House Concerts
Chanterelle Chanterelle plays early music in the intimate House concerts enable you and your guests to sit back, relax and listen while the Renaissance ensemble Chanterelle transports you to the beautiful world of 16th century chamber music. When griping grief the heart doth wound, The Renaissance was an age every bit as violent and troubled as our own, yet its music remained serene and unaffected, contained in a beautiful world of its own. For the Renaissance man and woman, music was "The sweet and healing balm of troubles". Clarity, elegance and beauty are the qualities that pervade this 'old' music and make it seem so new and fresh to our jaded modern ears. Perhaps this is the reason why Early Music has become so popular throughout the world. Our 'griping griefs and doleful dumps' certainly need redressing. What are house concerts? A House concert is a recital in a private home. A home allows for a more informal and intimate recital. It is ideal from an audience point of view, where everyone can be comfortable, warm and closer to the performers than would usually be possible. Successful house concerts have also been given in community halls, small function rooms, art galleries, and even an enjoyable one in a conference centre as a relaxing final evening after a three day professional seminar.
There is nothing special required for you to put on a House Concert. The atmosphere is friendly and normal chairs and cushions on the floor are fine for seating. There is no minimum number of people required for an audience. At least 15 is a good starting point, and house concerts for 40 or more people can be successfully held if a room size allows for this. Simply invite friends and anyone you feel may be interested, and encourage them to RSVP as soon as possible. You can provide the sort of refreshments you wish — such as simple snacks and coffee — or more. We can help you here with ideas and tell you what has worked well with others. The door charge varies and is established by the host and the artists. At the end of the concert the door takings are added up and the basic expenses incurred by the host are reimbursed from this total. A public concert usually costs more, with limited opportunity to mix and meet one another in friendly and comfortable surroundings. That being so, hosting a unique house concert, whether in the evening or on a weekend afternoon, is a memorable way to entertain and be entertained. Chanterelle is based in the Wellington area and consists of... PEPE BECKER ~ Soprano As well as composing music, Pepe also directs her own group, 'Baroque Voices.' DON KING & STEPHEN PICKETT ~ Renaissance lutes Both have devoted themselves to the study and practice of authentic playing techniques of this rare and beautiful instrument. ROBERT OLIVER ~ Bass & treble viol Robert is Director of Music at the Church of St Mary of the Angels, Wellington, New Zealand. Here are the programme notes for Chanterelle's current house concerts:
Music from Shakespeare's Plays. "If music be the food of love, play on," 
Music played an important role in the Renaissance theatre and Shakespeare brought new subtlety to its use. In a theatre without lights and sets, it fell to music to underline mood, whether for magic, comedy, feasting or pathos.
In Shakespeare's hands music served to enhance mood. He used trumpet calls for battles or for the arrival of a king and nobles, wind-music for banquets, an ensemble of instruments to play a stately Pavan or Alman dance tune to accompany a procession.
Softer instruments like the lute and viol were used to play the 'sweeter' music in scenes of love, falling asleep or for a miraculous healing. The sound of the lute was perceived by Elizabethans to act as a benign force over the human spirit; like musical homeopathy, it eased melancholy by transforming it into exquisite art.
However, it was in his use of songs that Shakespeare excelled. He often used these to show the personalities, feelings and states of mind of the characters in his plays. Shakespeare, being a lyric poet, used more than a hundred songs in his plays. Our programme presents settings of songs and instrumental music for the plays from Shakespeare's lifetime by Thomas Morley, Robert Johnson, John Dowland, Richard Edwards and Robert Jones, including lyrics set to popular ballad tunes that would have been very familiar to Shakespeare's audience. Scraps of these ballad tunes were used to create in-jokes and to evoke other sentiments as well. The pathos of Ophelia's madness was increased with the knowledge, which probably went back to childhood, of the folk songs she croons in her distraction. Leading composers of the time made purely instrumental variations of popular ballad tunes, transforming them from simple folk tunes to sophisticated 'art' music. Although many songs have been lost, it is fortunate that some of these songs survive today. House concerts provide an ideal setting to bring these back to life. If you wish to put on a House Concert in the Wellington area, or even around NZ... or simply want to find out more without obligation, please use this Contact Form. Or call: Don King, Tel:(04) 977 1941 3 Mortimer Terrace, Aro Valley, Wellington, New Zealand
Return to top: Chantarelle House Concerts
|
