Press here to learn about becoming a SFEMS affiliate.
Alta Sonora is a Renaissance wind band, playing shawm, slide trumpet, sackbut, recorder and dulcian. The group formed in 2001 and specializes in the alta capella repertory of the 15th century, with forays into 14th and 16th century music as well. Besides presenting concerts, educational programs for adults, and accompanying vocal ensembles, the group presents a program aimed at middle school classes, with demonstrations and explanations of both the music and a variety of wind instruments. (Contact: Peggy Murray, 510-233-0868, e-mail)
Founded in San Francisco in 1986, American Baroque brings together some of America's most accomplished and exciting baroque instrumentalists. Concerts by American Baroque break the mold of the traditional chamber music recital by incorporating fresh new music composed for the group, and new and old music arranged by ensemble members. The results are thrilling: a perfect blend of entertainment and authenticity, tradition and innovation, the Old World and the New. The group's adventurous programs combine 18th-century music with new works, composed for the group through collaborations and commissions. An ensemble of eclectic, accomplished, and artful musicians, American Baroque performs concerts that bridge a gap between the edges of the new music frontier and the familiar roads to music of the past and expand the repertoire and scope of historical instruments into the new millennium. (American Baroque: c/o Katherine Shao, 639 65th Street, Oakland, CA 94609. Telephone: 510-653-8420; e-mail: info@americanbaroque.org)
The American Recorder Orchestra of the West (AROW) was founded in 2000 and comprises dedicated, enthusiastic musicians who live throughout Northern California. AROW musicians play the entire recorder family, from sopranino to contrabass. Rehearsals for the 2005/2006 season began in late September at Zion Lutheran Church in Oakland. Under Director Geisler’s baton, members are developing a program that delves into the musical traditions of Eastern Europe and that will lead to several concert performances in the spring of 2006. Intermediate and advanced musicians interested in the orchestra are invited to contact Music Director Richard Geisler: richgeis@jps.net; 530/477-2293.
Bay Area Baroque Workshops presented its first coached workshop at Music Sources in Berkeley September, 2007. It was very well received by the participants. It is our intention to offer two one-day workshops each year. For further information, consult our web site www.babw.org or email info@babw.org.
Clerestory is a new men's vocal ensemble of early music specialists. The group, founded in 2006, is comprised of veterans and familiar faces of the Bay Area's finest choruses: Chanticleer, the American Bach Soloists, Philharmonia Baroque, AVE, and others. Clerestory's debut performances were met with enthusiastic audiences and critical acclaim. Visit Clerestory to hear the group, read about its members, see what the press has written, and learn about upcoming concerts and events. Catch this group early as it grows into one of the finest ensembles anywhere!
The East Bay Recorder Society is an association of recorder enthusiasts in the San Francisco Bay area. Recorder players from low intermediate to advanced levels are invited to join to play music together and to learn more about the recorder. Membership activities include the following:
Letitia Berlin, Frances Blaker, Louise Carslake, Hanneke van Proosdij
The Farallon Recorder Quartet has been exploring the repertoire for four recorders since 1996, reveling in the rich masterpieces of the middle ages, Renaissance and baroque periods as well as charting new territory with arrangements and original compositions from the present age. The quartet's first recording will feature the music of Ludwig Senfl, one of the geniuses of the German Renaissance. When playing Renaissance music, the Farallon Recorder Quartet plays on a matched set of instruments made by Adriana Breukink and modeled after the set in the Vienna Kunsthistorisches Museum.
The Farallon Recorder Quartet is in residence at the Hidden Valley Institute of the Arts in Carmel Valley every November for workshop and concert. Please visit hiddenvalleymusic.org for more details. For a list of coming concerts, click here.
Contact: Letitia Berlin, 510-559-4670, farallonrq@sbcglobal.net.
