EMAg Features

Sally Hemings' three sons with Thomas Jefferson, and many in her extended family, were accomplished musicians. The pieces they played are ripe for modern performances on historical instruments.

James Nicolson, the 2013 recipient of EMA’s Howard Mayer Brown Award for lifetime achievement in the field of early music, was interviewed in March 2021 by Leslie Kwan.

An EMA survey reveals strength amid the pandemic.

“We must be anti-racist in early music because early music is worth it.”

The people who build period instruments face many challenges.

In this and coming issues, EMAg will feature makers of early-music instruments, celebrating artisans who design and craft wind, string, keyboard, and percussion instruments based on historical models. Some of these makers are players themselves, and all interact closely with those who collect, play, and love their instruments.

Louisville, Kentucky, is a champion of whiskey and home to the Kentucky Derby, but old music has also taken up residence there, thanks to two ensembles, Bourbon Baroque and Incantare, which share violinist Alice Culin-Ellison

What sets many festivals apart are specific approaches and characteristics. In the world of early music, one can find festivals built around thematic programming and those that embrace a mix of repertoire meant to spice up our artistic lives.

Will Crutchfield’s new program at SUNY Purchase brings historical practices to early 19th-century opera.

Composers in the 21st century are taking music in all sorts of new directions by incorporating early instruments and vocal styles into their works. The results are bringing fresh horizons to everyone involved—creators, performers, listeners.