2006-2007 R&B Outreach & Education Activities

September 30
CONCERT TITLE: Oliver's Travels
GROUP NAME: Chris Norman Ensemble
INSTRUMENTATION: 6 musicians: flutes, pipes, viola da gamba, bass, percussion, harmonium, guitars, mandola, raconteur, harpsichord, and balladeer
CONCERT INFORMATION: Flute player Oliver Goldsmith was a true renaissance man of the 18th-century Baroque: musician, dramatist, poet, and legendary traveler. The Chris Norman Ensemble fuses Goldsmith's many talents into an entertaining evening of music and spoken word. From Ireland to Italy, Scotland to Switzerland, eavesdrop on the foibles of high society and compare them to today’s tabloids. Hold the paparazzi!
OUTREACH: The Chris Norman Ensemble spent two days in Pittsburgh. They spent time at the Kentucky School, Mt. Lebanon High School, and The Children’s Institute.
NUMBER REACHED: 425

October 21
CONCERT TITLE: Graveyard Music
GROUP NAME: Artek
INSTRUMENTATION: 8 musicians: voices, lute, harp, theorbo, guitar, viola da gamba, harpsichord
CONCERT INFORMATION: Death, darkness, and despair with a dash of the macabre. Just in time for the witching hour, Artek arrives with its program of graveyard music. These Baroque musicians execute chants, dances, readings, and even some spooky multimedia mischief. Go six feet under with Dowland and Purcell…but no coffin please. OUTREACH: The musicians of Artek spent two days at Colfax Elementary School and a day at The Kentucky School.
NUMBER REACHED: 257

November 18
CONCERT TITLE: Extravagant Inventions
GROUP NAME: Les Boreades de Montreal
INSTRUMENTATION: 5 instrumentalists: flute, violin, viola, cello, harpsichord
CONCERT INFORMATION: This ensemble brings energy and spontaneity to its theatricality with excessive and elegant playing to spotlight this “hey look at me” music. If virtuosity was born in Italy, it grew up in the major courts and cities of Baroque Europe where Palestrina and Merula indulgently composed “extravagant inventions” for budding prodigies.
OUTREACH: The director of the ensemble gave the pre-concert talk and all of the musicians participated in a post-concert question and answer session the day of their performance in Pittsburgh.

December 2
CONCERT TITLE: Nowell's Delight
GROUP NAME: Piffaro
INSTRUMENTATION: 8 musicians: voice, recorders, shawms, sackbuts, krumhorns, bagpipes, lutes, guitars, percussion
CONCERT INFORMATION: Piffaro, joined by the shimmering voice of soprano Laura Heimes, brings musical traditions of Christmas alive in this wide-ranging program of carols, motets, songs and dances. From the hauntingly beautiful carols of 15th-century England to the spirited villancicos of 16th-century Spain, this music weaves a bright tapestry of unusual sounds and instrumental colors. Ding dong merrily!
OUTREACH: Piffaro spent a day at The Neighborhood Academy and a day at Colfax Elementary School. They also performed for the children and staff at The Children's Institute.
NUMBER REACHED: 455

January 27
CONCERT TITLE: Sine Nomine
GROUP NAME: The Hilliard Ensemble
INSTRUMENTATION: vocal ensemble from England
CONCERT INFORMATION: Pass tyme in goode company: English Renaissance superstars William Byrd, Thomas Tallis, and Christopher Tye vie for top billing in this exquisite offering from this British ensemble. Motets and Mass settings provide the vehicle for these beautifully tuned and blended voices.
OUTREACH: The musicians participated in a post-concert question and answer session.

February 10
CONCERT TITLE: Beowulf
GROUP NAME: Ben Bagby
INSTRUMENTATION: Medieval vocal with voice and harp
CONCERT INFORMATION: Seamus Heaney's verse translation made Beowulf hip again. Ben Bagby takes the saga back to its roots with his dramatic performance of this Medieval horror story in Anglo-Saxon with English supertitles. A classic legend spoke-sung as only Bagby can!
OUTREACH: Ben Bagby participated in a post-concert question and answer session.

March 17
CONCERT TITLE: Rolling in the Isles
GROUP NAME: Quadriga Consort
INSTRUMENTATION: 7 musicians from Austria: voice, recorders, viols, harpsichord, percussion
CONCERT INFORMATION: Revel in the warm sounds and vibrant beats of Gaelic music. Seamlessly blending the traditions of monastery and tavern hall, Quadriga Consort takes listeners on a musical journey through the highlands and lowlands of Scotland. Jigs, reels, and strathspeys blur the boundaries between folk and art music.
OUTREACH: The musicians spent a day at the Falk School, a day at The Oakland School and performed for the children and staff at The Children's Institute.
NUMBER REACHED: 490

April 28
CONCERT TITLE: Bach on Water
GROUP NAME: Academy of Ancient Music, Richard Egarr director
INSTRUMENTATION: Baroque orchestra from England
CONCERT INFORMATION: Water music everywhere…and a Brandenburg to boot! Richard Egarr conducts the Academy of Ancient Music in two Water music suites—by Handel and Telemann—and in Baroque gems including Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 4. Don't miss one of the world's first period-instrument ensembles, now in its fourth decade as one of the finest.
OUTREACH: The director of the ensemble gave the pre-concert talk and some of the musicians participated in a post-concert question and answer session the day of their performance in Pittsburgh.

In addition to the activities listed above, artists performing on the series are asked to participate in a pre-concert talk and post-concert question and answer session.