Introducing Our 2026/27 Season
It’s my privilege and pleasure to invite you to join us for this season’s exciting Signature Series and Special Event:
Shh . . . don’t tell anyone! We’re making off with the prime of Italy’s musical gold this season, with three ensembles, Concerto di Margherita, laReverdie and Opera Prima. Italy’s influence over Western Music across the centuries continues, burnished by the brilliance and accomplishments of these artists.
How often do we get the chance to hear two of the world’s great sopranos in one season? Lea Desandre, will be appearing with Jupiter Ensemble, led by the brilliant lutenist Thomas Dunford, and Amanda Forsythe will be appearing with Opera Prima, led by the equally brilliant gambist Cristiano Contadin. This is a rare and inspiring opportunity to compare and enjoy each of their distinct artistries.
Equally rare is the opportunity to hear bassoon and horn in leading roles in Baroque music. You can look forward to just that, in an autumnal musical feast highlighting the virtuosity of Katrina Russell and Andrew Clark on bassoon and horn respectively, with EMSI’s resident ensemble, Island Temperament, led by violinist Paul Luchkow.
Ensemble Caprice have become a regular and very popular attraction in our series over the years. This surely is due to their energetic and engaging director, Matthias Maute, under whose leadership the ensemble never fails to give us an exciting and stirring performance.
Occasionally we are tempted to venture past the Baroque period when a very worthwhile opportunity presents itself. A performance of Mozart wind octets, on period instruments by New York’s Les Délices, under the direction of acclaimed oboist Debra Nagy is certainly one of those opportunities: music by the master of melody, conveyed by what must be the most richly sonorous instrumental combination ever devised.
Over the past six years, we have witnessed the trauma of fire consuming Notre Dame de Paris followed by the triumph of its rebirth. 800 years ago, the construction of this magnificent edifice was accompanied by a similarly remarkable and consequential nativity: that of Western polyphony in music, born out of what we now call the “School of Notre Dame”.
Our Special Event in March celebrates this concurrence with the premiere of an original, semi-staged production: an imagined tale of a young novice monk who travels from Canterbury to Paris to study music. Over his lifetime, he witnesses the building of the great cathedral and participates in some of the most consequential events in the early history of Western music. Two narrators and a collection of vocal and instrumental ensembles will take the audience on an entertaining and illuminating journey through these formative years, with Victoria’s gothic cathedral, Christ Church Cathedral, standing in for Notre Dame. Special guest, Benjamin Bagby, one of the foremost interpreters of medieval music over the past 40 years, will travel here from Paris, to contribute as a musical consultant and coach and fill the role of one of the narrators.
I hope you will join us for this exciting line-up of concerts!
Bill Jamieson, Executive and Artistic Director