Flauti Diversi was founded in 1992 by Frances Feldon at the San Francisco Early Music Society’s Recorder Workshop and has since been enthusiastically received at its performances, including those in conjunction with the Berkeley and Marin Early Music Festivals, and at Hausmusik (now Healing Muses), Music at Old St Mary's, and Music on Squirrel Hill concert series in the SF Bay Area. Beginning in 2003, Flauti Diversi initiated its own concert series called “Baroque and Beyond.” The ensemble presents a variety of innovative programs, which combine baroque and contemporary music and use a wide palette of instrumental colors.
Click here to see descriptions of its upcoming programs in 2006 or a sampling of past concert presentations.
Contact: Frances Feldon, 1440 Keoncrest Dr., Berkeley CA 94702; 510-527-9840; franfel@aol.com.
Using a combination of medieval, Renaissace and Celtic music, the music
for healing program creates a peaceful sound environment, which promotes
relaxation and reduces anxiety during stressful hospital stays and
procedures. Patients and staff experience the power of music to calm and
soothe in a noisy, high-anxiety environment.
Working in partnership with several organizations and individuals,
Healing Muses has received grants from the Institute of Noetic Sciences and
the East Bay Community Foundation. In addition to their playing, members of
Healing Muses offer lectures and workshops on the healing effects of music,
and have recorded a CD, "Dolce Musica, A Contemplative Journey."
The music for healing program is offered regularly at Kaiser Permanente
in Oakland, Alta Bates Comprehensive Cancer Center, and UCSF/Mt. Zion Cancer
Center. Healing Muses also provides music for Summit Medical Center, Laguna
Honda Hospital and Kaiser Permanente Richmond.
In bringing music to hospitals and other sites, Healing Muses is
providing a service that enhances quality of life for patients and their
family, as well as bringing early music to a constituency who otherwise might
not be exposed to this repertoire.
Healing Muses, 1185 Solano Ave., PMB #153, Albany, CA 94706
The local chapter of the Junior Recorder Society was founded in the fall of 1997 to provide opportunities for young recorder players to play music together. Teachers Louise Carslake, Hanneke van Proosdij and Letitia Berlin felt it important for children to discover the fun of playing recorders together outside of their private lessons or school classes. Partially supported by the East Bay Recorder Society and SFEMS, our chapter is also a member of the national Junior Recorder Society, which connects young recorder players throughout the U.S. Our monthly meetings are open to all children who have a basic ability on the recorder. We play a wide variety of music from the Renaissance to the twentieth century, and sometimes we experiment with improvisation. Many of our players can play more than one size of recorder, and thanks to the generosity of many SFEMS members we are able to lend instruments to children who do not yet have their own. Performances in 1998 included enthusiastically received recitals for the ARS East Bay Chapter in March, and at the American Recorder Society's reception at the Berkeley Early Music Festival in June. Enrollment has grown steadily, and we are greatly encouraged by the number of recorder players who have joined us recently. (Junior Recorder Society c/o Louise Carslake, 3931 Linwood Ave., Oakland, CA 94602. Telephone: 510-530-3202)
The Mid-Peninsula Recorder Orchestra (MPRO), formed in 1962, is open for
membership to those who play recorder, early winds or early strings. The
orchestra meets during the fall, winter and spring from 8:00–10:00 p.m.
on alternate Wednesdays at the J.L. Stanford Middle School, 480 E.
Meadow, Palo Alto. The orchestra presents two or more concerts annually.
Additional performing opportunities are offered to those who take part
in the MPRO Ensemble, which presents three or more programs a year at
schools, community centers, retirement facilities and special events.
MPRO membership also includes the services of the orchestra's consort
coordinator, who assists those wishing to join or form small ensembles.
