church in Lübeck (below). All the works on the program were written by composers represented in that library. The program will run 90 minutes with one intermission.
The concert takes place on this Wednesday night, July 11, at 7:30 p.m., at Pres House, 731 State St.
Tickets will be available at the door, for general seating, at $20 for general admission and $10 for seniors, students and MEMF participants. Cash, check or charge will be accepted. A marzipan reception follows.
The first half of the program of Baroque music from the 17th and 18th centuries includes works by Giovanni Gabrieli, Heinrich Schütz, Michael Praetorius, Hermann Schein, Johann Staden, Heinrich Biber, Antonio Vivaldi and Samuel Capricornus.
The second half is all-Dietrich Buxtehude (below). You can hear a section of Buxtehude’s Trio Sonata in B-flat Major, Bux259, which is on the program, in the YouTube video at the bottom.
The ensemble (seen at the top of this story) is composed of violinists Nathan Giglierano and Christine Hauptly Annin; violist Marika Fischer Hoyt; cellist Charlie Rasmussen; and harpsichordist Daniel Sullivan.
Additional musicians include soprano Kristin Knutson, violinist Thalia Coombs, violist Micah Behr, and Phillip Serna and Eric Miller on violas da gamba.
You can get more information and follow the group on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/sonataaquattro/
One other performance of this program will take place. It is this coming Sunday, July 15, at 7 p.m. in St. Matthias Episcopal Church, 11 E. Main St., in Waukesha. For information, go to: https://stmatthiasepiscopalchurch.ticketleap.com/the-lubeck-connection
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The Well-Tempered Ear 
Classical music: The Ear wishes you a Merry Christmas with three of his favorite pieces of music. What are yours?
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By Jacob Stockinger
Today – Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2019 – is Christmas Day.
There is so much great Christmas music written by so many great composers. You’ll hear a lot of it tomorrow morning on Wisconsin Public Radio, starting at 9 a.m..
But here are three of The Ear’s favorites.
One comes from the “Christmas Oratorio” by the German Baroque composer Johann Sebastian Bach and is loud, upbeat and brassy.
The second is “Lo, how a rose ere blooming” is by the early German baroque composer Michael Praetorius, and is so hauntingly quiet and intimate, sounding almost medieval or chant-like.
The third work, also intimate but on a much larger scale, is the “Shepherds’ Farewell to the Holy Family” from “The Childhood of the Christ” by the Romantic French composer Hector Berlioz.
Here they are, first the Praetorius — in the original German — and then the Bach and finally the Berlioz.
And here is a YouTube compilation with almost three hours of seasonal music:
What is your favorite piece of classical music to celebrate Christmas?
Leave your answer – with a YouTube link, if possible — in the Comment section.
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