Masques is a Montreal-based ensemble founded in 1998 to perform music of the 17th and 18th centuries. The name, Masques, derives from the masques of Elizabethan England, which blended music, dance and drama. Led by brilliant harpsichordist Olivier Fortin the group includes violinist Sophie Gent and cellist Mellisande Corriveau, and has become a meeting point for Canada’s young musicians. Among its growing number of awards, Masques received the grand prize in the Dorian/Early Music America Competition in 2001. For SDEMS Masques will present an exciting program of works by Biber, Rosenmüller, and Schmelzer that also includes Telemann’s Burlesque de Quixote as well as the Harpsichord Concerto in D, BWV 1054 by J. S. Bach.

…well-constructed and very crisply executed program…the musicianship throughout shows the period instruments involved at their best. (James Manheim, allmusic)

…this group’s playing is notable for its well-shaped phrasing, well-formed lines, and boldly struck rhythms. It’s the product of knowing, sensitive musicians who, although young, perform like seasoned veterans. (David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com)

Make early music part of your holiday celebration when the Grammy-nominated Dufay Collective returns to San Diego for a program of Christmas revels from Renaissance England. Flute, recorder, bagpipe, vielle, harp and guitar all resound as London’s Globe Theatre music director William Lyons leads the ensemble, featuring soprano Vivien Ellis, in a program of carols and dances. Selections from Cornysh, Gervaise, and Henry VIII are included, along with dances published by John Playford and traditional renaissance music. Since 1987, the Dufay Collective has performed around the world to critical acclaim, and has recorded a wide range of music from the medieval and renaissance periods. They can also be heard on a number of film tracks, including Harry Potter 3. Their concerts never fail to inform — and entertain.

…they are a remarkably talented ensemble who with every recording manage to surprise the listener with wit and imagination… The Dufay Collective are incapable of producing anything less than outstanding recordings.” (Classic CD)

The care with which the Dufay Collective had prepared their programme was evident in the combinations of instruments chosen for each item … and the kinds of melodic ornamentation used. …all in all, a most enjoyable evening. (Tess Knighton in The Independent)

Soprano Dame Emma Kirkby, for many the personification of the early music movement, returns to San Diego with countertenor Daniel Taylor, director of the Theatre of Early Music, in a program including music of Handel and the Bach’s setting of Psalm 51, Tilge, Höchster, meine Sünden, BWV 1083, based on the Stabat Mater of Pergolesi. These two superb soloists will perform with Musica Angelica under the direction of Martin Haselböck. «Download the program»

I would sooner part with one of my digits than with [Kikby’s] rendition of Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater… (Lansing McLoskey, Boston Early Music News)

If there’s a better countertenor in the world than Daniel Taylor, he keeps himself well hidden. (Richard Todd in the Ottawa Citizen)

…at that moment, [Musica Angelica] convinced me that there could be no
more meaningful music... (Los Angeles Times)

Founded in 1992 by former members of the St. Thomas Boys Choir in Leipzig (Bach’s church), amarcord has become one of the world’s leading vocal ensembles, and was recognized in 2002 with the prize for the German Music Competition for Chamber Music. amarcord’s hallmarks include a unique tone, breathtaking homogeneity, musical authenticity, and a good dose of charm and humor. amarcord performs a highly diverse repertoire of music, from medieval plainsong to madrigals and Renaissance masses, to compositions and cycles of works of the European Romantic period and the 20th century. Their program for us is drawn from sheet music from the St. Thomas Boys Choir library, and will include repertoire from chant through Lassus and Walter to Stefanini and Heinrich Schütz.

They were …impeccable in balance and blend, the five voices like a fivestringed instrument, identical in all but range. (The Irish Times)

Exquisite, a musically dazzling union of intelligent emotion, glittering esprit and supple elegance... (Schwäbische Zeitung)

La Rêveuse is an ensemble created by a group of the young generation of French musicians, and dedicated to bringing to life instrumental and vocal music of the baroque period. Viola da gambist Florence Bolton, harpsichordist Bertrand Cuiller and lutenist Benjamin Perrot will be joined by the American tenor Jeffrey Thompson in a presentation of songs by Lambert and Charpentier for the unique sound of the French haute-contre (high tenor) voice, as well as instrumental music of the period.

La Rêveuse’s supremely skilled and ecstatic performances give full force to both composers’ extraordinary rich musical personalities and overflowing imaginations.” (Christopher Price in International Record Review)

…the members of La Rêveuse bring a Gallic elegance to their playing that serves the music beautifully. (Stephen Pettitt in The Sunday Times)

After their stunning local debut in 2009, one of the greatest string quartets returns to San Diego with a program including Haydn’s Quartet in G minor, op. 20/3, Mozart’s “Hunt” Quartet, and Beethoven’s Quartet in F major, op. 135. Quatuor Mosaïques is arguably the finest of string quartets specializing in original instrument and period performances of 18th century literature. The Austrian group was founded in 1987 by four members of Nikolaus Harnoncourt’s Concentus Musicus Wien, and continues to receive critical acclaim including several Gramophone Awards.

…remarkably expressive and nuanced. (Vivien Schweitzer, New York Times)

The Mosaïques proved that, although they are a ’period’ ensemble, they are fully able to produce a full, dramatic sonority… This was a wonderfully uplifting chamber concert. (Geoff Diggines, Seen and Heard International)