MPRO has performed on public television stations KQED and KCSM, as well
as at the Berkeley Early Music Festival, the Palace of the Legion of
Honor, Mission San Jose, and the Dean Lesher Regional Center for the
Arts in Walnut Creek. MPRO also sponsors two workshops annually, which
are directed by well known recorder artists. (Mid-Peninsula Recorder
Orchestra, 420 Crestlake Drive, San Francisco, CA 94132. Telephone:
650-591-3648 or 415-664-9050)
The Monterey Bay Recorder Society holds monthly meetings in Santa Cruz for recorder and other early instrument players of all levels to explore a wide variety of music, especially medieval, Renaissance and baroque repertory and also classical, modern, jazz, and ethnic music. Guest conductors are drawn from around the Bay Area. The Society sponsors public concerts, education and outreach programs, and ensemble coaching for local consorts. (Monterey Bay Recorder Society, c/o Curt Bowman, 831-475-1553 or Lorrie Emery, 831-423-8309)
Mostly Motets is a small ensemble that sings sacred music primarily from the Renaissance and earlier. The group's repertoire has emphasized music by the great masters of the sixteenth century High Renaissance, including Victoria, Tallis, Byrd, Palestrina, and others. That focus is being broadened to include more music from the fifteenth century and earlier: Dufay, Desprez, Ockeghem, chant, etc. While the group's roots can be traced back to informal sessions starting in 1998, regularly scheduled rehearsals began in January of 2004. The group is based in Santa Rosa, California, and performs there and at other locations, mostly in the San Francisco North Bay. Rehearsals are twice a month on Sunday afternoons. Anyone who might be interested in singing with the ensemble is welcome to visit Mostly Motets and contact the director, Steve Moore, at (707) 575-7400.
Music of the Spheres, formed in 2000, is an early music group based in San Francisco and Atlanta, consisting of Baroque violinist Jeanne Johnson, Baroque cellist Joanna Blendulf, and harpsichordist Yuko Tanaka. Music of the Spheres was a main event at the 2002 Bloomington and Berkeley Early Music Festivals and has been featured on several broadcasts of "Harmonia" and "Performance Today." Highlights of 2005 included a performance on the San Francisco Early Music Society series, featuring a world premiere, and a recording for Magnatune. The year 2006 includes an appearance at the Tage Alter Musik Festival in Regensburg, Germany. Music of the Spheres believes that music exists to captivate the imagination, stir memories, and evoke intensely personal emotions in both listener and performer alike, and we desire to bring a wider audience to classical music through performances that focus on these aspects. We are available for concerts, series, festivals, recordings and advanced master classes. Our CD's are available through www.magnatune.com, or on our web site.
Led by artistic directors Judith Linsenberg and Elizabeth Blumenstock, Musica Pacifica has been performing, touring, and recording since 1990. Mining a rich vein of Baroque literature for mixed wind/string ensemble, the group performs the spirited chamber concerti of Vivaldi and Telemann, colorful dance suites from the courts and opera houses of France, and the more intimate solo, duo, and trio sonatas from European countries as diverse as Scotland, Poland, Spain, and England. Musica Pacifica has been described by the press as "some of the finest baroque musicians in America" (American Record Guide) and "among the best in the world" (Alte Musik Aktuell). They have appeared on prestigious chamber and early music concert series throughout the US and Europe, have twice been a featured ensemble at the Berkeley Early Music Festival, and have been heard on German National radio as well as on National Public Radio¹s Performance Today and Harmonia. Musica Pacifica¹s six CD releases on the Virgin/Veritas and Dorian labels have received international acclaim, including the highest ratings in several CD magazines, each one being chosen as "CD of the Month" by the early music journal Toccata-Alte Musik Aktuell (Regensburg), and two major awards, including Chamber Music America and WQXR's 2003 Record Award honoring the best chamber music recordings of the year. (Musica Pacifica, c/o Judith Linsenberg, 833 Walker Ave, Apt A, Oakland, CA 94610. Telephone/fax: 510-444-4113; e-mail: info@musicapacifica.org)
Since its founding in 1979 Music's Re-creation has performed to high
acclaim in both Europe and America, including appearances at the Lufthansa
Festival of Baroque Music in London, York Early Music Festival (U.K.),
Kilkenny Festival (Ireland), the Music in Old Krakow Festival (Poland),
Carmel Bach Festival, and the Berkeley Festivals. They have made eight CD
recordings for the Centaur and Meridian labels that feature music by C.P.E.
