les canards chantants

solomon’s vineyard
SEPTEMber 3rd • 3pm

Few texts in history blur the lines between earthly and spiritual love as compellingly as the Song of Songs. Ascribed to King Solomon, this sensuous biblical poem was set to music countless times during the Renaissance. Leonhard Lechner’s sublime and boozy German-language version, Das Hohelied Salomonis (1606), takes center stage in this program as we enjoy a tasting of Solomon’s “uber-love-song” and other works inspired by the triple muse of love, life, and good wine, curated by Lechner and his teacher, the inimitable Orlande de Lassus.

Eric Brenner, countertenor
Robin Bier, contralto
Jacob Perry, tenor
Graham Bier, bass

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night music

a little night music
september 17th • 3pm

Night Music kicks off its 2023–24 season (“Generations”) with three chamber works spanning the entire eighteenth century. We commence our journey in Vienna with Mozart’s beloved Eine kleine Nachtmusik, jump back in time to Leipzig for a passionate string quintet from Telemann’s university days, and finally leap forward to London for Haydn’s magnificent Symphony No. 98, as sensitively arranged by Johann Peter Salomon. You’ll be surprised and delighted at how these very different works complement each other.

Karen Dekker & Sarah Kenner, violins
Amy Leonard & Fran Berge, violas
Eve Miller, cello & Heather Miller Lardin, double bass
Steven Zohn, flute

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filament

Never Odd or Even
october 22nd • 3pm

In September 2019, the three members of Filament gave their first public performance together as a trio in the inaugural concert of the Main Line Early Music series. Thus began their love affair with music of the 17th century, music in which fantasy and order coexist in perfectly imperfect balance - music that is neither here nor there, but somewhere else entirely. Now, in anticipation of the release of their debut album, the complete opus 1 sonatas of Dietrich Buxtehude, Filament opens their fifth anniversary season with their collective eye on what’s next. The popular trio brings their characteristic verve back to the MLEM series with a program in palindrome featuring sonatas from Buxethude’s kaleidoscopic opus 2, in dialogue with some unexpected partners.

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the publick pleasure

stop the bells’ tolling: music of philadelphia and the yellow fever epidemic of 1793

november 19th • 3pm

Join us for a concert of befores and afters, as The Publick Pleasure explores changes in Philadelphia's musical landscape caused by the city's Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793. Concert life, performers, impresarios and musical tastes in Philadelphia underwent profound shifts as the population fled the city, and ordinary life ground to a halt. The city's own soundscape changed, with church bells silenced and gunpowder exploded in the streets. This concert will include texts from period newspapers and personal accounts of 1793 as companions to musical compositions from before and after Philadelphia's "unhappy calamity."

Edmond Chan, violin & Amy Leonard, viola
Eve Miller, cello & John Walthausen, harpsichord
Steven Zohn, flute & Jean Bernard Cerin, baritone

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galline

sacred earth
february 18th • 3pm

Imagine discovering a treasure chest of instrumental chamber music representing the most noteworthy composers of mid 17th century Europe. In 1698 Sébastien de Brossard did just that! This collection of works by composers such as Rosenmuller, Bertali, Schmelzer and most notably, Biber, later became known as the Codex Rost. These composers explored wildly virtuosic string composition possibilities. Also featured on the program are works from Biber’s famous Fidicinium Sacro-Profanum that reflect his fantastical improvisation style, intertwining both the humanistic and meditative culture of the time. Join Galline with artists Amy Leonard and Dan Elyar as we dive into this musical treasure trove!

Margaret Humphrey, violin and viola d'amore
Marika Holmqvist, violin and viola d'amore
Rebecca Humphrey, cello
Barbara Weiss, harpsichord

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the sylvan consort of viols

with laura heimes, soprano &
Mark RImple, lute

a secret fire
april 7th • 3pm

“By a secret fire I feel myself consumed... True, I could heal, if I ceased to love – but, I prefer the malady to the cure.”

When we find ourselves obsessed – by a person, a feeling, a melody, a creative idea – the obsession may seem to consume us while at the same time fueling us. The energy of fire stands for love, eros, the very root and source of life.

So, this French song from 1671, by Michel Lambert, takes us on a journey from England to France and back, spanning the 17th century, with viols, lute, and voice intertwining in dances, songs, and fantasias by Byrd, Dowland, Lawes, Le Jeune, Lambert, and Purcell.

Viols: Sarah Cunningham, Donna Fournier, Gretchen Gettes
Margaret Humphrey, Rebecca Humphrey, Elena Kauffman

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la bernardinia

with qin qian, erhu

east and west: folk and baroque music from china
may 5th • 3pm

La Bernardinia and guest erhu virtuoso, Qin Qian present a program featuring traditional Chinese melodies and music by Teodorico Pedrici - priest, musician, composer, and missionary at the Imperial Court of China in the 18th century.

Rainer Beckmann, recorder & Donna Fournier, viola da gamba
Marcia Kravis, harpsichord & Qin Qian, erhu

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the franklin quartet

nomadic rhapsodies
JUNE 9TH at 3pm

For centuries, Western Europe has viewed the Ottoman Turks and Romani as exotic. Relative to the rest of Europe they were geographically nearby but remote in custom. It was perceived that their music evoked sensualism and voluptuousness as well as something dangerous and menacing. 18th century composers were tickled to bring these foreign musical elements into their works. No matter how fleeting those musical moments may have been in the context of broader compositions, they elicited images of the “exotic” or “otherness.” How should we respectfully observe this in today’s modern society? As alluring as those snippets are, they don’t exist without controversy. Join the Franklin Quartet as we explore the Ottoman Empire and Romani influence in string quartets by Haydn and Dittersdorf interspersed with traditional Hungarian and Armenian folk tunes.

Karen Dekker and Marika Holmqvist, violins
Daniel Elyar, viola & Rebecca Humphrey, cello

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