2019-2020 Concert Season
HARMONY of the SPHERES
On the occasion of Frederick Renz's 50th year in the New York historical performance community and the 45th anniversary of Early Music New York, EM/NY's astronomical season covers the sphere of early music, from striking 13th century carols, across the 200-year expanse of the Bach dynasty, through the 7th return of our New York Early Music Celebration with music from Nordic and Baltic regions, and on to the outer “edges” of early music with the pinnacle of the classical symphony at the turn of the 19th century.
IV. BACH COUSINS
Luminous Dynasty ~ baroque orchestra
POSTPONED TO THE FALL
First Church of Christ, Scientist, Central Park West at 68th St.
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The 200-year Bach family dynasty has had a cosmic impact on Western classical music. The best-known of the Bach's, Johann Sebastian, often found inspiration from within the artistic tradition of a united family of composers and musicians, for whom music was, above all, a deeply spiritual enterprise. Author and dramatist Douglas Adams once said, “Mozart tells us what it's like to be human and Beethoven tells us what it's like to be Beethoven. Bach tells us what it's like to be the universe.” Indeed, for Johann Sebastian (1685 - 1750) and his notable kin, J. Bernhard (1676 – 1749), J. Christoph (1643 - 1703), J. Ludwig (1677 - 1731), J. Michael (1648 - 1694) and Heinrich (1615 - 1692), the planets themselves played the ultimate harmony.
(2 hours - with intermission)
Previous 2019-2020 Season Concerts
I. NORDIC ACCORD : 18th Century Scandinavia ~ chamber orchestra
Saturday, Oct. 26th 2019 at 7:30 PM
First Church of Christ, Scientist, Central Park West at 68th St.
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​Soloists: Bolette Roed, recorder & Alexandra Opsahl, cornetto
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As the aurora borealis was believed in Scandinavia to mark the dawning of a year of fruitful harvest, our inaugural 45th anniversary season concert marks the start of a bountiful year of music. Early Music New York Baroque Orchestra, conducted by Maestro Frederick Renz, presents the keynote event of the seventh Citywide New York Early Music Celebration 2019: Ex Borealis, in a vibrant program of 18th-century Scandiavian sinfonias and concertos. Northern lights shine on the works of Swedes Joseph Martin Krauss, Johan Joachim Agrell and Johan Helmich Roman, alongside the Danish related works of Johann Adolph Scheibe and Georg Philip Telemann. (2 hours - with intermission)
II. NOVA, NOVA : Christmas Star
~ mixed voices and instruments
Saturday, December 14th at 7:30 PM
First Church of Christ, Scientist, Central Park West at 68th
​Sunday, December 15th at 2:00 PM (SOLD OUT)
Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Amsterdam Ave. at 112th St.
Sunday, December 22nd at 2:00 PM (SOLD OUT)
Cathedral of St. John the Divine
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and Two Performances on Christmas Day:
Wednesday, December 25th at 2:00 PM (SOLD OUT)
Wednesday, December 25th at 5:00 PM (limited seating door sales only)
Cathedral of St. John the Divine
EM/NY continues its annual holiday tradition in the grand Cathedral of Saint John the Divine with this scintillating program of seasonal carols and motets from the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Like the astronomical nova which illuminates celestial bodies, the “nova” (new) transition from the massive Romanesque to airy Gothic tracery served both as a symbolic and literal transformation from dark to light. The brilliant, kaleidoscopic array of colors and light cast through stained glass windows into the new vaulted and buttressed spaces of Gothic architecture also permeates this richly-textured music of Ars nova Europe. Perennially stellar performances - order tickets early before shows sell out! (75 minutes - no intermission)
Click on the image for program highlights.
III. SYMPHONIC ZENITH
Eclipse of the 18th Century ~ classical orchestra
Saturday, March 7th, 2020 at 7:30 PM
First Church of Christ, Scientist, Central Park West at 68th St.
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The apex of the classical symphony, from the late 18th century into the turn of the 19th century, serves as the musical crowning of the Age of Enlightenment. Looking to Mozart and Haydn as examples, composers crafted more complex music, taking the symphony to new creative heights. Not yet eclipsed by 19th-century Romanticism, symphonic works by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, Joseph Martin Kraus, Christoph Willibald Gluck, astronomer-composer William Herschel and the young Felix Mendelssohn represent the pinnacle of the Classical era. Frederick Renz leads his band of virtuoso players as he expands the bounds of historical performance in celebration of his 50th year on the early music scene. (2 hours - with intermission)
These events are made possible in part with public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the generosity of EMF's Friends of Early Music.
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The Venues:
The Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine, (Chapel of Saint James)
1047 Amsterdam Avenue at 112th Street, New York, NY 10025
(Performances on December 15th, the 22nd and the 25th, 2019)
Located in Morningside Heights, adjacent to the Columbia University campus, the Cathedral is easily reached by public transportation: Buses M4, M11, M104; Subway #1 to 110th Street & Broadway.
Parking is available in nearby garages on 110th, 112th, and 114th Streets.
Performances take place in the Cathedral's intimate Saint James Chapel. Our ticket table will be just outside the entrance to the Chapel. Tickets are available for purchase or pickup (Will Call) one half hour before curtain.
The Cathedral is wheelchair accessible via a ramp just north of the main entrance, off of Amsterdam Avenue below 113th Street. Please call the Visitor Center for additional information at (212) 316-7540.
First Church of Christ, Scientist
77 Central Park West at 68th Street, New York, NY 10023
(Performances on Oct. 26th & Dec. 14th, 2019 and March 7th & May 2nd, 2020)
EM/NY's new, “best kept secret,” Lincoln Square performance venue —
Near Lincoln Center, the First Church of Christ, Scientist faces Central Park at 68th St. and is reached via the M72, M10 and Columbus Avenue M7 & M11 bus lines; subways C or B to 72nd at Central Park West (70th St. exit) and the #1 to 66th at Broadway. Parking garages are available along 68th and 66th Streets.
For information regarding disability access call (212) 280-0330.