Bach, Jenkins, Marais, Telemann, Lawes, Clérambault, and Rameau. Well known
for their performances of trios, quartets, and chamber cantatas from the
baroque era, the group has also expanded in size to perform such
large-scale works as Monteverdi's Vespers of the Blessed Virgin, Purcell's
Dido and Aeneas, famous operatic arias by Handel, and concerti by J.S.
Bach. Over the years Music's Re-creation has collaborated in concert with a
long list of distinguished guest artists which includes Jaap Schröder,
Stanley Ritchie, Andrew Parrott, Nicholas McGegan, Nancy Argenta, James
Bowman, Judith Nelson, Derek Lee Ragin, Jennifer Lane, and Julianne Baird.
Music's Re-creation has held artistic residencies with the University of
Washington in Seattle and the Renaissance and Baroque Society of
Pittsburgh. Members are Louise Carslake, baroque flute, Carla Moore,
baroque violin, John Dornenburg, viola da gamba, and Lorna Peters,
harpsichord. (Music's Re-creation, c/o John Dornenburg, Telephone/Fax:
510-530-3202; e-mail: jdrnbrg@saclink.csus.edu)
The New Esterházy Quartet (Kati Kyme, Lisa Weiss, Anthony Martin, William Skeen) came together in 2006. They are currently performing for the first time in America on period instruments the complete Haydn cycle, 68 quartets in 18 concerts over the next two seasons, to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Haydn’s death in 2007. For details, please consult their website: www.newesterhazy.org
The Lute Society of America was formed in 1968 in New York to promote
the lute and related instrument and music scholarship, and offer
services and education to it members. The Northern California Chapter
of the LSA continues the activities of the national chapter on a local
level- we sponsor informal weekend seminars throughout the year in and
around the San Francisco Bay Area, which are open to all local lute
players or other instrumentalists to attend. We also sponsor lute
concerts in conjunction with these larger seminars.
A unique character of our group is that outside our individual LSA
membership, we charge no other local dues, and anyone can join by an
email or note to one of our members. Our members are mostly amateur
players, consisting of both men and women, many are professionals, with
families and otherwise busy lives, but are still drawn to their interest
in this old, attractive and fragile instrument. Music professionals,
musicologists, singers, guitarists, and others interested in the lute
are also welcome to join.
The Northern California chapter of the LSA does not put out a monthly
newsletter, but is maintained by an email mailing list and a web site,
http://www.mclasen.com/lute/balute.html. Our email mailing list helps to keep members informed of our
concerts and seminars, as well as advertising lute-related concerts and
activities of SFEMS and other groups.
The Novello Quartet was founded in 2002 to perform Joseph Haydn’s rarely programmed quartet setting of the Seven Last Words of Christ. The quartet’s passion for the music of Haydn and his contemporaries has led to an ongoing artistic partnership between four of America’s leading early music artists. The members of the Novello Quartet, Tekla Cunningham and Cynthia Miller Freivogel, violins, Anthony Martin, viola, and Elisabeth Reed, cello, are active in the Bay Area and America’s most prominent early music groups, including Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, American Bach Soloists, Apollo’s Fire Orchestra in Cleveland, Musica Angelica in Los Angeles, Santa Fe Pro Musica, Portland Baroque Orchestra, and the San Francisco Bach Choir.
