I. A Tertio-Millennial Tribute
Saturday, February 4 - UCSC Music Recital Hall
Music of Buxtehude, Clarke, Hotteterre & Cantemir Lux Musica with guest artists

Celebrating the 333rd year of the public concert, and the 333rd birthdays of four mighty mid-Baroque composers. with chamber music by German, English, French and Turkish masters all born in 1673.

Lux Musica was formed in 1994 and is an ensemble of virtuosi dedicated to presenting the most beautiful works from the Enlightenment, drawing on the versatile combination of historical flutes, violin or viola, violoncello or viola da gamba and keyboards. The ensemble features Lars Johannesson on 18th-19th century flutes, Linda Burman-Hall on harpsichord and fortepiano, and Amy Brodo on violoncello and viola da gamba. A meet-the-artists reception follows for season ticket holders and patrons.


II. The Birth of the Baroque
Friday, February 24 - UCSC Music Recital Hall
Voxfire (Samela Aird Beasom, Christen Herman and Susan Judy) with Nina Treadwell, theorbo, lute and Baroque guitar & Linda Burman-Hall, harpsichord

A delicious offering of virtuoso Italian solos, duets and trios presented by the virtuosi of Voxfire, who mirror the extraordinary Concerto delle Donne (Consort of Ladies) at the court of Ferrara shortly before 1600. Our program reflects the exciting transition from Renaissance to Baroque taste in works by Monteverdi, Caccini, Luzzaschi and Barbara Strozzi, and also features a semi-staged adaptation of English master John Blow's Venus and Adonis.

Voxfire is the collaboration of three of the West Coast’s most highly regarded interpreters of early and contemporary vocal music. Using their distinct vocal colors, the three sopranos have melded their talents as a means of adapting and presenting the works of these eras with their very own musical style and dramatic flair. From their highly acclaimed concerts for the Santa Cruz Baroque Festival and the J. Paul Getty Museum, to their virtuosic performances of Benjamin Britten's A Ceremony of Carols and Steve Reich’s Tehillim, Voxfire continues to introduce exquisitely faceted musical gems to enthusiastic audiences throughout the West.

III. Music in the Age of Exploration
Sunday, April 2 - Holy Cross Church
Yukimi Kambe Consort of Viols

During the late Renaissance and early Baroque, great composers explored new sonic territories in the same way that great adventurers sailed to unknown regions of the globe. The highly-acclaimed Yukimi Kambe Consort returns with music by Josquin, Gibbons, Purcell, J. S. Bach and others, as well as new music for viol consort. Under the direction of Ms. Yukimi Kambe, the Yukimi Kambe Viol Consort was organized in 1983 in Tokyo. YKVC performs both European Renaissance music and world contemporary music, actively expressing stylistic diversity. YKVC features creative programming and performance grounded in cultural traditions of both East and West. Its activities include concerts, recordings, broadcasts, educational outreach, "Laboratory" for composers, performances for historical dance and for competitions. Consort members attend festivals and conclaves. In addition to many Japanese tours, YKVC have made two European tours and seven in the U.S. The ensemble has three CD recordings: "Buffet delle Quattro Viole da Gamba" (YKVC 0201) which comprises early works and contemporary Japanese compositions for viol consort, "Foglia d'olivo, works for viols by Tsutomu Mizuno" (YKVC 0302), the first recording ever consisting entirely of viol works by a single contemporary composer, and an all Bach program "Ja, doch BACH mit Gambenconsort" which was released in June 2005.




IV. Virtual Vivaldi: The Zodiac
Saturday, April 22 - UCSC Music Recital Hall
Composer David Cope/’Emmy’ with The Baroque Festival Orchestra

Cope's ingenious composition tool, Experiments in Musical Intelligence (‘Emmy’) has successfully created new works in Baroque and Classical style, earning composer credit on CDs in the style of Bach and Mozart. Our 2006 premiere offers 12 contrasting computer-generated concerti in the style of Vivaldi, one for each sign of the Zodiac, performed like the Four Seasons, by a period ensemble of strings and continuo. A meet-the-composer discussion will follow the performance. Co-presented by UCSC Music Department/April in Santa Cruz. Virtual Vivaldi: The Zodiac Cope's ingenious composition tool, Experiments in Musical Intelligence (‘Emmy’) has successfully created new works in Baroque and Classical style, earning composer credit on CDs in the style of Bach and Mozart. Our 2006 premiere offers 12 contrasting computer-generated concerti in the style of Vivaldi, one for each sign of the Zodiac, performed like the Four Seasons, by a period ensemble of strings and continuo. A meet-the-composer discussion will follow the performance. Co-presented by UCSC Music Department/April in Santa Cruz.

V. O’Carolan’s Farewell to Music’
Saturday May 13 - UCSC Music Recital Hall
Patrick Ball

O’Carolan’s Farewell to Music’ An evening with Turlough O’Carolan (1670 – 1738), the greatest (and one of the last) of the wandering Celtic harper-poets, whose fame was “wider than the Heavens.” Patrick Ball’s sensitive Celtic harp and storytelling skills will transport you to the delights of 18th century Ireland. Patrick Ball tours extensively throughout the United States and Canada. He is considered one of the premier Celtic harpers and storytellers in the world today, and has recorded nine instrumental and three spoken word albums which have sold well over one-half million copies collectively and earned national awards in both the music and spoken word categories. Patrick has written two solo musical theater pieces: O'Carolan's Farewell to Music, which brings to the stage the legendary life, the turbulent times and the glorious music of Ireland's most celebrated and beloved musician, Turlough O'Carolan, and The Fine Beauty of the Island, a musical journey to Ireland's legendary Blasket Islands. Patrick has been awarded grants for his work by the Zellerbach Family Fund and the California Arts Council and is the recipient of the Circle of Excellence Award from the National Storytelling Association. A meet-the-artist reception follows for season ticket holders and patrons.