Nov. 14, attendees at McCray Hall experienced a historically rich and unusual performance as the Baltimore Consort returned to Pittsburg for the first time since 1997. The performance gave the audience a glimpse into early and traditional music that was carried from Europe to North America by early settlers.
For some, the performance gave them an opportunity to hear music and sounds that are rarely included in modern-day concerts. Auston Rageth, a fifth-year music performance major, said the range of instruments stood out to him.
“I thought it was really good, really cool,” Rageth said. “It isn’t every day that you get to hear such niche instruments. I was excited when I learned there were going to be bagpipes in this too.”
Thomas Thompson, a freshman computer science major, also agreed with the historical aspect of the program.
“It was really incredible. I mean, these aren’t instruments you hear every day,” Thomson said. “I think we don’t really go back further in time enough, like doing more of this folk music would be great. They were so focused, but you could tell they also enjoyed what they did.”
Gavin Merlip, a community member, said that the concert exceeded his expectations, even though the music was outside of his usual listening taste.
“It was great to hear a different kind of music of course,” Merlip said. “It isn’t really my taste, but I still really enjoyed listening to them. That singer was really amazing; she did so good too.”
The concert, drew a large turnout, some in the audience listening to several of the featured instruments for the first time.
Mary Anne Ballard played the treble and bass viols; Mark Cudek performed on the cittern, bass viol, recorder, crumhorn, and percussion. Larry Lipkis contributed to the sound with bass viol, recorder, and crumhorn; Ronn McFarlane played the lute and bandora. Mindy Rosenfeld played on the flute, fife, crumhorn, and bagpipe; an instrument the audience seemed to enjoy hearing. Danielle Svonavec served as the soprano vocalist who sang throughout the program.
The program was titled “Crossing to the New World- Early and Traditional Music in the British Isles, France, and North America,” which focused on the musical traditions that settlers had carried from their homelands, and across the Atlantic. These traditions were preserved in the early communities such as Appalachia and parts of the French and Scottish Canada; who share roots with older European origins. The group highlighted these connections through the evening with their pieces blending together smoothly.
The Baltimore Consort was created in order to perform and explore music from the time of William Shakespeare’s life. Over the years, the group slowly became known for their blend of plucked and bowed strings, flutes and recorders, caped reeds, and percussion. The team on stage Friday night had six performers playing a total of nine instruments.