The Sacramento Recorder Society is a chapter of the American Recorder
Society. Our meetings are from 6:45-10:00 p.m. on the first
Tuesday of each month, Sept.-June, at the Friends Meeting House, 890
57th Street (between H and J Streets) in Sacramento. Our members range from low-intermediate to advanced
players, and we offer lessons for beginners. Players of other early
music instruments are also welcome. Our monthly meetings are directed by
professional early music specialists. We also sponsor recorder
workshops and concerts. We encourage members to form small consorts or
study groups, which meet in members' homes, and we offer opportunities
for those groups to perform. Our newsletter and website keep members
informed of early music workshops and concerts throughout northern
California, and carpools are available for those events. (Sacramento Recorder Society, c/o Billie Hamilton, 5706 Shepard Ave, Sacramento, CA 95819. Telephone: 916-451-7614, e-mail: billieham@macnexus.org)
The San Francisco chapter of the American Recorder Society holds monthly
playing sessions that are led by a variety of local recorder teachers and
qualified chapter members. The sessions introduce the members to a variety
of pieces from the recorder repertoire, usually addressing the historical
context of each piece and an "historically informed" approach to playing
it.
Recorder players at all levels are welcome to play at our monthly
meetings, which are held on the third Wednesday of each month, from 7:30
p.m. - 9:30 p.m. in the sanctuary of St. John's United Church of Christ,
501 Laguna Honda Blvd. (at Woodside), in San Francisco. A $10 playing fee
per session may be applied to the $40 annual fee for chapter membership.
Our website is: arssanfrancisco.org, and our president, Dana Vinicoff, can
be reached at vinicoff@hotmail.com.
SexChordae Consort of Viols was founded by gambist John Dornenburg for
the purpose of performing and recording the rich body of music for viol
consort of the 16th and 17th centuries.
The Consort has performed widely in California with presenters including
the Berkeley Early Music Festival, San Francisco Early Music Society, San
Jose Chamber Music Society, Santa Cruz Baroque Festival, Gualala Arts, and
Magnificat. In 1999 they made their European debut at the Tage Alter Musik
Festival in Regensburg, Germany. The Consort currently has three highly
praised CD recordings released on the Centaur label. For concert booking
information, email the Sex ChordæConsort at jdrnbrg@saclink.csus.edu.
The Singers' Retreat brings together Bay Area singers for two weekends each year. Normally directed by Stanford Professor William Mahrt, the retreats are held in San Anselmo's San Francisco Theological Seminary. Past workshops have explored sacred polyphony by Renaissance composers from Josquin to Monteverdi. Intense singing sessions are balanced with short lectures on the music and its historical contexts. A public performance concludes each workshop. Singers' Retreats are open to all singers with good sight singing skills. Fees are nominal, some meals are provided, and overnight accommodations can be arranged. (Singers' Retreat, c/o Lee McRae, 2130 Carleton St, Berkeley, CA 94704. Telephone: 510-848-5591; e-mail: LMcR@aol.com)
The South Bay Recorder Society, a chapter of the American Recorder Society, provides opportunities for members and others to play recorders and socialize. The SBRS meets 7:30-10:00 PM on the first Friday of the month at the First Congregational Church of San Jose, 1980 Hamilton Avenue, San Jose located at the corner of Hamilton Ave. and Leigh Ave. Contact President Liz Brownell at 211 Escobar Ave., Los Gatos, CA 95032. Telephone 408-358-0878 or e-mail zilbrown@aol.com.
The Streicher Trio combines the talents of three prominent West Coast musicians: Charlene Brendler, fortepiano; Katherine Kyme, violin; and Joanna Blendulf, cello. The Trio's focus is on Classical era repertory -- music of Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, and their distinguished contemporaries -- performed on period instruments. Many appearances in California concert venues have included tours under the auspices of the California Arts Council. Engagements at major US festivals such as the Berkeley Music Festival and the Mozart Festival in San Luis Obispo include festivals in Germany and France. Three compact discs are available from the Streicher Trio. They are the Mozart Piano Trios on the Bayer of Germany label; Piano Trios of Clara Schumann and Louise Farrenc; and Musica da Camera,17th and 18th century Italian music selected from the Frank. V. de Bellis Collection in the California State University Library, San Francisco. Visit the web at www.sfems.org/streicher or contact Charlene Brendler, 1510 Laurel Ave., Richmond, CA 94805. Telephone: 510-237-0775.
