Passaggi di Musica ~ The Art of Ornamentation

Vita Wallace ~ violin
Claire Smith Bermingham ~ violin
Lawrence Lipnik ~ tenor viol
Patricia Ann Neely ~ bass viol
Richard Kolb ~ lute

In the 16th and early 17th centuries, musicians loved to show off their ability to improvise and embellish fancy motifs called passaggi, breaking of divisions, or diferencias by adding expressive and technically challenging ornamentation to vocal works. Venice, a center for printing using moveable type, became a hotspot for the publication of instructional sources on the technique. We will explore some of the sources of inspiration including passaggi by Dalla Casa, Rognoni, Bassano, and the Spanish composer Ortiz.

Abendmusik, New York’s Early Music String Band, performs rarely-heard repertoire from the 16th to early 18th-centuries, across Western and Eastern Europe, on period instruments. Named after the 17th-century free concert series initiated by Franz Tunder and cultivated further by Dieterich Buxtehude in Lübeck, Abendmusik’s intent is to authentically recreate the music by researching the background and applying period performance practices, bringing this culturally significant repertoire to contemporary audiences.