Viol concert celebrates spring (Seaven Teares)

Viol concert celebrates spring

"Shaun is our virtuoso in that he plays bass viol, violin, theorbo (bass lute) and violone, the viol family version of the double bass. This afternoon he features on tenor viol."

Thanks Jenny, Shaun.

05 Sep, 2011 12:00 AM

MOSS Vale Uniting Church is celebrating the end of a long, cold winter with a "Spring Concert" to raise funds for two special local charities: Triple Care Farm, which supports troubled teenagers, and The Angel Tree, an organisation that ensures the children of jailed prisoners receive Christmas gifts.

The musicians will once again be provided by Sydney-based string virtuoso, Jennifer Eriksson.

Jennifer has strong ties with the Highlands as her parents-in-law, Ken and Mary Pogson, are long-term Moss Vale residents and members of Moss Vale Uniting Church.

In 2010 Jennifer thrilled a packed house with the music of her unique ensemble, The Marais Project.

At that concert, many in the audience got to hear the viola da gamba (a seven-string, fretted instrument the same size as a cello) and harpsichord for the first time.

This year Jennifer will introduce the Highlands to her new viol consort, "Seaven Teares" in their first concert outside Sydney.

"A viol consort is similar to a string quartet," Jennifer said.

"Only all the instruments are members of the viol family rather than the violin family.

"This means that even the smallest instrument, the treble (similar to a violin) is played between the knees, as is my instrument, the viola da gamba."

"The music for viol consorts is very beautiful and relaxing: much of it dates from around the time of Queen Elizabeth I.

"However, I've also arranged some well known songs for the Consort so those attending will get to hear our rather ancient instrument play some more contemporary tunes."

Special guest artist for the Highlands Spring Concert is soprano Nicole Thomson, a long-term member of the nationally known professional choir, "The Song Company."

"I've had the pleasure of accompanying Nicole before," Jennifer said. "She has a gorgeous voice and a special stage presence."

Other members of Seaven Teares include Cathy Upex, Shaun Ng and Imogen Granwal, all of whom have worked extensively with Eriksson in the past.

Together they recently completed a new studio recording of viol consort music for ABCFM.

When: 2pm on Sunday, September 18.

Where: Moss Vale Uniting Church, corner Argyle and Spring streets, Moss Vale. Cost: $15/10

Tickets: Ken Pogson (phone 0248 681463) and at the door .

“Seaven Teares”- Highlands Spring Concert

From the Marais Project Blog:

2.00pm Sunday 18^th September, 2011

Presented by Moss Vale Uniting Church, cnr of Argyle and Spring St, Moss Vale (1.5hrs south of Sydney)

What follows is an edited version of the program notes for the concert on 18 September.

Southern Highlands Spring Concert

Moss Vale Uniting Church is celebrating the end of a long, cold winter with a “Spring Concert” to raise funds for two special local charities: “Triple Care Farm” which supports troubled teenagers and “The Angel Tree”, an organisation that ensures that the children of gaoled prisoners receive Christmas gifts.

I’ve been asked once again to provide the musicians. I have strong ties with the Highlands as my parents in law, Ken and Mary Pogson, are long term Moss Vale residents and members of Moss Vale Uniting Church. In 2010 we played to a packed house at Moss Vale Uniting with The Marais Project. At that concert, many in the audience got to hear the viola da gamba and harpsichord for the first time.

Background to the music and the viol consort

“Severn Teares” takes our name from a famous piece by John Dowland whose music makes an appearance in today’s concert at several points. Dowland lived and worked in England around the time of Queen Elizabeth, before English spelling was standardised. So “Severn Teares” is, of course, the old spelling of “Seven Tears”! Dowland and the other composers we play today wrote a great deal of beautiful and sophisticated music for viol consort which sounds very fresh to our ears even though some works are hundreds of years old.

The viol family has a history quite independent to the violin family and for a time, the two competed with each other for dominance. The viols eventually lost, but we are making a comeback! Technically, viols are constructed quite differently to the violin, viola and cello that make up the violin family. For example, we have 6 or 7 rather than 4 strings and we also make use of tied on frets. Our strings are made of sheep gut and strung at a lower tension than those of the modern violin or guitar. This means that viols “speak” more slowly, are softer and have great resonance. This wonderful resonance results in our consort “ringing on” for a moment or two after we finish playing each song – a lovely effect.

Unlike modern string players, viol consort members in olden times were expected to play at least two or more different instruments. Today Cathy will play treble viol, but she normally plays bass. Shaun is our virtuoso in that he plays bass viol, violin, theorbo (bass lute) and violone, the viol family version of the double bass. This afternoon he features on tenor viol. Imogen and Jenny will perform on the bass, but Jenny also plays treble viol and the smallest member of the viol family, the Pardessus viol. Imogen is a professional cellist by training but is also a skilled bass violist.

Much of the music for viol consort is “contrapuntal” which means it consists of a number of different instrumental voices intertwining with each other. The contrapuntal nature of the music means that at times audiences may have difficulty identifying a strong tune. Composers of this era tended to concentrate on writing for a number of different parts rather than on a single tune with an accompaniment. However, we encourage listeners to just to sit back and “take it all in”.

This concert will be the first time soprano Nicole Thomson has performed with us and we are very pleased to have her on board. She has sung in the past with The Marais Project with great success.

The Golden Century

Another one at the Sydney Conservatorium, this time on theorbo:

Conductors' Series - The Golden Century - Early Music Ensemble (4.00pm)
3 September 2011










Early Music Ensemble

Neal Peres Da Costa director
Matthew Manchester cornetto
Jane Sheldon soprano
Anna Fraser soprano

Program

Gabrieli	Canzona Quarti Toni a 15 (c1850)
Frescobaldi	Canzon "La Bernardina"
Schutz	Excerpts from Symphoniae sacrae
Praetorius	'Wie schoen leuchtet der Morgenstern' from Polyhmnia caduceatrix
Praetorius	Dances from Terspichore
Gabrieli	Canzona Septimi Toni a 8
Castello	Sonata 'La Strozza' for 2 soprano instruments
Schutz	Excerpts from Kleine geistliche Konzerte
Castello	Sonata Decima Sesta a 4 per stromenti d'Arco
Praetorius	'Puer natus in Bethlehem' from Musae Sioniae
Monteverdi	Bella Madre d'Amore
Gabrieli	Canzona a 22