The Tibia Recorder Duo is in residence at the Hidden Valley Institute of the Arts in Carmel Valley every November for workshops and concerts. Please visit hiddenvalleymusic.org or call 831-659-3115 for more details.
VdGS/Pacifica, the Bay Area chapter of the Viola da Gamba Society, supports local amateur gambists by providing professional consort coaching sessions (to which established consorts, as well as individuals wishing to be placed in consorts according to skill level, are welcome), beginning-instrument rentals and a monthly newsletter, as well as by organizing state-wide meets and facilitating contacts with local viol teachers. The chapter meets monthly from Autumn through Spring, normally at Zion Lutheran Church, 5201 Park Boulevard, Piedmont. (VdGS/Pacifica, c/o Ellen Farwell, 1807 Butte St., Richmond, CA 94804. Telephone: 510-524-3327; e-mail: lbfarwell@earthlink.net)
Voices of Music is an early music ensemble based on the creative vision and continuo group of David Tayler & Hanneke van Proosdij. The group takes the unique view that the interpretation, style, and ornamentation of Renaissance and Baroque music are centered on the art of good singing. Voices of Music's most recent CD, Bach Arias, will be released in January 2007. Projects for the upcoming year include a recording of music from Rembrandt’s studio and concerts at St. Alban’s Episcopal church in Albany.
Artists who have appeared in Voices of Music recordings and concerts: Joanna Blendulf, Elizabeth Blumenstock, Louise Carslake, Hugh Davies, Rodney Gehrke, Lisa Grodin, Laura Heimes, Katherine Kyme, Jennifer Lane, Dan Laurin, Christopher LeCluyse, Peter Maund, Vicki Pich, Stephanie Prewitt, Susanne Rydén, William Skeen, Tanya Tomkins, and Catherine Webster.
Women's Antique Vocal Ensemble (WAVE) is a 12 voice women's choir founded in September 1999, directed by Cindy Beitmen. The group was formed as an outgrowth of an evening education class sponsored by the San Francisco Early Music Society (SFEMS). Now an affiliate of SFEMS, WAVE is dedicated to promoting and performing music of the medieval, Renaissance and Baroque periods. The ensemble has performed in a number of area churches, the Berkeley Early Music Festival, and various public service concerts in communities of the East Bay and San Francisco. WAVE is committed to keeping tickets at affordable prices so that more people may enjoy the live concert experience. WAVE is Artist-in-Residence at Calvary Presbyterian Church in Berkeley.
For further information about SFEMS affiliates, please telephone 510-528-1725
Fweeter
Galax Quartet
Healing Muses
Founded and directed by Eileen Hadidian and Natalie Cox,
Healing Muses was formed to bring soothing music to hospitals, clinics, hospices,
convalescent homes, retreat centers and homebound individuals. It began as a
pilot project in 1999 at Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Oakland, when Eileen,
a flute and recorder player, joined with harpist Natalie Cox to play on the
surgery, medical and intensive care floors, and in the hospital lobby. Since
then, Celtic harpist Maureen Brennan has also joined the program.
Email: healingmuses@comcast.net
Phone: Eileen Hadidian (510) 524-5661;
Natalie Cox (510) 234-3044;
Maureen Brennan (510) 245-2788.
Junior Recorder Society
La Monica
La Riche & Co.
Mid-Peninsula Recorder
Orchestra
Monterey Bay Recorder Society
Mostly Motets
Music of the Spheres
Musica Pacifica
Music's Re-creation
New Esterhazy Quartet
Northern California Chapter of the Lute Society of America
Novello Quartet
Opera non Troppo
Sacramento Recorder Society
San Francisco Recorder Society
SexChordae Consort of Viols
Singers' Retreat
Click here for information on the next Singers' Retreat event.
The South Bay Recorder Society
Streicher Trio
Tibia Recorder Duo
Viola da Gamba Society -- Pacifica Chapter
Voices of Music
WAVE -- Women's Antique Vocal Ensemble